Royal Enfield Slide School Cup Finals: Victory Day & Lessons Learnt

We at ZigWheels had a chance to go and attend the finals of the Royal Enfield Slide School Cup, held in Jaipur, Rajasthan. During the event, we got to see professional racers battle it out on the flat track and also got a chance to compete in the media round, this time securing a podium finish. Here’s a brief overview of our experience.

Day 1: Back To Basics

The Slide School Cup finals was a two-day event, and on the first day, we had a training session. The training session was conducted by two-time British National Flat Track Racing champion, Gary Britwistle. 

The session started off with a bit of theory, mostly focused on lines. This session was quite an enlightening one, as we had been riding on shorter tracks till now. Generally,  shorter tracks limit the amount of space one gets to work with, and needs an immaculate strategy.. Usually in a race on smaller tracks, most races end up being decided by the starting position you get and how well you’re able to prevent the other racers from overtaking you.

So in a sense, the races become a lot more predictive. The racer with a starting position on the inside track line can easily hold their position by not allowing the other racers to pass him. But on the Jaipur track, things were a lot different. The track was much wider and longer, which meant the riders had to learn  some new tricks.

During the session, our coach Gary gave us a brief overview of how lines influence things. He said it was important to plan overtakes quite early and not at the last moment.  If the guy in front was taking an outside line, you would have to counter it by going on the inside and vice versa.

Later in a demonstration, he showed us how this worked in practice and it made a lot of sense. After the theory session, we went to the flat track and started our practice sessions. My focus here was to get a better idea of the track and also to try out a few things which I learnt during my previous session at the Royal Enfield Slide School Cup regionals.

The practice session was quite enlightening and I got to try out a few things. But there were some changes here. The longer track made it necessary to upshift to second gear, something which we weren’t able to do on the shorter track. One of the mistakes I made was trying to use engine braking when entering the corners to make the bike slide. 

After the first few rounds, we stopped and Gary gave us some tips on where we can improve. For me, it was trusting the brakes a lot more instead of using engine braking. So during the last few rounds, I trusted his advice and decided to keep riding on the second gear, and using the rear brake to slide, and it made a big difference.

Day 2: The Race 

The race day was finally here, and this time I wasn’t very nervous. I did my best to keep myself calm and relaxed. In the earlier round, the adrenaline rush got the better of me and my performance. I didn’t want to repeat those mistakes here.

The race began by around 10 am and it was quite a spectacle. We saw some really intense competition, and even had some close calls. But thankfully nobody was seriously hurt.

After the initial races were over, the media round began. I was racing against 3 others with varying degrees of experience. The race was divided into 3 rounds of 5 laps each. First place carried 15 points, second place 12, third and fourth place carried 10 and 9 points respectively. I knew I had to perform well all throughout the 3 rounds and developed my game plan accordingly.

During the race, our grid position was decided by picking lots. During the first round I got the 3rd position, which was second from the left on the track, and on the other two rounds I got 2 and 1. 

So with each round my starting position went more towards the outside. But I was not fazed, I knew I wanted to win and regardless of where I started, I would achieve this one way or another. In all 3 rounds I was able to come out at the second position. When the race started, the biggest issue I faced was not being able to launch right. In all 3 cases, I could notice my rear wheel spinning a bit too much. This cost me traction and time. 

My launch was not the best, so there were cases where the others got a lead on me. But I remembered what Gary said earlier during the theory session - the importance of planning overtakes way before and not falling into the trap of being too reactive. I decided to stick with the game plan and keep pushing at a consistent pace, and maintaining good lines. During my race at IBW 2024, I made the mistake of sticking too much into the inside. This time I made sure I used all of the track. 

Overall, I managed to finish the race in second place, which was not bad. But overall, this experience gave me some valuable lessons and also the experience of how it actually feels like to race.

Lessons Learnt

The Slide School Cup was an amazing experience overall. I got to meet a lot of like-minded people who were as passionate about riding as I was, and also learn from them. I also understood where I need to make improvements, such as getting my launches right to save valuable seconds. 

But the biggest lesson I learnt was the importance of being patient, along with having a plan and sticking to  it. This is something I feel will make a big difference both when riding and in other areas of life as well.

After riding on the flat track, my respect for the sport and the racers has only increased. It is truly an enlightening experience and one which will teach you a lot about riding and yourself.