has anyone heard of blackhawk farms raceway before?

gixxerjoe06

Member
Jan 19, 2012
29
0
a friend of mine told me about it a couple days ago, and ive been trying to see how it works with trying to get a day to go ride up there. i emailed a rep and she wasnt so helpful. i was asking if i can just come any day they are open to ride, and she tells me that they themselves dont hold track days? special organizations do? im kinda lost because im not trying to race in any class. i just want to get some serious track time in to improve my handling and control and form without worring about crazy people on the street to look out for. hoping someone here has went and can help me out more than this lady has. thanks in advance
:banana-mario:
 

ThirdgenTa

TCG Elite Member
Mar 17, 2008
5,156
140
Aurora
I have friends that race there but I have not myself. For starters you need all the appropriate gear. Full leathers, helmet, boots and gloves. You will also need to remove your mirrors and tape up anything that can shatter. IE- headlights, corner lights etc.
They will break you up into different groups based on your skill level. I highly suggest going in the newb group your first time. You will also need to attend a class and register your day online beforehand.
That's all I pretty much know from hearing my friends talk about it but can get more info if you would like.
Oh and expect to spend a ton of money. I know every time they go they spend a min of a few hundred. Track racing is expensive, but I hear its a TON of fun.
 

sickmint79

I Drink Your Milkshake
Mar 2, 2008
26,906
16,620
grayslake
the only track you can kind of "walk-on" to is gingerman, in south haven, mi. in the summer m-th or t-th they have 6-9 open track for $60. you might be the only one there, or you might be there with some magazine testing a car, or groups of friends, etc. they break the people there up into classes; i think open wheel, closed wheel and motorcycles all automatically get different classes. then you just go out 15 or 20 then they reel you back in for 15 or 20 and kick you out again. not sure of safety reqs, for a car it's just an up to date helmet and a car that doesn't have pieces falling off of it onto the track.

otherwise like above, you need to find a group to go with for a track day. generally these are weekdays and for cars 150-300, averaging 200-250 for the day. you also chew some tire, brake and gas. they are not super common in the first place, but simply because you are looking for moto they are probably even less common; by spring/early summer there will probably be schedules all around for groups - clubs or private instructing organizations - that you'll be able to jump on the track with for a full day.
 

gixxerjoe06

Member
Jan 19, 2012
29
0
thank you thridgenta and sickmint, youve been alot of help. this wont be a common thing(sadly) because of its cost, but i hear from everyone that is the best kind of racing out there. id much rather road race than drag race(im ready to get flamed) because it takes much more talent to take turns and maintain a good line than to go balls out for a 1/4 mile. dont get me wrong i love drag racing but on a bike you just not using your machine to its peak performance!
 

KAR

Rip Riski
Jan 4, 2010
4,542
2
Elk Grove
Not here to flame as I would definetly like to take a motorcycle or car around a road course but to say it takes much more talent or using the vehicle to its peak performance over drag racing I have to call bs on. It's two different forms of racing that require two different talents to get the bike to its full performance and the setup is completely different between the two.

One is getting the full "peak" performance out of the bike in acceleration and the other is getting full performance out of it in braking and turning while accelerating out of turns.

As of right now I'm all about the drag racing and its not as easy as just going up to the staging line, dropping the clutch and going full throttle. If it was that easy everyone would be doing it. It's a hell of a rush pulling a 1.4x or 1.5 60ft on a bike while trying to hold on for dear life, then getting your foot up in time to shift into second gear. You gotta fight wheeling to much or spinning the tire off the line.
 

Vogz

Moist Ass Bitch
Jul 4, 2006
4,481
233
Batavia, IL
Try Sportbike Track Time for relatively cheap lapping time. They have different skill levels so you won't have to worry about getting out of your comfort zone on the track.
http://www.sportbiketracktime.com/

I used to ride with them and Private Track Time (who isn't in operation anymore IIRC).

I'll have to warn you though. Once you get a bit of track experience, you won't want to ride on the street anymore. I rode on the street from 2001-2007. I started running track days in 2006 and wasn't riding on the street at all after 2007.
 

