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Points for Road Riders to Ponder: [Although this is written in the first person, it is not my thesis, so no responsibility is accepted if it turns to custard.]
Counter Steering:
Find a straight road with no traffic and no cops. The following looks a lot like drunken weaving. Start toward the left side of the lane. Push gently (I said gently!) outward on the right handlebar. The motorcycle should steer to the right. Feels weird, doesn\'t it? Bring the bars back to centre to go straight. OK push gently on the left handlebar to get back over to the left. Try this 10 times. Notice that you don\'t shift your weight or lean into the turn at all. Your body keeps the same relative position to the motorcycle, as the motorcycle leans over.
Now go into a left turn and do your normal turning. Now gently push out on the left handlebar. You will turn more to the left. You can increase your speed slightly or do less of your normal turning. You can do 10% or 20% of your turning with conscious counter-steering. It doesn\'t have to be all or nothing. Do 10 turns to the left and right. Now try doing 10 right and left turns using just counter steering. Go slower than normal and be ready to revert back to your old style. It took me around 3 months for counter steering to feel normal. I actually use both arms to steer. For a right turn, I push with my right arm and pull with my left arm. You can combine counter-steering with other steering techniques. It\'s up to you. Counter steering is great for emergency avoidance turns. It also works well when you overcook a corner and just can\'t seem to get the motorcycle to turn any harder. How does counter steering work? I really don\'t know. I\'ve read many explanations, but none ever helped me ride any better than push right to go right. So here is my penny explanation. Below about 5 mph when you push the handlebar right you actually will turn right. I will explain cornering at much higher speeds than this. When you turn the handlebar left (push right) the motorcycle does go slightly left for just a moment. The centre of gravity is no longer over the centre line of the tyres. The centre of gravity is just to the right of the centre line of the tyres. So the motorcycle falls to the right. The tyres generate camber thrust (because the outside of the tyre has a smaller radius than the centre) and the motorcycle turns right. What about the gyroscopic forces of fame and legend? When you turn the handlebars to the left, precession causes the front wheel to lean (camber) to the right. This also helps turn the motorcycle to the right. You lean over until the centrifugal force pushing you up balances out gravity pulling you down. I suspect that the front tyre flops back over toward centre a bit. You can counter counter steer to bring the motorcycle back up straight.
I\'ll stick with push right to go right.
Corner Entry
It is very important for good cornering to start your turn at the correct position. Counter steering is a very effective way of precisely hitting this reference point. Your turn start (or corner entry) point doesn\'t have to be a particularly noteworthy object. I find it very easy to look at a bit of undistinguished pavement from 100 feet away and identify it as the corner entry point. Visualise a big X in the road with an arc leading away from it. In conjunction with my sense of speed and timing, when I get there, I know I am there. If you are travelling at 50 mph, you are going (50*1.466) 73 feet per second. If you are only 1/10 of second off, you would be off by 7.3 feet. You then have to fudge the turn to make up for this error. Being off a whole second would be way too much. It\'s not that hard. Hitting the corner entry at the right instant isn\'t that much harder than snapping your fingers to the beat of your favourite song at the right instant. The faster you go, the more important it is to start your turn at the corner entry position. Ride down the road at a fixed speed. Pick a point before the corner as your corner entry reference point. Counter steer right there.
Test Results.
Did you smoothly get over to the desired lean angle, roll on the throttle a bit and hold it there?
Did you hit the apex and exit positions?
Did you have to straighten up mid turn?
Did you have to momentarily steer harder mid turn?
Did you have to back off the throttle in the turn?
If you answered \"yes\" to the first two questions and \"no\" to the last three you are doing great. If not, adjust your speed and corner entry position until it works.
Practice.
Try five turns. Stop in a safe place and think about how the turns went. What could you improve?
Try five more turns. If you can meet the test criteria three times in a row you have mastered turn entry. Congratulations!
