Riding tips(#4 really important)
#1
01-04-2005, 11:56 PM
Riding tips(#4 really important)
I found this on another forum(gatwisties.com) and give ALL credit to him (teacher). The orgianl post is from http://www.gatwisties.com/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=483 And I take no credit for this or trying to steal it or whatever you might call it. I just thought it might help even save someones life by reading it so I decided to post it here. Might even want to mkae it sticky so new members can have a chance to read it without searching.
Everyone should read number 4, no matter how good you think you already are.
Here are my suggestions to becoming a better rider. I know that some of you will disagree with some of these. So, use what you can. Discard what you don't like. This is mainly to help those who just don't know.
1. Counter-steering
If you don’t know what it is, you need to learn. Basically it means to steer right to go left, and steer left to go right. It sounds like total garbage, but it is VERY true (For speeds above 30 mph). If you want to turn left, push on your left grip. If you want to turn right, push on your right grip. Some motorcyclists who have ridden for decades will say this is a load of BS. These riders do it without realizing they are doing it. Everyone who rides a motorcycle does it. It is possible to make small changes in the direction you are traveling using only body lean. However, it is impossible to turn quickly using only rider weight. You must use counter-steering. If you are aware of what it is and how it works it, then you can manipulate it to turn quicker and faster, and make you an overall better (and safer) rider.
2. Hands and arms.
They should be relaxed. This is easy to manage when riding a cruiser with a laid-back riding style. However, on a sportbike, the rider’s feet are back, and the rider leans way forward in order to reach the grips. Most riders tend to support their upper body weight with their hands and arms on the grips. This causes unnecessary tension in the upper body, and can lead to extreme fatigue.
You should support your upper body with your back, allowing your arms to relax. Your hands should be resting on the grips, not pushing them to hold up your body. When making steering inputs, use the arm on the inside of the turn to control your steering. Let your outside arm relax. If you try to push with your inside arm, and pull with your outside arm, your arms will end up fighting against each other, causing more unnecessary tension and fatigue.
3. Avoid target fixation
In other words, look where you want to go, not where you are going. Always look through your turns. If you focus on the road or the guard rail in front of your bike, you will most likely head in that direction. You will be amazed at how much easier it is to get through a tight turn at higher speeds when you look all the way through the turn. Lead with your head and your eyes, and your bike will surely follow.
4. Plan ahead
I cannot emphasize this one enough. It is difficult to say that one of these techniques is more important than the other, because they are ALL necessary in order to be a good rider. But, if you want to ride on the street and stay ALIVE, you better remember this one at all times.
When you are riding on the street, don’t be the type of rider that sees a person pull right out in front of you, and then you try to figure out what to do. Your chances of coming out of it unscathed, or alive, are not that great.
Don’t figure out what to do IF that driver pulls out in front of you. Plan ahead and know what you are going to do WHEN that driver pulls out in front of you.
Scan ahead and look for any vehicles that are on side roads, driveways, intersections, or parking lots that are about to pull out in your path. ALWAYS ASSUME THAT THEY ARE GOING TO PULL OUT IN FRONT OF YOU!!! If you KNOW that it is going to happen, then you will have already planned a strategy for avoiding the collision. Is your other lane clear, so that you can just g
Everyone should read number 4, no matter how good you think you already are.
Here are my suggestions to becoming a better rider. I know that some of you will disagree with some of these. So, use what you can. Discard what you don't like. This is mainly to help those who just don't know.
1. Counter-steering
If you don’t know what it is, you need to learn. Basically it means to steer right to go left, and steer left to go right. It sounds like total garbage, but it is VERY true (For speeds above 30 mph). If you want to turn left, push on your left grip. If you want to turn right, push on your right grip. Some motorcyclists who have ridden for decades will say this is a load of BS. These riders do it without realizing they are doing it. Everyone who rides a motorcycle does it. It is possible to make small changes in the direction you are traveling using only body lean. However, it is impossible to turn quickly using only rider weight. You must use counter-steering. If you are aware of what it is and how it works it, then you can manipulate it to turn quicker and faster, and make you an overall better (and safer) rider.
2. Hands and arms.
They should be relaxed. This is easy to manage when riding a cruiser with a laid-back riding style. However, on a sportbike, the rider’s feet are back, and the rider leans way forward in order to reach the grips. Most riders tend to support their upper body weight with their hands and arms on the grips. This causes unnecessary tension in the upper body, and can lead to extreme fatigue.
You should support your upper body with your back, allowing your arms to relax. Your hands should be resting on the grips, not pushing them to hold up your body. When making steering inputs, use the arm on the inside of the turn to control your steering. Let your outside arm relax. If you try to push with your inside arm, and pull with your outside arm, your arms will end up fighting against each other, causing more unnecessary tension and fatigue.
3. Avoid target fixation
In other words, look where you want to go, not where you are going. Always look through your turns. If you focus on the road or the guard rail in front of your bike, you will most likely head in that direction. You will be amazed at how much easier it is to get through a tight turn at higher speeds when you look all the way through the turn. Lead with your head and your eyes, and your bike will surely follow.
4. Plan ahead
I cannot emphasize this one enough. It is difficult to say that one of these techniques is more important than the other, because they are ALL necessary in order to be a good rider. But, if you want to ride on the street and stay ALIVE, you better remember this one at all times.
When you are riding on the street, don’t be the type of rider that sees a person pull right out in front of you, and then you try to figure out what to do. Your chances of coming out of it unscathed, or alive, are not that great.
Don’t figure out what to do IF that driver pulls out in front of you. Plan ahead and know what you are going to do WHEN that driver pulls out in front of you.
Scan ahead and look for any vehicles that are on side roads, driveways, intersections, or parking lots that are about to pull out in your path. ALWAYS ASSUME THAT THEY ARE GOING TO PULL OUT IN FRONT OF YOU!!! If you KNOW that it is going to happen, then you will have already planned a strategy for avoiding the collision. Is your other lane clear, so that you can just g
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01-05-2005, 12:03 AM
#3
01-05-2005, 01:36 AM
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