Vogz

Moist Ass Bitch
Jul 4, 2006
4,481
233
Batavia, IL
Not here to flame as I would definetly like to take a motorcycle or car around a road course but to say it takes much more talent or using the vehicle to its peak performance over drag racing I have to call bs on. It's two different forms of racing that require two different talents to get the bike to its full performance and the setup is completely different between the two.

One is getting the full "peak" performance out of the bike in acceleration and the other is getting full performance out of it in braking and turning while accelerating out of turns.

As of right now I'm all about the drag racing and its not as easy as just going up to the staging line, dropping the clutch and going full throttle. If it was that easy everyone would be doing it. It's a hell of a rush pulling a 1.4x or 1.5 60ft on a bike while trying to hold on for dear life, then getting your foot up in time to shift into second gear. You gotta fight wheeling to much or spinning the tire off the line.

I'm going to completely disagree with you here.

I've drag raced both bike and cars and run both bikes and cars on road courses.

Drag racing isn't just dumping the clutch and going full throttle and holding on, but it's much easier to master than road course riding or driving on a bike or in a car.

Really the most important factor in drag racing is the launch. Get that down and you're going to run really good E.T.s as all you have to do after that some throttle management (if there is any wheelie issues) and shifting.

There is so much that goes into cutting down lap times around a track, and it's takes a lot more track time to do it than it does on a drag strip. I'd say it took me about 5 passes on my R6 to get my 60's down and run my PR. It took me 2 seasons of track days to run decent lap times around a road course (that was after dragging my knees during my first track day ever on the bike).

Try it and you'll understand.
 

gixxerjoe06

Member
Jan 19, 2012
29
0
Try Sportbike Track Time for relatively cheap lapping time. They have different skill levels so you won't have to worry about getting out of your comfort zone on the track.
http://www.sportbiketracktime.com/

I used to ride with them and Private Track Time (who isn't in operation anymore IIRC).

I'll have to warn you though. Once you get a bit of track experience, you won't want to ride on the street anymore. I rode on the street from 2001-2007. I started running track days in 2006 and wasn't riding on the street at all after 2007.

thanks for the advice man! and about not wanting to ride on the street again.....thats what ive heard, and i dont want that to happen at all. but i can imagine how great it is not having to worry about traffic and concentrate fully on riding
 

KAR

Rip Riski
Jan 4, 2010
4,542
2
Elk Grove
Gixxer I hear ya and that's why I drag race as its cheaper and more tracks readily available.

Vogz- I agree that drag racing is all about the launch and 1-2 shift but it may only take a few passes to learn the technique, it will take multiply passes to master it. There is also a big difference of running a r6 to a 1k bike.

I'm assuming you had stock wheel base on the bike? What where your 60's? Probably 1.7ish? Running around 10.7 on that bike? Granted you have to stretched the bike out to get sub 1.5 60fts on a bike but there is a bike difference between cutting 1.5 or 1.4 60fts compared to that 1.7 and also a big difference of going 10.7's to 10.0's

One talks about cutting seconds off a lap while one talks about cutting tenths of a second off a lap.

Either way I would love to try my hand at a road course and learn to master curving corners.
 

KAR

Rip Riski
Jan 4, 2010
4,542
2
Elk Grove
And vogz just because you got a pr after only a few laps does not mean you've reached the full performance of the bike as it sits in that state. I'm if you went again it would take a few passes to get that pr and then a few more you'd probably be able to beat that again. Hell I set a pr and it took me almost three trips to the track and about 40-50 passes to finally beat it and once I did I had four runs better then it. But drag racing is learning how to be consistent as well to nail that pr every time or come within .1 of it.
 

gixxerjoe06

Member
Jan 19, 2012
29
0
And vogz just because you got a pr after only a few laps does not mean you've reached the full performance of the bike as it sits in that state. I'm if you went again it would take a few passes to get that pr and then a few more you'd probably be able to beat that again. Hell I set a pr and it took me almost three trips to the track and about 40-50 passes to finally beat it and once I did I had four runs better then it. But drag racing is learning how to be consistent as well to nail that pr every time or come within .1 of it.

kar, we will have to go to byron sometime, ill give your drag racing a shot, i use to go there all the time in my car but never on a bike. should be fun!
 