Exercises, Braking, Pump, Stab and Moosh
As you brake in a straight line and your motorcycle decelerates more force goes on to the front wheel. This affects the front/rear balance of the motorcycle. The tyre might even heat up a bit and get stickier. Your front tyre starts out with half the weight of the motorcycle on it and ends up with (nearly) the whole weight of the motorcycle. This doesn\'t happen instantly. So you adjust your brake lever pressure while the suspension is setting and then after the suspension is set. The front springs use up some of the force generated by weight shifting forward. Eventually the springs stop compressing and the suspension is \"set\". You now have more traction available and can brake even harder. Weight (force) is transferred off the rear tyre to the front tyre. So the rear tyre needs little or no braking. Some people use no rear brakes. Oddly enough the old fad used to be using no front brake. Since I never go near 100% I think using a little rear brake is OK. On some cruiser bikes it may be possible to slide the front tyre with the rear tyre firmly on the ground. Using some rear brake here seems reasonable. Decide for yourself how much front and rear braking you want. The following assumes no rear brake is being used while stopping in a straight line on a flat, level surface with constant traction. With no traffic around (especially behind you) jab at the front brake medium hard. The front forks compress. When they finally set firmly there is more force (due to deceleration of mass) on the front tyre and thus more traction available. Pump the brakes lightly on and off three times, increasing the lever pressure as you go. Use small pumps. You are testing for more traction. Always end the pump with the brakes off enough that the tyres are no where near sliding. When you release the brakes the front fork springs will release the energy stored in them, creating a force that pushes up on the steering head. Watch for wobbles, you don\'t want this to be a pogo stick. Through repeated trials you will either skid the front tyre momentarily or brake as hard as you care to.
Either is fine. Always smoothly let off the brake if you skid the tyre. Locking up the front tyre is a big deal, so try to avoid it. A locked front wheel makes it easy to dump the motorcycle.
Stab and Moosh
Once you get a feel for how hard you can brake you can forgo the pumping. Jab at the brakes, pause to wait for the suspension to set and moosh (smoothly increase brake lever force) down on the brakes. Let off the brake smoothly if the wheel slides. As you stop harder you may be able to apply a bit more pressure. There is a limit, so don\'t go wild. Feel free to test this technique out in your car first. It\'s a lot harder for cars to fall over. The point is that you can\'t go to maximum braking immediately because the springs are using up some of the deceleration force. Although we are talking about braking in a straight line on level ground with a constant surface traction, you should remember the things that reduce traction. You may do some braking in non-ideal circumstances. Things that decrease traction, and thus braking force, are decreasing radius turns, down hills, crest of hills, negative camber and decrease of the co-efficient of friction (slippery surfaces). Practice stab and moosh until you can do it with little thought. When you need to stop fast you\'ll be able to concentrate on other things like identifying your escape route. When you have to steer smoothly let up, a lot or all the way, off the brakes to allow for steering force. Trying to steer while braking hard is another almost certain way to dump the motorcycle. Every couple of months brush up with a few practice stops.
Looking into the turn
When you started riding you probably got in the habit of looking straight ahead and turning the motorcycle to the side. I find it much easier to look into the turn and point the motorcycle to go over a specific point than to think \"turn harder\". There is a sense of vertigo when looking straight ahead and turning to the side. Learn to think of cornering as following a big arc (part of a circle) painted on the road. If you want to run over a specific spot you adjust your arc to take you there. As you come up to the start of the corner, shift your gaze to a point on the road that to want to run over. Image an arc connecting the corner start and your mid point. Turning the motorcycle to run over the mid point should feel very natural.
Braking and Corner Turn In
A straight before a turn is a common situation. Assume level ground and neutral camber. By experience and repeated trials you can determine the correct entry position and correct speed. At a good clip you will be coming down the straight at a higher speed than the entry speed, so you will need to brake. You can review the braking tips. You want to match the rise in the front end from releasing the brakes with the dive in the front end due to cornering load. The difference between entering a corner at a constant speed or braking before a corner to the same speed is whether the suspension is normal or compressed (set). There are sometimes advantages to the suspension being set. To the extent that the brakes are on, your traction for turning is reduced. You want to smoothly get off the brakes and slightly on the throttle to allow a 60% rear/40% front weight distribution as you go through the corner. You can\'t corner hard while braking hard.
Constant speed corner entry.
Set your correct speed well before corner entry and just practice hitting the correct turn in position and quickly getting over to the correct lean angle. Do this for 10 left and right corners. Approach the corner at 5 -10 mph above entry speed. Brake down to the correct speed and release the brakes as you lean (counter steer) into the corner. Remember, braking is adding force to the front tyre. This can reduce traction available for cornering.. Do this for 10 left andright corners.
Jockey Position
The standard upright riding position isn\'t necessarily the best for sport bike riding. Put some weight on your feet and use you legs as shock absorbers to help absorb bumps. If you overdo this the bike will have a hinged in the middle wobbly feeling\" that is quite disconcerting. Keep some of your weight (50%) on the seat.During cornering it is very natural to lean forward and tuck your elbows in and down. Counter steering works great here. Having weight on your feet also lessens steering input. Again, try to keep weight off the handlebars. You need good stomach muscles for this. OK, there are times when you intentionally want to lean on the handlebars. Changing your riding style will feel awkward. Go easy at it until it feels right. If it just doesn\'t suit you or your body feels twisted into knots, go back to your normal style.
