Prep & Mods (thru 03/19/99)

Three, count 'em, three Honda CBR600F4s sat gleaming in the shop this February, begging us to slap in some cams, fit up racing exhausts, spoon on some sticky Dunlops and let them run free ............... at least the Dunlops were in stock! It could have been worse - like choosing to run R6s this year and we'd still be waiting for the bikes!!!!! We knew going into this season that go-fast parts for the F4s would be slow in coming. We even called up all of our sponsors in November and offered our bikes as development mules to help them get the parts out the door. Quite a few took us up on the offer.

The first thing we did when the bikes arrived was to flip the shifters. I was a bit anxious about that ever since a motojournalist mentioned it'd be a bitch to do. Take off the countershaft sprocket cover and violla. I wish the rest of the mods were so easy!

In no particular order, here's what we had to race for our first track run during the coming week's WSMC event:

	Motors:	yep, they're there. I can hear them spinning.

	Suspension and chassis:	GMD Computrack LA measured and tweaked
		Penske & Eibach in the back
		Race Tech out front (gold valves & springs)
		Scotts steering damper, mounted courtesy of a Two Brothers bracket kit

	Brakes:	Goodridge stainless all around with a bleeder banjo on the master cylinder
		Yoyodyne titanium master cylinder cover screws

	Other:	Yoshimura RS-3 high-rise aluminum slip-on
		Lockhart Phillips speed screen
		Sharkskinz bodywork
		Mychron lap timer
		Sprocket Specialists sprockets
		DID ERV2 520 series chain
		Dunlop D207GP tires

We rolled into Willow Springs with bikes making a whopping 86hp - yep, that's with the Yosh can (it was good for 4 - 5 hp). Good thing the brakes are top notch and the bikes weigh next to nothing. That helped us grab all top-ten finishes in the weekend's races. Catch all the details of the weekend in our Racing Dairies.

Two prep duties we were absolutely, positively not looking forward to were fitting the new bodywork and safety wiring. Being the new kid on the team, Dave Kester got the job of locking down all the critical fasteners. After a solid week of drilling (don't ask how many bits he went through, but I now own stock in DeWalt), twisting and bleeding, Dave received his diploma in bike surgery. Damn nice job, too.

The bodywork turned out to be a snap. Sharkskinz was the first company out the door with aftermarket race glass for the F4. Unlike past experiences with other companies, their stuff fit right up. Line up the panels, drill a few holes, check clearances and they were ready. Bill Knudsen of Knudsen Artwork did a great job of laying on the team's red, white and black color scheme.

The plan before we hit Willow again next month is to replace the wheezing California-spec cams, carve up some foot peg brackets and go.

We couldn't have these pretty new bikes sitting under the same old canopies, now could we? Steve called Holliday Canopies in October and ordered up a 22' x 15' fully enclosed canopy that attaches to the side of the trailer. Lining the floor of the pit are red, white and black Kiwi Tile interlocking mats. Steve and Dave drill weekly to keep the set up time under four hours :>