turning/leaning question
 

hey all,
im new to the bike scene, so bear with me and my questions as im learning to ride.
before i ask my question i will say, i am going to take the msf course!

so today i was practicing with my bike, its a 01 F4I, and i was practicing the friction zone with the clutch. i almost tipped it once but did not go down lol. once i got comfortable i started out in a straight line with just the clutch and did fine, didnt fall. i was even able to make u turns on my street between the 2 curbs with out falling, im very suprised. once i got comfortable i started playing with the gears and went to 4th and the started braking and down shifting, and did pretty well.

my question is, if i lean it feels like the bike is going to drop. is this just because im going under 20 mph? i see people riding bikes and when they come to a stop on the street making a right turn, they seem to lean into the turn, i know they are not going over 20mph lol. so is there a trick to it?
i think i did it subconciously pulling in from the street to the driveway but im not sure lol.
sorry if this is a dumb question but im new.

thank you for everyones time who responds.

You can go much slower than 20 and still make a nice turn. The secret is clutch friction zone + pulling engine + a little bit of rear brake (plus counter leaning when going really slow or the turn is really tight). You can easily make a slow/tight turn which the combination above but once you pull in the clutch, the bike will drop!

I just converted 20 mph to km/h. If the bike feels like dropping at that speed then something else might be up. Are you leaning into the turn too much? You need some engine pull, don't coast through slower corners (although you'll be able to do so when you get better for example, if you turn into your driveway).

It could also be none of the above and it's just a sensation you have to get used to. I've had first timers on the back of the bike that felt like the bike would fall over in turns. After they got used to it, the didn't feel that way anymore. :)

When are you taking the MSF?

well its not so much at the 20mph, its like 10 ish lol.
i was able to ride down my street upshifting and then downshifting and then turn into the driveway with no issues.

when you say engine pull, your refering to little throtle right?

thats a badass video!!! i def can not do that lmao.

so when conering/turning you just lean your body and push the bars?

No, its not a stupid question. You are learning & hungry for knowledge. I applaud that! :)

First off, I think had you taken the MSF already, much of your question(s) would be answered. There are many parking lot exercises dealing w/ exactly what you are asking about. I used to have a link to the MSF exercises/drills but can't seem to locate it at the moment. Take a look at the MSF website, etc, & see if you can find those drills, & perhaps get a leg up on them b/f taking the class.

One of the MSF exercises is just friction zone...where you start at one side of the parking lot & practice friction zone while you progress to the other side. There are gentle turn exercises, tight turn exercises, figure-8, etc. On slow turns, you really don't want to lean too terribly much. Its all about weight & balance.

Ultimately, its going to be practice, practice, practice. You'll gain comfort & more control as you get more time riding & practice. I like the fact that you're practicing & working on your skills. Keep that up. You'll gain confidence quickly.

thanks man i appreciate all the help. i really want to take the class but as i mentioned i just lost my job so thats why im practicing on my own and just trying to learn a little bit.
i have watched videos and stuff, and i think im misunderstanding when people say push the bars. like when you wanna make a right you puch the left bar.

i neeed that course lol.

Absolutely. Keep practicing. Find yourself a good bookstore, like Barnes & Noble, that has motorcycle books on the rack. Grad yourself a cup of coffee, sit down & read. No need to buy them. :-) There's some really good technique books on the shelf, that you can really benefit from.

Damn... beat me to it! gotcbr is right: find a Borders go for it. Good books are

• Twist of the Wrist 2 by Keith Code
• Sport Riding Techniques: How To Develop Real World Skills for Speed, Safety, and Confidence on the Street and Track by Nick Ienatsch
• Total Control: High Performance Street Riding Techniques by Lee Parks.

You might also add some structure to your practicing. Get a couple cans of tennis balls and cut them in half to make cheap cones. Markers provide goals for you to achieve and also help to evaluate your progress.

Counter-steering is what you are asking about, when you mentioned the push thing.
At speeds above a walking pace, counter-steering is what guides the bike. you push away on the side of the turn. This causes the bike to lean and start in that direction.
Once you've got the turn where you want it, you go to neutral input (let off pressure but don't pull either), the bike will maintain that same turning radius (barring throttle change). When the turn ends, you begin to push on the opposite side and begin to straighten the bike.

Leaning, the point to leaning (at speed) is to shift/lower the center-of-gravity (C.G.) to the inside of the curve, this will off-set centrifical force (which is pushing you to the out-side of the curve). You have 2 choices, lean the bike into that zone, or lean your body mass.

By leaning your body mass instead of the bike, you keep the bike more up-right ( where the suspension and traction is better for the bike). Eventually, depending on speed and radius of the turn, even with you leaning in, the bike will have also leaned in until things start dragging. That's how you know you're going too fast. lol

At very slow speeds, you will actually do the reverse. You will 'climb' up on the bike and let it do all of the leaning. When you do this, look over your shoulder at where you want to go. when the bar locks to the tank, it all becomes a throttle/clutch game. The slower you go the tighter you will turn, until you finally 'turn' into the ground. Just before that point is when you advance the throttle/clutch.

I've got a lot of miles under me but I still get off on the 'slow-roll' stuff in an empty parking lot. It's been said, but I'll say it too, If you want to go fast, go SLOW. That's what builds your confidence and deft handling of a motorcycle.

Ern