Hotfoot
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Posts posted by Hotfoot
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I'm seeing more and more Supermotos around these days. I don't know anything about them, and I was wondering - what are the reasons (I'm sure there are multiple) for changing the wheels when you turn a bike into a Supermoto? I'm sure it's partly to make it easier to get track-type tires, but what else? Weight? Handling?
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You are right that shortening the forks in itself does not change the trail. It changes because the whole bike rotates forward when braking, so the head angle rotates forward along with it. Yeah the frame angles are mechanically fixed, but there's 4 or 5 inches of suspension travel front and back, so the whole frame can rotate relative to the ground due to braking or acceleration. If you hit a dip and both front and rear compress equally, no change in trail, but braking and throttle can cause the front and rear to do the opposite of each other, and there will be a change in trail.
Perhaps considering an extreme example will make it more clear. Consider a guy doing a "stoppie" draw that on paper, draw your lines, now how much trail is there? At some point it will even become negative (the tire contact point will be in front of the steering pivot).
Back to the original subject, I have an SV650 that has a slight tendency to want to stand up in turns. So now that you got me thinking about this "camber thrust vs. trail" theory, I'm thinking of doing a bit of testing to see if I can use that to make it better or worse.
You said your bike does not have adjustable suspension, but I don't think I've ever seen a bike that didn't at least have preload adjustment on the back (to deal with the possibility of riding with a passenger). So if you have that, try cranking that all the way in one direction, then ride, then all the way in the other direction, then ride. I wonder if there'll be a noticeable difference in the bikes tendency to want to stand up, for better or worse. Also there's the possibility of sliding the forks up in the tripple clamps a little bit. Both of these changes would pitch the bike slightly forward or backward which would change the trail a little.
AHA! Did you hear the penny drop?
Thank you, that it is the piece I was missing, that the forks DO rotate, RELATIVE TO THE GROUND, when the bike tips forward. I got it now. Phew!
Things get so much more difficult when I try to understand all the formulas instead of just going by the seat-of-my-pants intuitive feeling. But, your patient explanations helped me reconcile the two and I feel MUCH better now!
I'll be very interested to hear what you find in your experiments. You're right, apparently there is a preload adjuster on my cruiser, and I'll try stiffening that... but I'm not sure when I'll be out riding it again to test it - THIS weekend I'm going to go ride that snazzy new BMW 1000RR! Wheeee!
Thanks again.
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Under braking the back end of the bike lifts and the front compresses, so the whole bike is rotated forwards which makes the head angle more vertical, which reduces trail.
I get the idea, and it makes sense intuitively, BUT... if trail is dependent on the steering head angle, and the steering head angle is mechanically FIXED on the bike, how does the trail actually change? Also, if you draw out a picture of a bike, draw the vertical line to the ground and the line extending the angle of the forks to see the trail, then SHORTEN the forks (compressed shocks) and redraw the trail, it doesn't change... because the wheel radius doesn't change, and the rake doesn't change. Not unless you "allow" the forks to rotate at the steering head, changing the rake angle.
Trail=RSinø-0/cosø
R=tire radius
0=triple-clamp offset
ø=rake
I do see that rotating the whole bike forwards would shorten the wheelbase, but don't see that it would change trail.
Sorry if I sound a little argumentative, I am not trying to be, I am just frustrated because I don't quite understand this and it's bugging me!
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Harnois, nice explanation about rake and trail, thank you for that. To answer your later question, about whether the cruiser always wants to stand up: I experimented with that a lot on the day that I noticed it happening. I tried turns off-gas, maintenance throttle, light acceleration, and hard (kinda) acceleration. Off throttle it was nuetral, maintenance it stood up slightly, light throttle it stood up a LOT. Hard acceleration didn't seem to affect any more than light roll-ons. I'm still a little suspicious that the thing is squatting a lot, the suspension on it is very soft and not adjustable.
Stu, I totally agree with your explanation about the bike standing up under braking. There is a GREAT computer animation of this in the Twist of the Wrist II DVD, that is what finally made it click for me. I also agree with your head-exploding feeling, I read the Tony Foale stuff too.
Harnois, you said:
"Getting on the front brake causes the bike to dip forward, which decreases trail"
I was thinking about that, and I don't really see how the front of the bike dipping forward would change the trail, are you sure that it does? I think trail is dependent on rake, not fork length, and I think rake is fixed mechanically by the bike. Am I confused?