1) Put 25% of your weight on your feet (foot pegs). Do 5 right and left corners.
2) Put 50% of your weight on your feet. Do 5 right and left corners.
3) Rest up a bit.
4) Stop the motorcycle and turn the handlebars lock to lock three times.
Note the circle you push in to do this. Without leaning forward on the bars you can push (pull opposite) the bars through their arc.
5) Put some of your weight on your feet and lean forward a bit in the corners. Tuck your elbows in a bit. Keep weight off the handlebars. Do 5 right and left corners. You can sit up on the straights or when braking for the corners.
Exercises, Front/Rear Balance
The rear tyre of a motorcycle is typically bigger than the front. It is designed to carry more load. A 60% rear/ 40% front weight distribution may work very well. Weight has the same effect as force. Force on a tyre from cornering load or suspension rebound is the same as additional weight. During cornering it is very easy to \"load up\" the front end. Braking puts more force on the front end. Turning reduces traction. You can lighten the front end by turning on the throttle and accelerating slightly. You need a bit of throttle to maintain speed in a corner, or you will slow down. Rolling off the throttle in a corner puts more force on the front end and could even cause it to slide. Every drunk in your neighbourhood biker bar loves to tell stories about how \"I had to keep the throttle wide open or I would have dumped it in the corner\". Balance counts.
1) Ride toward a corner at the proper entry speed well below maximum possible. Lean the bike over to the correct angle. Turn on the throttle and feel the front end lighten and the rear end take more weight. It is much easier to feel this with some weight on your feet (foot pegs). Learn to use the throttle and brakes to set the front/back weight distribution. Your right hand controls the throttle/brake front/rear weight distribution adjusters. You will get the best cornering when both tyres have their correct weight distribution. Suspension tuning may make a lot more sense after you get used to feeling the motorcycle.
2) Come up over the crest of a hill (on a straight) at a constant speed. Note the weight distribution of the bike. Come up over the crest of a hill and roll off the throttle or put on the rear brake slightly. You should notice that the front end feels much heavier. Crest of a hill takes weight off the front. You want down force on the front tyre at corner turn in. If there is a corner following a crest of hill, the loss of traction can be important. If you have to corner hard after the crest of a hill, you may want to roll off the throttle or (rear) brake a bit to get some weight on the front end. Rolling off the throttle compression brakes the rear wheel only. The front wheel has no additional force on it.
3) Go through a downhill corner at your normal speed. Go back through the downhill corner with a low enough entry speed that you can accelerate mildly through the corner. Feel the difference in weight distribution. Down hills put more force on the front tyre. Weight distribution management can help you out with changes in camber, radius and elevation. Both tyres should carry their proper percentage of load and be contributing to cornering force. You don\'t want to over or under load either one.
Mental movies, a la road racing
When you get home from your ride sit down and try to replay a sequence of corners in your head. There will probably be lots of gaps. You remember what you where paying attention to. So if you are carefully looking for turn in points, apex and exit point, they should be in your memory. It should be quite possible to completely remember a race track length (few miles) of distance. Visualising give you a chance to review and change your strategy. Did you go on and off the throttle? Was your turn in too soon and you had to straighten up. If you can visualise a perfect turn, it should be much easier to actually do one. When you are riding, your ability to recall in detail the corner gives you the ability to correctly set the open loop speed (and other controls). Visualising allows you to \"look around corners\" as what you expect to find will be what you will find. Finding granny backing her station wagon out of the drive way on a blind curve is why you only go at 75% level. Gives you a chance to react and avoid. When you can pay less attention to just staying on the road, you can pay more attention to traction, balance and technique.
1) Think of a fun set of twisties. Replay the movie of it in your head. Where are you corner entry, apex and exit points. Did you hit them perfectly? If you painted an arc on the ground where you went, what does it looks like? What shape should it look like? What adjustments could you have made? What about corner radius, camber, elevation and surface condition? How does that affect your cornering? Can you play a perfect corner ride in your head. What does that looks like? What control action does it require?
2) Re-ride the road. Go back think about #1. You should have more complete information and be getting better lines. You can strategize in your armchair. When you are riding you are reacting in the moment.
Hope it works for you.
