self (trust me , you'll look slower than you
feel!). Whe n you see the results of the videos
shot from behind you, you can't help but
learn from it.
O ne thing is certain: If you have plans to
race at Road Atlanta, you'd be a complete
bonehead not to take a Schwantz school
first. By the time you're finished with two
days with Schwantz and crew, you'll know
every square inch of the place. You learn the
ropes not only by riding behind guys who
know Road Atlanta like the back of their
walking it with those same individuals. When
I first heard that we'd be doing a track walk
on day two , I figured it wo uld be a big
ZZZZZ-fest. Not so. In fact, I'd say I learned
more during the walk than in any other portion of the instru ction. Why? Because everything looked different when we were out on
the track on foot - up close and personal.
And a lot of what they were telling us started to make more sense. When I went back
out after the track walk, I felt like I knew the
place intimately. And that made me faster.
the bridge on the inside of the trac k and
watc hing Jamie James slide his GSX-RI()()()
over the crest and down the hill toward tum
12. No matter how much money you have,
there isn't a spectator ticket available for
purchase that allows you to stand on the
inside of the track to witness a rider of the
level of James laying down black stripes
halfwaydown the hill.
What's also important aside from the
stuff on the trac k and in the classroom is the
stuff on the table. And it doesn't get better
than at Schvvantz place. The lunch at the
's
Schvvantz School doesn't co me out of a
paper bag. Nope. It's first class. A full-on
catered meal - tablecloths and all. It's also a
good time to buddy up with an instructor for
www.cyclenews.com
so havinga chat about riding, racingor what ever you choose is simple and easy. Thes e
guys make you feel at home , and you get the
feeling that they actually enjoy what they 're
doing. And that's important .
Someth ing fairly new at the two-day
schoo l is a dinner after the fi rst night for all
the students and the school staff, including
Kevin and the instructo rs. Everyone meets
at a Mexican place close to the racetrack,
and more bench racing ensues . And mo re
good food. Again, it's a nice touch that you
won't find at other schools, and it just does
that much more to make everyone fee l
comfortable. Bythe time you start your second day of riding, you'll have made plenty of
new friends.
CYCLE NEWS • JULY 14, 2004
39
