Highside

A regular series running on highside is MotoGP Explained: Terms and Phrases.  For your ease, we’ve collected all of the information from these posts and list them here, in alphabetical order, so you can quickly brush up on phrases and terms that are new to you!

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Contact patch

The area where the tyre touches the ground, the stability of the contact patch is something that riders worry about a lot.  The smaller the contact patch, the harder it is to control the bike, and the more likely you are to lose control and crash. As tyres deteriorate during a race, the best riders start to shine; those who can work with less of a contact patch can continue to contend, while those who haven’t mastered it yet begin to struggle with their tyres.

Flag to Flag

When the weather changes in the middle of a race, races in the MotoGP class will often get called as a flag to flag race, meaning that the race will not be halted for riders to change the tyres on their bikes. Flag to flag races are exciting in a much different way than the average race; racers have to figure out when the best time is to come in and switch bikes, and there’s never a correct answer.  However, flag to flag races often lack the close, edgy battles that we see in a dry race.

Grand Prix: A grand prix, simply put, is a race.  Each race in MotoGP is a Grand Prix (which is where the GP in MotoGP comes from!), with the exception of TT Assen in the Netherlands.  The term Grand Prix is used in sports beyond motorcycle racing: F1, go-karting, and even swimming all use the term to refer to certain races.  While many events during a weekend might involve timing and competition, the Grand Prix itself is the flagship race that takes place at the end of the weekend.

Highside: The namesake of this blog is a type of crash that occurs when the rear wheel of a motorcycle starts to move in a different direction than the rest of the bike’s momentum.  Highsides are incredibly dangerous, and often result with both rider and motorcycle flying off in different directions.  Highsides are usually caused by the brakes on the rear wheel locking up, or by accelerating too much when exiting a turn. Injuries from highsides can be incredibly severe.

Lapping: When Rider A passes Rider B, and Rider B is already one or more laps behind Rider A, this is called lapping.  While neither rider changes in the order, the faster rider has still passed the slower rider, and in short races like MotoGP, this is considered to show a severe lack of skill or equipment for the slower racer.  However, in longer races, such as in NASCAR or Indy Car racing, lapping is much mroe common, and is a direct result of the varying speeds, usage of pit lanes, and the sheer length of the race.

Lowside: Similar yet drastically different from a Highside crash, a Lowside crash occurs during turns when the bike completely loses traction and slides out from underneath the rider. Lowsides are significantly less dangerous than Highsides for two main reasons: most Lowside crashes will cause the rider to simply slide off the bike instead of bucking him over the handlebars, and in a Lowside crash the motorcycle travels in front of the rider, thus removing the possibility of a rider being crushed by his own motorcycle. Lowsides can still cause injury, though; Finnish racer Mika Kallio suffered a lowside during the Dutch race in Assen, trapping his hand beneath the handlebars and causing serious damage to his fingers.

Overtake: A rider overtakes another rider when he passes the opponent in front of him.  An overtake is different from a pass, however, because a rider can still pass another rider who is not in front of him in the positions (known as lapping)

Paddock: The paddock is the name for the garage area in Motorsports.  The paddock consists of the actual garage area, a few computers and TV screens where riders and engineers can collaborate, and the immediate area right outside it where riders mount and dismount their bikes.  Each team has their own paddock, and teams with multiple riders share the same paddock.  Additionally, each team has their Paddock Girls, who model for the team and help keep the drivers hydrated and cool.

Parc fermé: Parc fermé is the closed area near the garages where the motorcycles are stored before and after races. The area is closed off from the public and from other teams, insuring that nobody tampers with the bikes. Bikes are also examined here by race officials to see if they have any improper or illegal parts installed.

Podium: When a race is finished, the top 15 riders get to walk away with championship points, but only the top three get the privilege of stepping up to the podium to take their trophies and honors. Getting a podium finish is the second highest distinction a racer can get for a single race. The podium itself is made up of three boxes, with the centermost box being elevated above the other two. The rider who takes first place stands in the center, while the second place rider stands to his right, and third place stands to his left. The riders are then awarded trophies, pose for photos together, and celebrate with the ceremonious spraying and drinking from oversized champagne bottles. Podium celebrations are always festive, but can also be somewhat tense if the battle between any of these riders were particularly close, or if two rivals are standing up on the box.

Pole Position: In order to determine where riders will start when a race begins, they have a qualifying race.  Racers are then placed on the track in accordance to their fastest time, with the fastest racer getting the coveted Pole Position.  Starting a race in Pole Position is a large advantage: riders are closer to the start/finish line than any other rider, and they have the advantage of (barring a bad start) not having to jockey with anyone else for a prime position going into the first turn.  Which leads into…

Racing Line: The line a racer will take in order to most efficiently make it through the corner.  Racing lines vary from rider to rider and corner to corner; certain bikes, and riders who handle corners differently, will take a different path.  The main goal of racing lines is to get through the corner as quickly as possible while conserving as much speed as you can, while at the same time making it known to racers who might try to pass you that this is the route you are taking.  Defending one’s racing line is key to both avoid crashes and prevent other riders from passing you.

Ride-Through Penalty: When a rider breaks a rule during the race, he could be given a ride-through penalty as a result.  If a rider is called for this, they must drive through the pit lanes on their next lap, obeying the maximum speed that a rider can travel while in the pits.  This speed is dramatically slower than the speeds at which the racers normally travel, and since the pit lanes often line up with some of the largest stretches of open track, it can dramatically hurt a rider’s position in the race.

Slicks

When racers head out onto the track, the weather plays a large role in their choice of tyres. If the race looks to be dry through and through, riders will set out with Slick tyres.  Slicks are completely smooth, much like the traditional racing tyres using in F1 and NASCAR.

Tyre Compounds: Not all tyres are created equal, and in MotoGP, there are serious decisions to be made in regards to which tyres a rider chooses to use. Tyres generally vary in two categories: dry tyres and wet tyres (or slicks), and then various compounds. Depending on the layout of a circuit, the temperature, and a rider’s comfort level, riders will often decide whether they want to use a harder or softer tyre on the circuit–a decision that can have a profound effect. The choice of tyre used comes down to the desired level of traction—between the tyre and the ground, and also the tyre and the brakes. More traction can help prevent the bike from sliding, but can give the rider less brake power. Additionally, some level of (controlled) sliding is wanted, so finding the right balance between this can be a big challenge for racers.

Wets

By contrast to slicks, wet weather tires (or wets for short) are used when it is either raining, or the track is damp. Because water can get between the tyres and the track and cause riders to lose control, wets are specifically designed, like normal car tyres, to move the water away from the tyre, which lets it grip the circuit a lot better.  However, these tyres are a lot more fragile; run with them on a dry track, and your tyre will start to shred really quickly.