HOW TO: FLAT TRACK 101 – GETTING STARTED
So, you’ve seen me tackle flat track recently, put in some podium performances and you’re thinking to yourself…heck I could do that! Well, hell yes you could…and this is how you get involved.
Typical Rosebank Road dicing between Scott Wilkins and Blake Gillard.
If you’re a regular to The Dirt you will have noticed 3 Flat Track articles within the last year. That’s about 3 more than there has been in the last 25 years. Flat Track racing is making a resurgence in NZ, and it’s a great way to get that racing fix without the need for big budgets, big jumps and big balls. It’s very easy to get going in this sport; all you need is a dirt bike and a couple hundred dollars’ worth of mods. Shit – it’s cheaper than a club day MX if you go all in.
There are 3 major mods you have to do in order to get to the start tape, and we are going to go through each one for you.
Any bike is a Flat Track bike. A 450 might be better for winning, but you can’t deny that a 230 is far better for funning!
Rear Wheel
This is probably the biggest mod in terms of cost. Flat track permit three different types of rear tyre you can use; the official Flat Track type tyre, a Trials tyre, and a Speedway Solo tyre. Any of these pass scrutineering and all are readily available through your local dealer. Whether you have an 18 or 19-inch rim might dictate what tyre you can use. Those with 18s would be forced to go for the Trials tyre (unless you can find a Dunlop KT180 in 18) while those running 19’s could go straight to the Flat Track option or the speedway Solo route. 19inch is the universal circle racing size so if you have an Enduro bike you are limited to the Trials option really. Brands like Shinko, Dunlop, Mitas, and Maxxis all do Flat Track tyres, so ask your local dealer. Pricing can range anywhere between $100-$150-ish.
This is my 19 inch, 2.15 wide rim with the 130 size Flat Track tyre. They say a 140 will also fit on the 2.15, but in all honesty this is plenty big enough.
The size of your rim will also send you in some directions, too. Ideally, you want to go no smaller than a 2.15 rim on the rear. This allows the 130 size flat track tyre to fit nicely – although we have been told that a 140 will fit on the 2.15 rim as well. If you have a smaller rim, you might have trouble fitting the Flat Track tyre on. Not to say it’s not doable, but we would recommend a minimum 2.15 for the best fitment and performance. Of course, you can go as wide as 3.00 if you really want to – fill your boots. Just make sure it fits between your swingarm before laying down that cash.
The front can be left stock 21-inch and you can be competitive. Or, if you have some more money lying around that the Mrs doesn’t know about you can get a 19-inch rim laced to your stock hub. This will need to be done by a wheel guy as more likely than not you will need custom spokes for the stock hub/19-inch rim setup. Though once you have that 19 front hooked in you are now considered a pro.
Tether Switch
This would be the most technical aspect and if you don’t know anything about your bike’s electrical system, then you might need to get a mate over. A tether switch has a cord attached to your wrist that kills the bike when you pop the switch. This is so if you crash, the bike cuts out and doesn’t fire off down the track and into either the concrete wall or the crowd that’s cheering you on. Most kill switches on the new EFi bikes run by shorting out the electrical circuit as opposed to cutting the electrical circuit.
You have two options when choosing a tether switch; NC - Normally Closed (for cutting the circuit) and NO - Normally Open (for shorting the circuit), so make sure you choose the right one depending on if you’re shorting or cutting. Getting it backward can cause you a hell of a lot of annoyance. Trust me as I have experience.
Kill switches usually come in a few different designs. Your local dealer will be able to get one and fit it if you aren’t keen on taking the side cutters to your EFi elecricial system.
Front Brake
The last piece of the Flat Track puzzle is the easiest – no front brake. You can either take the whole system off from the caliper to the master cylinder as option 1. Option 2 is simply to take off the front brake lever.
Guess what? You’re ready to race.
All you need now is a Speedway Day License (which you pay for online) and you’ll be taking my spot up on the podium in no time.
Another tip is to follow the NZ Flat Track Facebook page for details on events and practice days. There is a big North Island contingent of riders who run at Rosebank Rd and a big Christchurch contingent of riders who run at Moore Park. Plus there are two new tracks in the works in Taupo and possibly even Harrisville.
No front brake is a pain the the arse when loading and unloading your bike. You get used to it after a few laps though.
I opted for an intermediated spec front tyre pattern on the standard 21-inch rim. This gave me the best possible grip across a variety of wet, tacky and try track conditions..
So, to sum it up, this is what you need to get Slide-Ways;
- Flat Track/Speedway/Trials type tyre - $100-$150
- Tether Switch - around $30-$40 (or $7 from wish.com)
- Front brake removed – free
- Speedway Day License - $80 inc track fees (Or $200 for a season license/membership + $10 per event for track fees)
Like I mentioned earlier, if you’re an ex-racer but don’t have the bones, balls or bananas for MX or Off-Road competition anymore, this will scratch that ich for you in more ways than one, while being a relatively safe form of dirt bike racing.
Yes, your first event is kinda pricey if all you are wanting to initially do is give it a try. But if you hook in for the full season it’s far, far cheaper than our other moto disciplines. Maybe not Trials.
Now you know…get involved.
Not sure if you know this or not, but recently in Egypt, ancient scrolls were uncovered and it was said they gave knowledge pertaining to the fact that a good-looking, durable graphics kit can improve your speed through turns 2 and 4 by about 7.3%. And it seems Workshop Graphics do real fast ones…as seen above.