The Ultimate Test Ride
Friday afternoon I get a call from Botany Honda - "Would you like to take our new 07 CBR600RR to the trackday at Taupo on Tuesday?" says Dave, "We've just unpacked it, Danny and John have already ridden it and think it's great! Have a think about it." You would think the answer would have been a "Hell yeah!!"but me being me, there is some hesitation.
Some of you know that I've learnt a lot from Aaron Slight and this trackday was billed as the "Aaron Slight Rider Development Day". I've taken his last advice regarding braking and increasing corner speed, and I had planned to show my progress and ask him about the next step. Could I do this on an unfamiliar bike straight out of the box? Sent a few texts off to the mates and the general consensus was that I should do it! Of course this meant that Ninjaboy found out about the demo CBR and went down to help run it in on Saturday.
So Monday I finish work early and head down to Botany Honda to swap bikes. Nice black CBR (250km on the clock) greets me and no real instructions on what I can and can't do with it from Danny except that I'm allowed to let riders I know and trust ride it at the track. First thing I notice is how light it feels moving it of it's stand (155kg dry). I head down to the Autobarn to meet Ian on his black Fireblade and we head down to Taupo via SH27 hoping to get there before dark at license friendly speeds.
On the road the riding position is slightly more upright and there seemed more windblast compared to my GSXR. Good on the wrists, probably not so good on the knees with the pegs reasonably high, and after 2.5 hrs I had a sore butt. No problems for me with any of the switchgear though Ninjaboy commented on difficulty getting his foot under the gear lever. One of the Cyclespot guys we pitted with also had the same problem - some adjustment > fixed. Ride comfort was good I thought given the bikes agility. Yes it turns in very well and feels light and highly flickable. The electronic steering damper is interesting. At low speed there is no damping, so you can do the countersteering to avoid potholes etc that we learnt at RRRS. A bit more low to midrange power meant 6th gear overtakes were common in the light Monday afternoon traffic. I almost never do that on the GSXR. General impression was of an efficient motorcycle - not particularly exciting. Get down to Taupo very easily on a one tank (18l capacity vs 16.5l on the GSXR), and it used about a litre less than I'm used to so tank range is much better. The CBR has a fuel gauge and the clock is always on display, even when bikes switched off (great on a trackday). No gear position indicator though - very useful for those of us used to it. Headlights were average.
Tuesday morning and the weather is fine.There are 90 odd bikes there, mostly Honda's though this isn't always so. No motards or race bikes this time. There are three other 07 CBR600s there, two red and one blue/white. I find taking the mirrors off/on is much easier than on the K6 GSXR. I set the suspension to Sebastien Charpentiers recommended track settings (from Superbike magazine) thinking it'd be a good place to start. Lots of interest in these bikes so much of the day is spent talking about the bike and a few of the regular trackday addicts get a session on the bike. All comments were favourable both with handling and power.
I have an absolute blast on the track. Lots of confidence in the bike means I'm going at the same pace as I do on my bike by the second session. On the track the most impressive for me is the engine. Compared with my GSX-R600 there is more midrange, and coming out of turns 5 and 7 this is most noticeable. Redlined at 15000rpm there seems more at the top end as well. The copied track suspension settings were a good start I thought, except the front felt quite light and I could feel it lifting coming out of turn 1 and 7. This could probably be tuned out. Bike turned in well, most noticeably in turn 9, the "new" A1 right hander which has a relatively high entry speed and minimal braking. On the whole I thought that the CBR was better than my GSXR at the track. (That was difficult to write!) To rub salt to the wound, It also used less fuel at the track. After the usual four sessions it only took 9 litres.
My time with Aaron Slight again proved invaluable. In a later session he followed me for 3 or 4 laps then I followed him for one before the chequered flag. Unfortunately he described my mid corner speed as scary!!His last advice was brake earlier but less, to improve corner speed and I had learnt this well. The problem he saw was that I'm off the brakes and onto the power before the apex and this causes the front to lift when I still want the bike to turn. This lifting as noted above doesn't happen so much on my own bike. Aaron suggested I try to get more weight over the front (sticking a knee out helps with this) and brake later and harder again so I brake right to the apex, then power out from there.
In keeping with the Honda theme, I rode home in the company of three Fireblades. With more time on the bike, this trip was fine on the body. I was mentally tired after six riding sessions and the ride home, but there were no physical aches or sore bum this time. Easily made the trip all the way home without a fuel stop.
A BIG thank you to Botany Honda for the opportunity to try out the new CBR600RR to the fullest extent - It was the Ultimate Test Ride. I've always said that all the guys there are great to deal with so whenever I can, I spend my money there. It's nice to know that these guys do appreciate our business!
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Originally Posted by K6K
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