Hardest technique to master?

[CanadianFZ6]

Originally Posted by dean owens

dude, she is an instructor. she's asking the questions to give people a chance to share and hopefully get some advice to help them out.

As I said, I didn't read all her posts, just the one where she asked a specific question... So, in that case... the important skills to teach her students is staying alive first and foremost... Situational awareness, proper use of the brakes, proper gear... all the other cool stuff like corner carving and speed control can come later....

[sxty8goats]

I think I was a better rider a couple years ago. I learned on a CB750 and spent every ride paying attention to my cornering/ breaking / throatle. 90% of the time riding alone and enjoying the road. I had a couple back roads I road daily which allowed me to pratice specific cornering techniques on the same patch of road. Very good. Also had a sv650s at the time that I rode maybe 2x a month @ twice the speed of the CB. Sold the 650s.

Then I moved to a new area, sold the CB750 and replaced it with a Honda Shadow. The price was right and I figured a cruiser might be interisting for a season or so. I now ride with a buddy I've known for 30 years. Bad habbits ensue

New bad habbits discovered and working to break-

Over use of the rear break. (resulted in a crash on the FZ6 over the summer)
poor cornering (but better than many cruiser riders)
-Not looking through and past the turn
-Not setting up properly
-Not picking the desired apex and planing the turn
in essence, letting the road ride me and not riding the road. This has resulted in a couple surprises mid corner that previously have not been an issue.

And these are just the problems I've identified. I've worked on them and gained a bit more cofidence in my ability but I have a long way to go to get back to where I was. Cruiser is going up for sale in the spring, the FZ6 will be my only bike for a while. (at least a week or so after the cruiser sells )

[DefyInertia]

Originally Posted by Dennis in NH

I second throttle control. Whether normal or emergency. I.e., if I'm going around a corner and I feel the rear start to slide to the outside, I think I'm supposed to ease off the throttle until I get traction keeping the rear sliding a little until it stops sliding and then get back smoothly onto the throttle to exit the turn.

In reality, since I've never had that issue, I'm guessing, I'd end up chopping the throttle off and from there, bad things will happen . So how do you train for such emergency situations without trashing your bike?

Buy a dirt bike!

+2 control in general. I said "chopping the throttle" above but general throttle control when the bike is having fun is probably my weakest skill. I get by ok at speed and everyday riding is not issue, but it's not where I want it to be with respect to sliding and wheelying and such.

[J_Slyter]

Originally Posted by CanadianFZ6

As I said, I didn't read all her posts, just the one where she asked a specific question... So, in that case... the important skills to teach her students is staying alive first and foremost... Situational awareness, proper use of the brakes, proper gear... all the other cool stuff like corner carving and speed control can come later....

While she may also be a MSF instructor, I believe most of the folks responding are wanting to take advantage of her advice because she is an instructor at the California Superbike School, and can speak to questions around technique from beginner to expert. In fact I heard she taught Valentino Rossi everything he knows!


(nah, I just made up that last part about Rossi)

[abacall]

The three hardest things for me to do:

1) Proper trail braking and using it to adjust suspension to avoid disruption on exit.
2) Cornering equally well on both sides. My right turns are better than my lefts.
3) Not freaking out in low traction situations.

I try and work on technique on every outing. Whether its braking, body position, or throttle control.

[Misti]

Originally Posted by DefyInertia

NOT chopping the throttle when the rear starts to slide under power.

Ohhhhh that is a good one! And a hard reaction to break. You need to ride the slide bike at the Superbike School

Chopping the throttle when the rear end slides is a survival reaction, meaning that our body just reacts without us consciously deciding to do it. Unfortunately this reaction in this particular situation is one that will often cause a highside. I had several highside crashes at the race track before I was able to break that bad habit.

Riding the slide bike at CSS, which is a regular sportbike with outriggers kind of like training wheels that help prevent the bike from crashing. You practice sliding the rear and gently rolling off the throttle to control the slide instead of chopping it. It takes several tries (I rode it as a student before I became a coach) but once you do it really helps when you encounter a slide.

Another way that I found to help me get more comfortable is to hit the dirt and practice sliding on a dirtbike. It's easy to break traction on a dirtbike and you can work on your throttle control and get more and more comfortable

Cheers,

Misti

[Misti]

Thanks for all the great replies here. One particular technique that was mentioned on more than one occasion, and I touched on it in the above post, was throttle control. Many of you have said that TC is one of the hardest techniques to master.

At the Superbike School it is the very first lesson we teach, to EVERYONE, regardless of riding speed, ability, or experience.

I find that riders in general will often talk about good throttle control, but when asked what good throttle control is, will give different answers. So, what do YOU think is good throttle control? Rolling on at the apex, getting on the gas ASAP, maintenance throttle, trailbraking and then hard on the gas? How would you describe good throttle control to another rider?

Misti

[psnbye]

I tend to have the most concerns over my cornering speed, I always think "Am i going too fast?" Or "Damn, I could have gone through that corner a lot faster." I have dumped it in a sharp turn before and I guess I'm still gun-shy. I know the bike is fully capable of out performing me, and I need to take an advanced class but its kinda hard when I live in such a runty town. On my dirt bikes I have been able to ride the bike to it's potential but I am still scared of the speeds the FZ can generate on such a painful surface if you dump it. (Insert weenie comment here) I'm not a beginner but definately not a pro. And I know I dont heal as fast as when I was younger either. Maybe MY hardest technique is putting some trust in the bike.

Oh yeah, Great Thread Misti!!

[Nelly]

Originally Posted by abacall

The three hardest things for me to do:


2) Cornering equally well on both sides. My right turns are better than my lefts.

I try and work on technique on every outing. Whether its braking, body position, or throttle control.

Hi mate,
Are you left handed? I am right handed and I find that I enjoy my left turns better. In that I feel more comfortable going in harder and feel better balanced. I always put it down having my dominant side still on the bike and not hanging off. If that makes sense.

Nelly

[RJ2112]

<So, what do YOU think is good throttle control? Rolling on at the apex, getting on the gas ASAP, maintenance throttle, trailbraking and then hard on the gas? How would you describe good throttle control to another rider?>

Good throttle control, disturbs the chassis the least. Keep the suspension in the center of it's stroke, so you can maintain traction. Carry as much speed as that traction will allow.