well i'll keep it short.
i have never owned a bike devoted to trackdays, however i have serious worrys about wrecking my street bike at a trackday.
so i was considering buying a salvage title or not so pretty bike and converting her to track.
but like i said im new to this. what kind of bike would be a great first track bike? i was thinking i could find a 96-03 sixxer cheap and put a few bucks into here, rattle can her and not give a shit if i tossed her up the track....rebuild and do it again.
any suggestions,pointers??

I really think the best "used, first track bike" would be a cbr600RR. My buddy just bought a 04 cbr600RR for $2.3k. It had some fairing damage and needed a new rear set on the brake side....but that's PERFECT for a track-only bike. If it was track only the rearsets would be replaced, who cares what the fairings look like unless they are cracked because I would personally sand it down and rattlecan them black and then rattlecan some clear over it...with a bit of wet sanding it would lookl decent, make a set of SS brake lines, and you are good to go other then taping up/removing lights.

I am looking into doing this after i find a bike for my girl-friend. She's wanting a bike and my idea of a bike would be perfect for her first bike.

i hear ya on the cbr, however i think i may wait untill after this season to sping for a track bike, seems people are pay double for bikes because everyone wants one this time of year.
its either gonna be a srad 600, a sv650, or a fzr 600, and of course the cbr if i can find one worth the dough, pretty much the first decent track bike i find for a deal is gonna be mines

just about any bike is good.

GSXR SRAD and UP...older YZF,
R6, CBR...you just need to find one that doesn't need to much reparation(an old used one is a good thing since everything is good)

i'll sell ya this thing for super cheap..

(02 R6)

If it's your first track day you probably won't be riding hard enough to worry about crashing. But a good alternative for you would be to get race glass..... just leave it ghetto and unpainted. Slap it on before track, and put your nice street bodywork back on after trackday.

But believe me unless you ride in the intermediate or expert group, you would need some serious bike malfunctioning to crash.

Mornin' Dre :D

A '97-forward 600 would be a good choice - and while it's a good idea to get one with cosmetic damage, make sure it's mechanically sound. Especially with the SRADs, listen for clicking or tapping in the motor which could very well be due to the crappy cam chain tensioner initially mounted on them. If it already has a manual CCT mounted, it's good :cool But then again, with what you do for a living, you should have an idea about what to look for ;)

Crashes can happen regardless of what class you race in. What if the new guy next too you takes you out along with a few other riders?

carefull with salvage and racebikes. People have this dumbfvck idea that the frame is nearly industructable and for it to bend it just about has to rammed into a stone wall to be bent. Sorry, but often just a minor lowslide or two is enough.

What does this mean. If suspect crashed or known..have everything professionally check. Else, wonder why the bike turns bad, shakes, feels "wierd" etc...

Check the Wera boards every day. You can find some good deals on bikes already track prepped...may be a lil hard this time of the year to find the right fit bike for you but they are there for sure.

i'll sell ya this thing for super cheap..

(02 R6)
shoot me a pm

get something after 2000. 600, a few scratches is better. spare parts are good, ie levers, rear sets etc.

there is a stage that all fast guys go through of crashing. you have to lose fear of that n order to push it. so get something that you can drop a few times as you explore the limits of your machines handling and capabilities.

the later model bikes than the one you were suggesting like 00, 01 still have a lot of spares floating around, and regularly you will see engines, etc for sale.

check the last over haul the bike had, and how many it has had. dont buy anything with too heavy mods ie cams head work. you are asking for trouble, and i higher mainatance schedule with little gain.

buy somehting that gives you the oportunity to progess in a way that if you decide you like the sport, the progression you have made will easily translate onto a newer or bigger bike.

dont buy a bike of anyone who has great lap times. the faster they go the more chance you are buying a bike that either needs serious work done to it, or will very soon need serious work done to it. ie gearbox, crank, crank case= new engine.

if it were me id go for something like an 01 gsx-r600 bullit proof engine, good handling. not a great deal of RWHP. owned buy a guy who has had it for ages and only got to a track day here and there, and has never achieved any decent lap times.