I personally have a lot more fun on my street s4rs on the track than CAsuperbikeschool's track prepped zx6.   but I'm weird.

600s are a blast, but I don't have any less fun riding the SV on the track.  It's a win-win situation: if somebody passes me, I blame it on the girls' bike; if I pass a friend, I can give them a hard time about being passed by a girls' bike.

I rode my monster on the track for a long time and loved it.

Then I got a pick up so I wasn't riding the bike to the track.

Crashed the very first time.

Figured I didn't want to be busting up my street bike...so I got a track bike.

I'm still crashing...but I'm blaming the pick up.

Quote from: Statler on January 25, 2010, 03:46:43 PM
I personally have a lot more fun on my street s4rs on the track than CAsuperbikeschool's track prepped zx6.   but I'm weird.

maybe that had more to do with engine characteristics than it did ergos?

I ran my S4 twice on Streets of Willow, and loved it.

Haven't ridden anything else on the track, so....

Quote from: Speeddog on January 25, 2010, 08:35:15 PM
I ran my S4 twice on Streets of Willow, and loved it.

yeah, but you naturally ride kinda dirt bike'y. 

Quote from: gm2 on January 25, 2010, 08:14:03 PM
maybe that had more to do with engine characteristics than it did ergos?

oh absolutely.   

I like taking my monster to the track, but I know it would be an expensive thing to fall off of. I don't think that ever really made me cool it while I was out there, though! If you track yours, you'll find that it's easier to ride than most Japanese I4's, just because the spread of torque generally gives you a couple of gears to choose from in any given situation. Comfy, too - no hunching over like the proverbial monkey/football.

I'd also like to second that earlier comment from the guy riding the SV...you get a perverse sort of a kick riding a relatively slow bike on track while all of your buddies are out there on faster stuff. It's sick I know, but there's just nothing more fun than blowing by some noob on his brand-new R1/GSXR/1098/etc while riding something like an sv or air-cooled monster. God forgive me, but it makes me giggle every time. Plus, you get to blame your own slowness (of which I have plenty) compared to almost everyone on the lack of horsepower. You win both ways!

I love riding my S2R1000 Monster at the track. Here is a video from my last track day in Nov.

Thunderhill Track Day PTT 11-02-09 B Group

Me pretending like I belong on my SV (with damper rod forks, stock motor, stock brakes):

Quote from: il d00d on January 12, 2010, 10:19:37 AM


I suppose it would help to give you an idea what I like and what I want - something that I can get on and ride comfortably a few hundred miles that has more power than the 620.  I like the GSXR 600s and 750s because the rider triangle fits me well - I also like 750s for being the middle ground between a stupid fast literbike and a manic 600.  I do like cheater bikes like the 636, and I have long lusted after the 675.  I have not ridden an 848, but it is on the list.  

Of course a faster monster is in the running, and this is really what the question comes down to - would you rather ride your monster at the track or some other bike, assuming you are compromising daily driver qualities for fun?

