While I am fairly new to street bike riding, I have been riding dirt bikes and quads for a long time.
I am on year 3 of my motorcycle riding and decided t go with sport bikes because cruisers just seem so "single purposed".

Anyway, to my point. I go through flat or uphill twisties and feel fairly confident at leaning into and through the turn, and maintain a good pace for having a 150 back tire.
When I come into twisties dowhill I always feel like I am overshooting the turn and cant lean in or that I lean too far and the back tire feels loose as I am out of the throttle.

I have been dumped by bikes and quads alike on dirt, and don't wish to feel the pavement at 40+ mph while playing in the twisty roads here. What do you guys do when coming into downhill twisties to glide through them?

I am sure a 180 rear tire would help a lot, but I don't have that option with my old CBR F1.
Any pointers would be great, and is it possibly just a confidence thing seeing as I find myself worrying about laying the bike down?

 

Found this, thought it might help.

First, the physics. Get your weight back. If you can slide back in the seat it will help equalize the balance and lessen the load on the front end somewhat. Additionally, moving rearward can help you avoid putting as much weight on the bars, which will help you feel more in control.

Grip the tank with your legs. Using your thighs to grasp the tank will lock you onto the bike and keep your weight from shifting forward. It will also remove some weight from your wrists, which may make control manipulation easier. Gripping the tank will help prevent the feeling of "falling down" the hill into the curves, and will make you much more comfortable if you have to brake into a downhill corner.

Remember to keep your gaze up so you look as far ahead as possible. "Opening up" your field of vision is always a good idea, but it's that much easier to find yourself looking down and just ahead of your front wheel when your body is already aimed downhill. This will make everything seem as if it's rushing at you and can lead to target fixation. When looking downhill remember to also look well down the road.

Set your corner speed early. Again, this is a good general riding rule that reaps huge benefits in downhill situations. Keep in mind that you have to deal with the added forward weight bias caused by the slope. If you do your braking late or hold off getting your corner speed set until you're already in a downhill corner, you risk overloading the traction limit of the front tire when you ask it to handle the combined forces of gravity, braking and turning.

Use positive throttle control. You don't want to be on trailing throttle in a downhill corner, as this will tend to put a very high load on the front tire. If you've set your entry speed early and properly, you should be able to get back into the throttle—even if it's just a bit—to shift the weight back with acceleration and balance things out. Just remember that with gravity pulling you along, a little throttle will go a long way.

 

Not entirely sure but I think a fatter rear would actually adversely affect cornering, rather than improve it.

Our bikes were designed to handle within very specific parameters. They're not like HD's, where you could strap some fat chick to the rim in a pinch and it'd handle the same. When you start changing the designed parameters, you start changing handling.

I'd also think you'd have to put more input on the bars to get her to lean the same amount as a stock tire. Since you're already concerned about running wide or hot, having to put more effort into making the turn would be worse. Not better.

 

Much appreciated. I hadn't thought about rider position. But I tend to end up right up on the tank after a few corners. So chances are downhill I am way foward. I will keep an eye on that next time I head up the mountain.

 

Downhills are the place to add a bit of rear brake... Weight transfer is already forward, making it easier to overload the front tire. Nothing wrong with smoothly draggin the rear brake before a turn to counteract the pull of gravity...

 

I find myself heavily gripping the tank with my legs to keep me from shifting forward. It definitely helps to make me more comfortable and not shift all my weight to the front of the bike. Great write up burton.

 

Use more rear brake (if any at all) in downhill situations. You want the bike to be as neutral as posible. Also, remember gravity is pulling you down the hill. You don't need as much throttle between turns to keep your momentum.

 

Found a lot of my problem was suspesnsion setup. Once I got the right amount of sag it was a ton easier.
I am still getting used to the 150 tire that somebody crammed on this 130 rim, so it is domed pretty good.
Also I am getting used to getting off the seat and down beside the bike in turns and that helps a lot too.
This set of twisties is actually 5 switch backs, and the middle two are seriously tight compared to the others.

 

I low sided my F4 in a downhill twisty yesterday.. Had as much weight on my rear tire as i could but hit gravel and the heavy front slid out. Probably needed to do like you said and set up my slow entry speed ahead of time. I do find this posting to help alot! Do wish I had read this before I crashed, Im out a grand in parts now lol

 

i know this might be a silly q but when going down hill always keep in gear right??? is it super bad to ride down in n??? or keep in gear but hold the clutch in???