Builds & Gear

TrackDNA Note This session plan pulls from Dave Moss’s test-day protocol. Think of it as a baseline you can bend to your pace, your track org’s rules, and whatever the weather and surface are doing that day. The percentages (85/90/95%) are effort and focus levels, not a stopwatch target, and that distinction matters because chasing […]

Photos by James Sheppard “I attended my first track day during the last century.” I had to let that sit for a second. A year into owning my first sportbike – a 1997 Kawasaki EX500 (work with me here) – I saw a poster at a Ducati dealer in Winnipeg advertising motorcycle racing at Gimli

If you have an annual practice of draining the tank to winterize your motorcycle and walk away for 3-5 months due to a seemingly interminable winter and a ludicrously short riding season, this article will provide a perspective that encourages you to revisit your motorcycle over the winter months for a task per month to

As the son of an aircraft mechanic, long before I started riding and racing motorcycles, I’d heard about safety wiring. Dad ran a small shop on the Canadian prairies in the early 1980s. When I spent time with him (likely due to a lack of available babysitters), he’d point out things on small sport aircraft

Dave tuning a BMW S1000RR in the hot pit at Sonoma Raceway for an AFM racer and Carter’s at the Track Instructor Scott Wilson. Dave’s attention to detail and experience separate him from most tuners. He’s not just looking at suspension – he’s thinking ergonomics, tire pressures, and the other little stuff that actually moves

Photo by Jason Farias There’s a quiet truth you learn pretty fast in the paddock: you don’t need a race bike to ride the track — you just need a bike that’s predictable. We’ve seen riders roll in with bone-stock street machines, zip-tied headlights, and mismatched tires… and have the time of their lives. We’ve

Photo by Karthegan Padmanaban Walking into your first track day can feel like stepping into a whole different world. You look down the row and everyone seems dialed – warmers, stands, tire gauges that look like they belong in a MotoGP pit. Meanwhile you’re trying to strap your bike into a U-Haul trailer without looking

Photo: Ohlins.com If you’ve ever walked past the suspension tent and thought, “I don’t even know what to say,” you’re not alone. Every rider starts there. Even though I was a full-time certified motorcycle mechanic at the time — and had ridden everything from street bikes to dirt — stepping into the world of sport

Photo by TrackDNA Your bike is talking to you. Suspension is how you learn to listen. The biggest leap from street riding to the track isn’t speed or lean angle — it’s feel.How the bike loads the front on the brakes, how it settles mid-corner, how it drives off a turn. Street suspension is built

Photo by Insta360 Most riders treat onboard footage like a highlight reel. Something to post. Something to send to friends. Something to replay because the track day was memorable. But here’s what most riders overlook: Your onboard footage is one of the most powerful coaching tools you already own. And here’s why: Even the best