I was thinking this over because since we started this whole discussion, I also started wondering WHAT actually causes the front wheel to turn when you hit a bump while leaned over. We know it does, but why? I think it must be a similar thing to why it stands up under braking...?
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I took my little cruiser bike out for the first time in a long time, after doing a lot of sportbike riding. It's a Suzuki Savage 650. Obviously it steers differently than my Ninja. But one thing in particular jumped out at me. One of the things my coach told me at school is that once the bike is leaned over in a corner, getting on the throttle does not make the bike stand up, that it maintains the same lean angle. OK, fine.
However, when I lean over that cruiser, and get on the throttle, it stands up noticeably. It is most pronounced at low to medium speeds, like 20-40 mph, but it took me by surprise a couple of times until I got used to it. I never really noticed it before - probably because I thought ALL bikes would stand up when you roll on the gas, so I used to maintain some pressure on the bars to "hold" the bike in the turn. I don't do that anymore.
So... what's the deal? Is it because it has a much shallower steering angle and/or greater trail? Or is it because the suspension is soft and the rear end squats under acceleration, changing the trail when I get on the gas? I'd really like to have a better technical understanding of how this works, anyone want to help me out?
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Yea will do! Luckilly enough my buddies and I (all of which will be at Streets in either level III or IV) are heading to Fontana in a couple of weeks for a trackday which will hopefully get some of those winter cobwebs out!
What track day are you doing at Fontana? Mar 29th?
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I took the bike out for a nice ride this weekend and noticed something different: I would ride toward a turn, slow down to adjust my corner entry speed to something comfortable, then turn and roll through ON the throttle. Turning ON the throttle took more push--more steering input--than when turning with the throttle closed. If I wanted to turn with the throttle CLOSED, I had to roll a LOT further into the corner (well, like 20-30 feet further) before slowing and turning. That was a bit scary because I was carrying more speed further into the turn. For example--on a right hand curve, I would have to go almost to the yellow line before rolling off, turning and rolling on. At normal street speeds, turning with the throttle closed seemed to require very good timing: close-lean-open almost as one action. Not what I expected.
Is it "bad" to turn with maintenance throttle already on?
Is it "okay" to go WELL into the corner before rolling off and tipping in?
Does anyone else notice this?
Thanks.
I notice that , too. I often do the same thing on the street, and/or anytime I am going really slow. Rolling the throttle on stabilizes the bike, right? Which is what makes it a little harder to turn - BUT when you are going REALLY slow, the bike feels pretty wobbly so a little bit of "maintenance" throttle during your turn-in can make it feel more stable. It compromises your quick turn, but... let's say you are going to turn right on red, so you are approaching the corner slowly, while looking hard to the LEFT for oncoming traffic. In that case, stability seems more important than getting a high entry speed or snappy quick turn.
So, in my opinion, there is nothing wrong with using that bit of maintenance throttle when you are going slow, to help stabilize the bike. However, if your goal is to have a higher entry speed, THEN you'll need a good quick turn, right? Getting off the throttle makes the bike easier to turn quickly - and you have already discovered what you can do with your turn point when you quick turn!
Sounds to me like you are just experimenting with quick turn and finding out what happens with your turn point when you turn quickly, and when you don't, which is awesome, very observant and thoughtful on your part. I think both of the options you listed (turn in with maintenance throttle, or using a later turn point and turning it off-throttle) are "OK", depending on the circumstance, and on the entry speed you are trying to achieve.
If you have the Twist of the Wrist II DVD, during the quick turn discussion, there is a nice shot of a guy on Harley making a rather leisurely turn on the street, and that's where the point is made that you only turn the bike as quick as the situation demands, it's a good example and certainly made it more clear to me.
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I think at that point he is a frame slider!!!
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I'd like to echo Kevin's comments We do have riders of all levels come to the school, I've seen people who've literally past their test that week turn up and work on the drills. You can ce sure that the environment is safe, and we're able to improve people of all levels.
There is however, one thing I'd stipulate, and that would be there has to be real willigness to learn, be open to us making ammendments, improvements to her technqiue. If she's open to that, her coach and the team are more than capable of nurturing her, and to be honest, these kind of students can quite incredible levels of progress, confidence and new found love for their riding. Will she walk away great track rider, probably not, but, she'll learn things, feel more in control and happier as result.