I'll give you my advice as a racer and lead instructor at a performance riding school. I've raced a variety of bikes and have won many class championships on the Monster below. You can set up a monster for the track but it takes a lot of work to get it right. The 2-valve Ducatis are excellent motors because they are practically bulletproof. Unless you are setting up a monster to fit in to a specific race class, it's not worth it. You will spend so much more to get it right than to just buy a bike that was built for the track.
Ask yourself what you want to get out of your track riding, then pick the bike that would be best for helping you achieve your goals. If you want to improve your skill and start learning your limits, or if you would like to be competitive someday, then get a different bike. Unless you put a lot of money into a monster, it will limit your abilities very quickly. If you want to just do a few trackdays and not really ever push hard, or have no desire to really learn performance riding, then you can put a monster on the track with minimal work, and have a fine time.
This is not meant to trash those folks that do trackdays on their monsters, I have a lot of students show up with monsters, and they do just fine. This is just practical advice from someone who has ridden a crazy big variety of bikes both on and off the track, and both for fun and competitively. I just know the limits of the bike and can tell you that it's easy to find those limits quickly. You will hear a lot of people say that they pass fast bikes on their monster but that's not because of the bike...that's all rider!
I've ridden most of your pics above and I have to say that the best bike out of that bunch is the 675 Daytona. But any of those pics would be fine choices for a trackbike. They have a lot of power that you have to take time to warm up to, but they are all very capable of taking your skill level higher with no work required initially. That's right, I said it...out of the box, you can ride any of those quickly. When you start getting faster, you will want to get your suspension set up. But you can jump on any modern middleweight, (if you are not too big) and just ride it. The only thing that is a must right away is setting the sag, then making the necessary adjustments after you ride it.
If you set up a monster, you will need to do a bit of work as soon as you start riding fast because the bike is just not made for the track. You will scrape parts, have suspension/geometry issues very quickly. If you find a race class that you like that one of the monsters is competitive in, then it's worth it. In a lot of race orgs, the 800, 900, and some even the 1000 is legal for Lightweight against SV650s. There are very few monsters that get set up for these classes, most guys set up the SS instead. I prefer the Monster chassis over the SS, but it takes a lot of work to make it competitive, and be able to ride fast.
Below is my race monster. I've put a lot into it to make it competitive. It's a 620 and it works well for it's class. In fact, it works so well, this year I used it to chase points and bumped it up to Lightweight after the SV I was on had problems. Even in the Expert class, I finished every race against the SVs way inside the top 10. But, this is because of a crazy amount of work that I've put into it. If you set one up like this for trackdays, you are either foolish or really passionate    It's just not worth it. Get a middleweight, and enjoy finding your limits instead of getting a monster and finding the bike's limits very quickly.

To everyone reading this that does trackdays on their monsters, that's great  If that works for you and you're happy, then keep it up. You can make them into capable trackbikes but my point is, I think it's better to just get a bike that works for that purpose. Also, your learning curve will look much better if you are learning on a bike that is set up for the track. Good luck with your decision

I've done trackdays on my Monster and I had a lot of fun, but I certainly agree it's far from being an ideal choice for the track.  I did it because I wanted to get more comfortable on my everyday bike.

If I were to choose something only or mostly for the track, it wouldn't be a Monster.

Quote from: somegirl on January 28, 2010, 04:09:27 PM
I've done trackdays on my Monster and I had a lot of fun, but I certainly agree it's far from being an ideal choice for the track.  I did it because I wanted to get more comfortable on my everyday bike.

If I were to choose something only or mostly for the track, it wouldn't be a Monster.

that's exactly why the first time i was ever on a track it was on my s4r -- and why every time since then has been on a track bike.

With the exception of winning some regional and/or club racing titles, I can echo the same sentiments as Fasterblkduc.

I spent a lot of $$ getting my 620 Monster set-up like a sportbike and had a lot of fun doing it but I never really got up to speed on it. Forks, shock, high pipes, messed with the suspension some more, fork height, rearend height, clip-ons, etc. 

When the Monster was totaled out by insurance co. (knocked over in a parking lot) I picked up a 1000SS and I was instantly faster, smoother and a little more sexy, right out of the box. 

The Monster is a fun, cool and comfy bike. It is not a sportbike and as Faster said, takes silly time and effort to set up. 

The original post indicated the Monster is being sold so why night get the right tool for the job? I too think the 675 is an awesome choice. Any I-4 600/750 will do the trick as well.

Another agreement with others.  I spent a couple years at the track on my Monster, and its a lot of fun, but really not ideal for the circumstances.  The tank is wide, the bars are wide, you run out of lean, and riding style while comfortable isn't really suited for aggressive riding.  I had an air cooled 800, so it was a blast absolutely flogging that motor.  I do miss that part.

My 848 is so much smoother and requires a lot less effort, although under hard braking it will definately work you out a bit more in that regard.