KAR

Rip Riski
Jan 4, 2010
4,542
2
Elk Grove
For sure! Don't get me wrong I will one day try a road course and yes it a lot of fun to take corners on a bike, but for me personally I prefer drag racing right now. The rush I get from pulling low 1.5 to 1.4 60fts is hard to explain. I will be running in the 9's this year as I am looking at a new bike so it will also be a new learning curve with a new bike that as it sits bone stock, can run the same numbers as the current bike I have.
 

Vogz

Moist Ass Bitch
Jul 4, 2006
4,481
233
Batavia, IL
Gixxer I hear ya and that's why I drag race as its cheaper and more tracks readily available.

Vogz- I agree that drag racing is all about the launch and 1-2 shift but it may only take a few passes to learn the technique, it will take multiply passes to master it. There is also a big difference of running a r6 to a 1k bike.

I'm assuming you had stock wheel base on the bike? What where your 60's? Probably 1.7ish? Running around 10.7 on that bike? Granted you have to stretched the bike out to get sub 1.5 60fts on a bike but there is a bike difference between cutting 1.5 or 1.4 60fts compared to that 1.7 and also a big difference of going 10.7's to 10.0's

One talks about cutting seconds off a lap while one talks about cutting tenths of a second off a lap.

Either way I would love to try my hand at a road course and learn to master curving corners.

My 2000 R6 was bone stock when I took it to the strip a few times. I was cutting 1.7s and running around 10.8@126-127mph which is about the best anyone of my weight (170lbs) ever ran on that bike. There wasn't much more in it. Either way it was much easier to get very very close to the max potential on my R6 on the drag strip after just a handful of passes vs. a road course which took a couple YEARS and I still couldn't run within 10 seconds of a pro on most road courses.
 

Vogz

Moist Ass Bitch
Jul 4, 2006
4,481
233
Batavia, IL
For sure! Don't get me wrong I will one day try a road course and yes it a lot of fun to take corners on a bike, but for me personally I prefer drag racing right now. The rush I get from pulling low 1.5 to 1.4 60fts is hard to explain. I will be running in the 9's this year as I am looking at a new bike so it will also be a new learning curve with a new bike that as it sits bone stock, can run the same numbers as the current bike I have.


I pulls 1.5s in my car...I know the feeling ;)

BUT...nothing beats dragging your knee in a long sweeper @ 60+mph
 

KAR

Rip Riski
Jan 4, 2010
4,542
2
Elk Grove
My 2000 R6 was bone stock when I took it to the strip a few times. I was cutting 1.7s and running around 10.8@126-127mph which is about the best anyone of my weight (170lbs) ever ran on that bike. There wasn't much more in it. Either way it was much easier to get very very close to the max potential on my R6 on the drag strip after just a handful of passes vs. a road course which took a couple YEARS and I still couldn't run within 10 seconds of a pro on most road courses.

Get a faster bike, it's much harder and more of a rush, the more powerful a bike is the harder it comes to launching it and the more skill is needed. I feel like I'm crawling off the line when I pull 1.7 60fts on my bike. But here let's make the example, any 600's are like the Honda civics of cars. It's much much easier to drive the vehicle to its full potential then some thing more powerful, as you would probably know.

I pulls 1.5s in my car...I know the feeling ;)

BUT...nothing beats dragging your knee in a long sweeper @ 60+mph

I was gonna say, don't you have a faster car then that r6? :rofl: but I have yet to do that and definitly need to get on it. Hmmmm maybe I won't stretch this new bike right away...... Naw that won't happen as I'll get tired of stock ride height since I'm short and won't want to be wheeling in third gear roll ons on the highway.
 
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