One observation I've made over the years, is be sure it's something she wants to do for herself. i've seen many a couple where the bloke's really into it, wants to do the school and brings the significant other somewhat against their will. That can lead to tears and all sorts of emotioanl turmoils for you, so I'd just make sure she's doing it for her.
Hope that helps, any other questions.
Bullet
Hey Crash,
I want to support what Bullet said. The first time I came to school I was riding right about the same level you describe in your post. I was comfortable with shifting but very tense and slow through corners, nervous about traffic, and not very willing to really get on the gas. I called the office with questions like: "will I be able to manage a 600? What if my feet don't touch the ground?" However, it was ME that made the decision to come to the school, and I brought my husband along with me. I wanted to learn to ride a 600cc bike. If I had been dragged to the school, I would have been scared half to death and probably inclined to blame whoever talked me into coming!
But, here's the thing - my coach (it was Stuman, incidentally) was patient and it was very easy to trust him, and I did the drills at a slow-to-moderate speed, and by God, I improved so much in one day it was... well, I don't know how to describe it, but I fell in love with the sport, came back for lots of schools, and now I can hold my own at any track day (in the fast group!) and I even have done some racing. My husband got hooked, too, we do lots of trackdays and some races together. I am SOOOO glad I came to the school, my confidence shot up instantly and has continued to grow with every school day.
Here's something to consider - look for a used Ninja 250, maybe around 3-5 years old. They are easy to find, really inexpensive, have a VERY low seat height, and are super easy to ride and learn on. The older bikes (not sure about the 07-08 models) have weak-but-adequate brakes and weak-but-adequate acceleration, which means you can get really confident with gas and brakes because it is really hard to overdo either one. If your wife is short, she will really appreciate the confidence of being able to get both feet flat on the ground. Anyway, the Ninja is a cheap and easy way to get comfortable with a sportbike, because the controls are the same - a nice step between a no-shift scooter and a 600cc class bike. Coming to school with little or no experience with shifting could be a big distraction - I can tell you that on my first day I was hopelessly worried about dropping the rented ZX6R in the parking lot (because it felt so TALL!) and that sort of worry is exhausting.
Good luck with it - and BTW, if your wife wants to talk with a gal who has been there, shoot me a PM and I will send you my email and phone number.
HF
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This is one of the reasons I come to the school as often as I do! I've been to some track days that were pretty damn scary, especially in the intermediate group. Certainly the track, and the provider, make a big difference, but you still never REALLY know what you are going to get, until you are there in the middle of it. Since my husband and I ride together often, I find myself doubly worried, since he is out there, too! I've progressed from riding the beginner group up through to the race group, and I definitely found the intermediate group to be the most volatile.
I am willing to spend a little bit more and come to a CSS day instead, where people are there to learn and the staff is totally dedicated to keeping everyone safe and improving. The troublemakers are handled immediately or thoroughly humbled in the first few laps (no-brakes is brilliant, for more than one reason!).
One of the first times I ever went to a CSS school (it was a 2 day camp, actually), there was a guy (student) there who really appeared to be a jerk. By the end of the safety briefing, I was pretty worried about being out on the track with this guy... but Trevor noticed, and pretty soon Keith was having a chat with the guy, and guess what - Keith sent the guy home! I'm not sure whether Keith would appreciate me telling the story, but the truth is, I was TOTALLY impressed. It was the right thing to do, it took guts to do it, and I think everyone in the class was relieved that the guy never made it out on the track. It's a rare track day provider that would notice something like that and take such definite, immediate action, but it's things like that that keep the rest of the group safe and happy.
Anyway, my point is, for a little more money I can come to a school, and have a terrific, worry-free day. Oh, yeah, and I improve a lot more, too.
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You can mess up a down shift with or without the clutch, either way your going to stress the trany, messing up a clutchless downshift would be no more damaging then if you miss timed your use of the clutch and jammed the bike down a gear without matching the revs.
Jaybird, the web is full of misinformation, you have to decide who you choose to believe. My posts on this forum are simply my opinion, you can give as much or a little credence to them as you like.
I use clutchless downshifts all the time on the street and sometimes on the track. I've only done it on my own bikes (one of them has a slipper clutch), but on my bikes, if you don't have the RPMs matched, it simply won't shift. I have never felt or heard any indication of a "bad" clutchless downshift, it either goes smoothly and perfectly, or not at all. Do other bikes actually shift, badly, if you don't get the rpms right?
