Thede and the SR crew had the shock off and opened up in minutes. "Oh, this thing's got no rebound damping valved into it," Thede quickly deduced. Exactly, we concurred, but what to do about it?

Thede changed the shock's rebound-damping shim stack and topped it off with Race Tech's own shock oil, and we were in business. The change dramatically improved our 916's stability; the bike traced smoothly over even the worst midcorner ripples where it had previously felt unplanted. Race Tech's changes also allowed us to set the rebound-damping adjust in its middle range, allowing for further adjustments if needed (none were). Race Tech offers its own Gold Valve upgrade kits for most sport bikes which bring OEM forks and shock quite close the performance of premium aftermarket components for a fraction of the price. If you're interested, you can reach Race Tech at (909)279-6655 or California Sportbike Racing at (714)642-0104.