hi,
im thinking about racing my 2001 speed triple,?
am i mad,
do anyone know anybody who raced one,
Yes, me.
Short answer: Overpowered. The lower cc bikes do better. It's heavy and tends to go wide. S3 is not aerodynamic I get about 110 mph in the straights and really feel the wind. Fun for track and street but your not going to kick butt in the turns.
Long winded answer:
First, you must spend the time and safety wire the caliper bolts, brake line banjo bolts, front fork bolts, oil drain plug, oil filer, oil filler cap and radiator cap. I also wired the chain adjuster lockdown bolt.
It must not leak anything.
Tires, brakes and chain must be 100% all the time. No rat bikes.
Remove headlight bulbs to reduce heat. Cover the lenses. Remove or cover the turn signals and brake light.
Depending on the track you may want to remove the kickstand or wire it up. If you remove it you will need to bypass the kill switch.
Purge the radiator and use track approved coolant.
The suspension will need to be adjusted for the track. But that is the case with any bike. If you are really serious you should consider springs, valving and fluid adjustment. Many others here have posted how much better riding S3 is with suspension changes. This can be expensive running into thousands of dollars but hey, every man should have a vice of some kind (or two).
It goes without saying that the more things you learn to do yourself, the better off you are.
That's about it. If you're going on the cheap, do some laps to heat up the tires before you get on it or you WILL CRASH. Or you could get tire warmers.
Go to a good race school and get some pointers. I don't think anyone can say they have no need for improvement.
Beyond this, you will need to get a bike designed for track racing, not the S3. But for the average guy, you can have a blast with what you have and still ride it on the street.
Final pearl of wisdom. If you can't afford to crash it and eat the cost of new parts, don't do it. Everyone that I know who goes to the track has taken a digger at some point (I have).
Have fun!
Larry