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I thought that 10% slip meant 90% hooked-up. What are you saying now?
100% hooked up plus 10% slip.
Driving home yesterday, saw an older SUV in front of me with a tweaked frame, traveling forward but also sort of sideways, too, because the back was not quite in line with the front. I could see the back of the truck and part of the left side of it. It must be hell on the tires. And then I thought:
AHA! 100% hooked up plus 10% slip!
There always has to be some measure of truth in humor. What percentage is truth and what percentage is humor, Hotfoot?
100% truth plus 25% humor.
If you are really asking whether I'm kidding or not, well, yes, I think it is funny, but it is totally true and it really did help me understand what Stu meant. Because, since that truck was so crooked, it had to be dragging the wheels somewhat sideways, so the tires had to be slipping. But they were still providing all the traction required to push the truck forwards. Not so different on a bike, right? The bike could still be going exactly the direction and speed you want, solid grip on the road, but there is still some slip in the tire. 100% hooked up, plus 10% slip.
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Good point about the quick turn In shorter corners that is often the limiting factor, In longer corners you have a little more time to search for the limit of tractions.
I like Hotfoot's description as well, the pavement does seems smooth...
What I notice first when the front pushes is that the bars feel light. What I mean is when you have lots of front feel an the front has lots of traction the bars feel heavy, there is some resistance to your slightest pressure. When the front pushes there is not more resistant and if feels like the front wheel is kinda floating. When the bars just start to feel a little light it is a god warning. Of course you have to be light of the bars to feel that. If you have a death grip it will be harder to feel.
And then what to do you do, roll on the gas? Stand the bike up? Hold your breath and repent for your sins?
How often are you able to save it when that starts to happen? Are you more likely to be able to save it when it slides in slick conditions when you are going a little slower and more upright to begin with, or do you save it more easily when you are leaned over a lot and going fast? What percentage of the time do you recover it?
A magic formula for being aware when the front tire is about to go and a way to react and save it would do wonders for my confidence. I know I should roll on and/or stand it up but never felt like I had enough warning and time to react.
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I thought that 10% slip meant 90% hooked-up. What are you saying now?
100% hooked up plus 10% slip.
Driving home yesterday, saw an older SUV in front of me with a tweaked frame, traveling forward but also sort of sideways, too, because the back was not quite in line with the front. I could see the back of the truck and part of the left side of it. It must be hell on the tires. And then I thought:
AHA! 100% hooked up plus 10% slip!
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Ok let's get more specific.
For those of you that have had a front slide on pavment without falling, what did it feel like?
Bike suddenly leaned over farther, feel from the front got really quiet, as if the pavement was glassy smooth, and the front stepped out to the right (wide). Then it hooked up, felt like it stood back up a little, and proceeded on. I never moved, because it happened quick and I had no idea what was going on until I felt the abrupt regain of grip.
I've also had a front slide that went all the way to a low-side (at pretty low speed) and it felt similar - I turned the bike and got to my desired lean angle, and then it leaned over more (without me doing anything), and I thought, wow, I'm really leaned over, then my knee touched down and then some part of the bike started scraping loudly and I knew I was going down. In both cases the feedback from the front seemed to get really smooth, which I assume is what people mean when they say "no feedback", the bike leaned over noticeably more, and the front stepped out a little wide, making the bike feel pointed to the outside a little bit.
For rear slides, I've just felt the back of the bike come out of line with the front; didn't notice a change in feel or feedback from the rear tire. I've never spun it hard enough to hear the RPMs come up. A rear slide under braking (no rear brake involved) feels very similar to me as a rear slide under acceleration - just the realization that the back is getting a little sideways; I assume I am just noticing that my hips just got pushed a bit to the left or right, relative to my hands on the bars! I'm sitting in a swivel chair here as I type, and if I keep my hands on the keyboard and twist the chair a little one way of the other, that pretty much reproduces the feeling.
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Quick turn, for me, because WOW you sure can enter a corner faster if you can quick turn it.
And guess what, Stuman, you were my coach - I remember following you through a turn, no brakes, holding my breath, hoping like hell this technique would really work because I was SURE we were going too fast to make the turn. That feels like a hundred years ago, now, because my riding has changed so much since then, but I pick that technique as the best thing for me because it made such a dramatic difference in my confidence.
