In 2009 when I sold my 1996 R 1100 RT, I had 63,000 spirited miles and had upgraded the suspension to Ohlins shocks. I felt comfortable in the corners. Fast forward to 2016: It’s time to get back in. Located a 2003 RT a short ferry ride across Lake Michigan.

Rebuild the forks, fresh tread, valve job, brake flush, you get the idea – but I’m lost in every corner, zero confidence. Somewhere I picked up bag full of bad habits. I looked into a rider safety class in my area but last minute it gets canceled. Blackhawk Farms Raceway is 1.5 hours south and they have a beginners’ class.

When I showed up at Black Hawk Farms Raceway for the first time I parked between an unmolested 1976 R 100 S and a newer BMW S 1000 XR. The XR owner is a MOA member from Madison; we hit it off and Mark was very helpful throughout the day. I road my 2003 RT to the track, pulled the bags and mirrors off, played hard all day and rode back home.

It’s a fast-paced day. Classroom time, return to your bike, get to the staging area, hit the track with your group of 3-4 riders and a coach, then back to the classroom. It’s like that all day. Your Coach leads you out and you need to follow his line, he’s doing it for a reason. Returning from the track session, your coach gives each person something to work on next time out. They don’t overwhelm you, they are just trying to rid you of the bad habits you brought in with you.

You don’t think you have bad habits but wait till your track coach gets a load of your riding style.

• Elbows too high
• feet wrong on the pegs
• not looking through the corner
• not leaning off the bike at all
• get that chin to the mirror!
• stop touching the rear brake

In one of the earlier sessions they want you to not shift gears. Let’s say third gear is the sweet spot you use that around the whole track. It’s a great experience going around the track trying not to touch your brakes and using only your engine for braking power. You learn to trust your front tire to do its job, which builds confidence.

By the third time out on the track your coach decides if you should continue following him or he gives you the wave to go ahead. My coach gave me the wave and I went full bore to start exploring my limits. After the session he leaned in and said I had the heaviest bike out there, so I might want to back off a little.

(By the way: Pay attention in the classroom and drink lots of water!)

That same summer I decided not to spend $3,000 on shocks for the ’03 RT and find a 2014 RT because it has everything updated. For my next trip to Blackhawk Farms, I rented a trailer and got talked into doing an open track day with my newly acquired R 1200 RT. Classroom time but no coaches - just find open track, be smooth and predictable. Things go well. I’m not so nervous trying to find the apex in every corner, but I either come in too soon or too late. After three sessions in the morning and four in the afternoon, I sat out the final session of the day. I almost got T-boned the session before and a guy flew off the track in front of where I was parked. Too many signs time to go home.

Over the winter I decided the 2014 R 1200 RT is not returning to the track, but I enjoyed the lessons gained from cornering at the track and need to continue. I located a clean 2002 Honda CBR600 4FI and will be using that instead of the RT.