taking corners...

[d3ano]

Ok as im still new to the whole bike game i still need a lot of experiance.
One thing that i need to learn is how to take a corner properly.
Now its not that i can't go round bend or turn, but I feel that i sometime don't lean far enough into the turn as i am afriad that i will fall and the bike will slid down the road. How do you over come this?
In the dry im not too bad, but in the wet i think that i would lean more if i had stablisers (sp?) on.
help!!!

Cheers D3

[veetwin]

Try and join up with a group of biker mates who all go out together for rideouts. Hopefully they will all be sympathetic to your skill level and take that into consideration. When following others, you tend to relax off a little with your fears and confidence builds. Just dont over-cook it if they decide to up the pace. Try and stay within the limits that you are comfortable with.

Alternatively try some advanced training. I did Bikesafe with Hampshire Constabulary last year and found it very good for road skill improvement.

Check out:

www.bikesafe.co.uk
or
www.advanced-motorcycle-training.co.uk/

[DennisTheMenace]

going to give that a go myself , felt like billy bolt upright last time i took the bike out

[philblade]

As you are finding out the straight line bit is easy, the corners take a little more thought...

Veetwins suggestion of advance training is a good one but in my experience they are great for the roadcraft bit but not always for bike control. Get on a race school and what you will learn about the bikes limits (More importantly your own)in 2 hours for £150 will payback 3 times over in your understanding of the bikes limits (Mallory Park, Brands, Cadwell Park or Donnington).

I have always considered the essential component of bike control is use of the throttle. Whenever the bike feels unstable it is because you are not applying enough throttle, thus driving the bike through the corner.
Why do we not use enough gas..? Usually it is down to not believing in the capabilities of the machine. Believe the bike won't turn at high speed and it won't. Thats what a school helps you to learn - How to turn, where to look and where to position the bike through a corner.

As for wet riding, keep it smooth. Big corners and gentle riding doesn't mean riding slow. It just requires more thought and keeping relaxed otherwise you stiffen up and you lose feedback from the road.

Bike mags are also a good source of info...Recommend reading Andy Ibbots Tips in MCN each week- Lots of good ideas from him in there.

Anyway good luck on the road...Safe is best

[Steve_T]

Deano,

Have a read of Twist of the Wrist II to understand how your bike is designed to be used and also a bit about what Keith Code terms 'survival reactions'. Basically the bike is designed to be accelerated through corners to get the correct weight distribution between front and rear. You survival reactions (desire to stay in one piece) are the things that will stop you from riding the bike how it was made to be ridden. I'm pretty new to the riding game myself and feel quite similar to you about riding corners properly (big chicken strips ). Understanding and practice are the answer and it's just such a shame to need to go to a track school .

Good riding,

Steve.

[DennisTheMenace]

I havent got chiken strips but sometimes suffer target fixation ,


Evening stevo

[d3ano]

Cheers for the advice lads. Only thing is i can't get to these tracks as they are far from me and i don't have a trailer to carry the bike nor a van, crapo.
Will take a read of the books/mags first though and try it out on empty dry roads and then go from there. I think it might be a case of me being (like you said) unsure of what the bike is capable of. As soon as i get used to it i may find that i will throwing myself into corners

Thanks again

D3

[iguana]

d3ano you live in Bromley but feel you are a long way from Brands????? How much closer do you want a track to be ??

[a j]

philblade said:

Usually it is down to not believing in the capabilities of the machine. Believe the bike won't turn at high speed and it won't.

Agreed. Its a known fact that if you go into a corner too fast chances are 9 out of 10 that you will make it. A good way of getting comfortable with a bike leant over is to find a roundabout with hardly any traffic and go around it gradually building up speed. As you get faster slide your arse off. Once your more comfortable you can then practice moving on the bike.

Then Find a good corner with plenty of vision and grip and start slowly find the line and then get faster and faster, the more you do this the better you'll get. Take you time so that your comfortable with every stage and most importantly have fun.

I do agree the race schools are a good idea although you will benifit more if you are comfortable in corners to start with. Have fun!

philblade said:

As for wet riding, keep it smooth. Big corners and gentle riding doesn't mean riding slow. It just requires more thought and keeping relaxed otherwise you stiffen up

Agree, smooth is the key, you have more control relaxed.

[stooz]

I know I keep banging on about it, but it could be the bike...suspension. As with cars some understeer, some oversteer. If you dont feel a confidence coming from the bike to lean over, it maybe a little understeer giving you a washing out feeling..
by changing the shocks settings turn in can easily be corrected ,and bike confidence altered dramatically.

[Davel]

I had exactly the same fear and target fixation

The target fixation has gone except sometimes in the dark I tend to look towards what's coming towards me still!

The cornering confidence will come with practice and I'm still guilty of this in the wet.

The more miles you do, the more relaxed and confident you'll get.

We don't have to be the fastest on the road - leave that to the more experienced bikers for now!

>> Edited by Davel on Monday 19th January 14:54

[Steve_T]

The one thing that sorted my confidence in the wet was good tyres. The SV came metzler Z4s ok in the dry, but not brilliant and awful in the wet. Finally after 8k miles, time came to change them. I changed to BT 020s, the difference in the wet is night and day compared to the metzlers and the 020 is still quite a hard tyre. I'm a novice compared to most of you guys, but I say before you worry about suspension setup or anything clever, get decent tyres.

Steve.