Posts
5874
Joined
4/22/2009
Location
Rancho Cucamonga, CA, USA
Listening to a post race interview Sexton said he changed technique on the bike. He said he started in second gear. I've always started in second gear on 250 two strokes and now four strokes. I assumed the pros all used second. So my thinking is he might have been starting in third. All I see for myself is death and destruction trying to launch in first. What do you guys know about the stars and their gear choice? Did the grates changes gear selection for starts?
Difficult to say due to the various factory packages...electronics, gearing etc.
Us normal folk on a normal 450 will typically use 2nd.
I'm guessing he was using 3rd and they set the bike up for 2nd. 1st gear is blady ridiculous and I can't imagine anyone going out a gate in 1st on a 450.
Altitude means first gear starts for most guys.
I think these are only 4 speeds with custom ratios so it's really hard to compare to a stock bike. I always started in 2nd or 3rd (concrete) on my stock 450s and my son does the same on his 125. Stank dog uses 3rd a lot, as did Marv for a while as I recall. 3rd is nice since you often don't have to shift before the first corner which can be the difference between a hole shot and a top 5 start.
I've been to 2 different riding schools that taught 3rd gear starts for most bikes. I also remember Andrew Short getting a lot of holeshots for a period of time saying 3rd gear was used off the gate. Idk, just repeating what I've heard.
The Shop
DeCal Works Huge Plastic Inventory of UFO and Polisport kits.
Free shipping: VITALMX
Luxon 4-Post Bar Mounts
$189.95 - $239.95
3rd seems crazy but with what was mentioned about 4 speeds, electronics etc. I guess it make sense. If I was 160 lbs. I guess I could try 3rd but as an XXL guy I don't see it happening for me.
They normally use 2nd gear but because of the high altitude the last two weeks they use 1st.
Salt Lake City is a 4200 feet of elevation. While Denver is at 5200. We sat behind the starting gate at Denver. Almost every 250 and 450 rider started in 1st. One of the best starters of this generation Vince Friese started in 2nd and didn't get his normal holeshot.
The threshold for starting in first is around between 4000 and 5000 feet of elevation. With SLC being just a little over 4000 feet, riders were going back and forth between 1st and 2nd gear starts all day.
One thing I'll mention, is that they are jumping triples in 1st. So that tells you the max speed of 1st. Compare it more to a street bike I'd say. How many of you launch a gixxer in 2nd in a race? 1st.
Can’t say I’ve ever launched a gixxer off a triple.
Post a reply to: First Gear Starts?