The temptation to add ANOTHER best thing is really strong, though... maybe I'll create a new login so I can talk about another technique that made a world of difference for me!
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The thing that bothers me about trail braking is that you are asking the tire to do multiple things at once: change direction and change speed. If you have $10 of traction available, how do you use it to get around a turn quickly? It would seem that using all $10 for changing speed (braking) first and then using all $10 to change direction would make the most sense.
But is it really that simple? I don't think people using all available traction for braking. Maybe only $7 or $8. And I bet even fewer people get anywhere near using all $10 for changing direction unless then are then proceeding on to crashing. Maybe $5 or $6.
Wouldnt that leave the door just a little open to a little blending of the two?
I think part of the reason people trail brake is getting the corner speed set correctly. It's really hard to come up on a turn, brake to the entry speed and then continue the process. The result for me (and I bet a lot of people) is that they end up over braking and entering the corner a *LOT* slower than they are actually capable of. The upside is that there is a huge margin for error. The downside is that you are several seconds slower than you are capable of.
However, to be clear: I'm not judging which technique is better. I'm trying to understand what is going on so either is available to me depending upon the circumstance.
Just my opinion on this... to your point, about using less than your $10 of traction - picture a wide, roughly U shaped decreasing radius turn, after a high speed straight. It will end up a double apex turn, and you don't want to give up your straightaway speed any earlier than you have to. I don't like trail braking but in that scenario I would probably bend it in and trail brake to, or maybe even past, the first apex, because I am still slowing down for my second turn point and the first turn-in is not that sharp, so I have enough available traction to brake while I am turning. In that case, trail braking seems like a good move to keep someone from coming up your inside when you are entering the turn. For sharp, tight, quick-steering turns, it wouldn't even occur to me to trailbrake, it's too much to think about and too easy to overload the front tire.
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I find it MUCH harder to get my gsxr600 leaned into a corner while on the brakes. 85% of the bikes weight is on the front tire, I don't understand how it could possiby turn easier. It also feels like the bike turns much sharper on the throttle comaired to being on the bakes but I haven't messed around with trail braking a street bike much.
So... if you think of a corner where you are hard on the brakes on the entry, when you make your steering action, what is the angle of your arms relative to the bars? Is your body position the same when you turn on the throttle versus turning on/after the brakes? Does the angle of your elbow change?
Also, just curious - some people push the inside bar to turn and some people pull on the outside bar, some peope do both, which do you use? Do you do it the same way on throttle versus on brakes? Do you find that the bike, when trying to turn while on the brakes, is harder to turn on lefts, or rights?
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Tweek--let's check out the physics on this (rudimetary). You roll on the throttle, after you turn in, then you roll of the gas (not even using the brakes), what does the bike do, if you are doing absolutely nothing to the bars--what happens to the line, where does the bike go when the gas is rolled (or chopped off)?
Rolling off the throttle should tighten the line.
Not initially--it will run wider at first.
CF
First time I heard this, I found it hard to understand and hard to believe. I didn't ever REALLY understand it until I watched the Twist of the Wrist II DVD, there is a computer generated animation that shows what happens, in slow motion, and explains WHY, and WOW did the lightbulb come on for me when I saw that!
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Tuesday nite, my wife and I finally had our little girl. We didn't know boy/girl before and are happy she's now here. We named her Nia; and yes, daddy will teach her to ride motorcycles and fly airplanes.
But I'm one happy daddy.
Congratulations! A whole new adventure...!
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Does this happen at various speeds, or certain corners (particularly slower ones)? Slower corners can do that. As soon as you've made the turn, and you're going to make the apex, it should be perfectly fine to get back on the gas without difficulty unless you crack it too much, brake or sit up while in the corner, or make another steering adjustment after you get on the gas. If your tires are still in good shape, you're going to feel the same thing from the same type of tire. If you haven't done it yet, save your money for now.
Just a comment on this - I think the Power Ones are dual-compound tires and two things to watch for - first, the edges may wear out before the middle, the outer compound is soft and I think they do have less grip after a lot of heat cycles, so I DO think changing your tires is a good thing to try. Second, on the Power Ones I kept getting the feeling of mild front tire slips in some places, and I finally came to the conclusion that I was feeling the transition from one compound to the other as I started standing up the bike. I would turn it in, and it felt fine, then I started to roll on the gas and it was OK, but after the apex when I started standing the bike up a little I'd get this weird feeling of little slips in the front. My best guess is that when I started getting the tire on the harder compound, it was either sliding a little or just felt really different. One day at the track I changed to the Dunlop Q2s and the problem instantly disappeared.
