4 ms·

Exactly. Tire technology is unbelievable today. With track temps reaching 50C, the tires are practically molten rubber during the race. This was Rabat's rain t

Exactly. Tire technology is unbelievable today. With track temps reaching 50C, the tires are practically molten rubber during the race. This was Rabat's rain tire after finishing 2nd last weekend on a track that was mostly dry by the end of the race. https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CNpxNYdWIAAdD6s.jpg:large https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CNpxNYdWIAAdD6s.jpg:large

newman314 11y ago
The surface does matter or more specifically, the suspension. If the suspension is not properly set up for compression and rebound, guess what? Materials mean nothing if the tire is not in contact with the ground. And there are some bumpy tracks out there...
- donjigweed 11y ago
  Suspension has seen less advancement than tires imo. And the greater the lean angle the less the suspension is actually working. If the bike could lean to 90 degrees the suspension would not work at all. This is why motorcycle handling is still something of a black art rather than pure science, because at full lean much of the "suspension" comes from frame, fork, and swingarm flex, rather than actual damping.
  - newman314 11y ago
    Could be true. I'm more familiar with racecar suspension than motorcycle suspension and the high end systems are pretty damn impressive.
  - bigiain 11y ago
    For a long time now race bikes have run "regressive rate" rear suspension linkages. The geometry of the suspension is set up so that when you've got the ~2G of force vertically down on the rear suspension (from the bike's frame of reference) that a ~60degree lean angle turn implies - the effective spring rate is significantly less than when the bike is upright and the suspension is riding higher under only 1G of load. While it can't resolve the 90 degree degenerate case, it's easy enough to tweak the geometry so you've still got known and desired levels of "suspension working" at 60ish degrees. (Handwaving away the complexities of component flex and stiction - which really is black magic.) Note this is opposite to what many road oriented motorcycles use - progressive rate springs and linkages are often used to allow "more supple" suspension around normal riding circumstances while still having enough suspension force to deal with bumps while overloaded or leaned over hard. Race bike don't have to have any consideration for rider comfort "suppleness" or bumps/potholes. The sole purpose of the suspension on a race bike is to maximise the tire's contact to the track.

newman314 11y ago

The surface does matter or more specifically, the suspension. If the suspension is not properly set up for compression and rebound, guess what? Materials mean nothing if the tire is not in contact with the ground. And there are some bumpy tracks out there...

donjigweed 11y ago
Suspension has seen less advancement than tires imo. And the greater the lean angle the less the suspension is actually working. If the bike could lean to 90 degrees the suspension would not work at all. This is why motorcycle handling is still something of a black art rather than pure science, because at full lean much of the "suspension" comes from frame, fork, and swingarm flex, rather than actual damping.
- newman314 11y ago
  Could be true. I'm more familiar with racecar suspension than motorcycle suspension and the high end systems are pretty damn impressive.
- bigiain 11y ago
  For a long time now race bikes have run "regressive rate" rear suspension linkages. The geometry of the suspension is set up so that when you've got the ~2G of force vertically down on the rear suspension (from the bike's frame of reference) that a ~60degree lean angle turn implies - the effective spring rate is significantly less than when the bike is upright and the suspension is riding higher under only 1G of load. While it can't resolve the 90 degree degenerate case, it's easy enough to tweak the geometry so you've still got known and desired levels of "suspension working" at 60ish degrees. (Handwaving away the complexities of component flex and stiction - which really is black magic.) Note this is opposite to what many road oriented motorcycles use - progressive rate springs and linkages are often used to allow "more supple" suspension around normal riding circumstances while still having enough suspension force to deal with bumps while overloaded or leaned over hard. Race bike don't have to have any consideration for rider comfort "suppleness" or bumps/potholes. The sole purpose of the suspension on a race bike is to maximise the tire's contact to the track.