Skip Barber Superbike School

These sessions went on throughout the day, each one with a strict goal of a specific thing to work on. Some of the sessions were dominated by “drills” that saw us concentrating on specific portions of the track, while others kept us circulating for entire sessions. During one of the afternoon sessions, Haney hooked up a radio in my helmet and jumped in behind me for a few laps.

“Elbow down…look into the turn, look into the turn…okay, good, now…where’s the exit?…” It quickly made me realize that so much of my style could be improved, and right away I could feel myself getting smoother. One thing that struck me was just how important it was to lead with your eyes by looking way ahead.

Another exercise that we worked on was being smooth on the brakes, and controlling the motorcycle to a quick stop, which we practiced on Laguna’s front straight. Each session we did on the track was followed up with some sort of review and discussion, as well as feedback from the instructors.

Our final session of the day gave us a chance to stretch our legs and attempt to put everything together for a nice, speedy session. I jumped out behind DiSalvo thinking I might show him a thing or two with my newfound confidence, but promptly fell behind his pace in about four turns. By the end of the session, I was totally shot and glad to be off the track.

When we had arrived in the morning, Haney had warned us that it wouldn’t be a track day—in other words, we’d have plenty of seat time, but not so many consecutive “hot” laps. This proved to be the case, but we were working on so many things, as well as applying them, that I really didn’t notice. That last session was both fun and tiring, but was a great chance to try and link things together without thinking about new input.

That night, pretty much the whole group went out to dinner and swapped war stories about the day. Our group was an eclectic crowd, consisting of a few journalists and a number of MotoGP race fans who’d decided to link the school and the race together, as well as few members of the KTM staff who were trying street bikes for the first time.

Day two began much like day one, with a brief classroom session in the main building, as well as a review of what we’d done the day before. It was another sun-drenched California day, and I was keen to get back out on the track again, and to keep applying some of the things I’d learned the day before.

One thing that was cool was being able to ride multiple motorcycles, and not be confined to one specific school bike. After trying all three KTM school models, I eventually settled on the Super Duke, mostly due to my off-road background and comfort level with sitting upright. I decided to concentrate on this one motorcycle for the entire day, and really to work on improving smoothness.

The morning session saw us running more mixed drills, which was good, and it seemed like we spent more time on the bikes. One thing worth pointing out is that our group, which was only around twenty-five students or so, was comprised of all skill levels and ages. It really didn’t seem to matter, as the instructors kept things evenly paced and distanced out.

Toward the afternoon, things really opened up. Howard had another video camera mounted on his bike, and it was time to piece everything together for a full lap. Under the watchful eye of Big Brother (Howard and Haney in this case), I managed to pass the test, although my motocross habits of upright body positioning kept surfacing. That was a reoccurring theme, and one that I need to focus on when riding on the pavement.

The last session of the day was pretty much an “open lapping” program, and one in which students were able to hook up with an instructor who would tow them around while allowing them to push. This was fun, but I was pretty knackered from two full days of riding, and by that point in the day I was pretty much taking it easy.

Things closed out with an informal graduation ceremony, as well as an opportunity to purchase some photos from the day (The Skip Barber program has a photographer on staff).

I was personally impressed by the experience, and appreciated the chance to participate in it. Virtually everything that Haney discusses translates to the street, and the ability to make quick, evasive actions in the case of an emergency or sudden movement.

The day following the school, I decided to take my little Ducati Monster on a quick ride up on Skyline (a popular motorcycling road in Nor Cal), to put my newfound body positioning and skills to work. Right away, I felt more comfortable and imuch more in control of the bike. In fact, the difference in my comfort level was significant, with the biggest single thing being how far ahead I found myself looking into turns, which allows for much quicker reactions.

There are many excellent schools to choose from around the country, but the new Barber program is certainly worth taking a look at. Jeff Haney is one of, if not the best riding instructor in the country. And in case you’re wondering, the guy can still ride, as he demonstrated in many instances throughout the school.

To learn more about the Skip Barber Superbike School Powered by KTM, visit www.skipbarbersuperbikeschool.com.

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