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...In a couple decades we'll have powerful long-range electric bikes and this whole silly shifting business will be a thing of the past that only old guys remember, so what's the point in even worrying about it?
Don't have to wait for decades, the slipper clutch had already done that for bikes. Just like what DSG transmission and Nissan's SynchroRev Match did to the skill of heel & toe downshifting....
I hadn't heard of synchro-rev but I read about it and it sounds like it would be pretty fun in a car, or bike I guess!
But screw the DSG, the synchro whatever, CVTs (continuously variable transmission), and the whole transmission altogether, plus clutches, torque converters, intricate valve trains, catalytic converters, and fuel injection systems... all a bunch of complicated expensive solutions to overcome the inherent flaws in combustion engines.
And after all that, you still need a battery and an electric motor to bring the engine to life in the first place. People have gotten so used to these things that they take for granted how complicated it all is. And despite all the expensive and complicated emissions ######, they still end up causing smog in every city around the world.
Electric engine: Attach engine to rear wheel with chain and sprockets, twist throttle to go! Max torque from zero rpms! Wheelie machine! No clutch, no shifting. Totally off-topic but just say'n, my little rant, hehe. Where is that magic battery.
Getting kinda close - my daily commuter car has a CVT transmission and runs on natural gas, incredibly inexpensive to run, and ultra clean burning, so no smog and no crud in the engine, either. Oh, and I can drive it on the carpool lane. Heck of a deal and apparently a well-kept secret. (To your point, it certainly requires a lot less maintenance than those two-wheel chain-driven tire-shredding rockets in my garage.
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Funny. I've been wanting to get the book, though. I've got too much going on, and I promised myself I'd learn suspension this year, so that's my next goal.
Wow, good luck with that. I'm starting to think it takes a lot more than a year to learn suspension! It's like pulling a thread on a sweater, you just keep finding out there is more to it, and more to it, and more to it...
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Hey Jayson, I don't think the advice you got at summit point was all that bad. If you are leaving a ton of room on the exit then you probably can go faster, but it doesn't necessarily mean you can go IN faster.
One point about the exit. I think it is a good idea to try within reason to hold the bike tight on the exit of a corner. If you have a buffer coming off the corner then you know you might be able to use some of that up and go faster. It's how you decide to use your buffer that is important.
If you intentionally run the bike to the outside edge of the track coming off a corner, you don't really have a good idea of how much you have left. Know what I mean?
If you can consistently hold the bike a little tight coming off the corner you might try using that buffer up by standing the bike sooner and getting on the gas harder. Then you can use up some of that buffer and gain some exit speed.
Back to the original point of your post...
I think it is hard to judge your entry speed based on how you exit the corner. I think you're better off gaging it using your turn point and apex.
Where you able to put the bike where you wanted it to be at the apex?
Did you turn exactly where you wanted to?
Were you able to relax just after turn in? Or were you tense?
Were you able to end your braking where you intended? Or did you get hung up on the brakes going in?
How soon did you get back on the gas?
How quick did you turn the bike?
These are just a few things that you can use to judge your entry speed after the fact. I'm sure we could think of many more.
The point is if you turned the bike where you wanted, turned it quick, got your braking done where you wanted, got back in the gas right away and nailed your apex then chances are your entry speed was "correct".
If you turn the bike slow because you were scared, or weren't able to relax right away, or blew your apex, or were afraid to get back on the gas until the corner was done, or got hung up on the brakes then you might have over cooked it a bit.
If you did everything right but felt like you could have gone faster then you probably could have.
Gains in entry speed come very slowly for most and you have to cut yourself a little slack. You're not going to be able to add 10mph going into most corners without giving yourself a coronary. You have to be satisfied with small gains over time and keep working at it.
I work on my entry speed all the time and I'm never satisfied. However, there have been times when I felt like I was riding really well and that feeling had a lot to do with my confidence going into the corner.
I think entry speed is one of the toughest things for any rider to improve. My best advice is ... baby steps. Don't bite off more then you can chew, you will only set yourself back. Work your speed up slowly, like .01 mph increments.
What a fantastic post! I think I'm going to print this out and take it with me to track days. It is really, really easy to get caught up in trying to push yourself to improve entry speed and it sure can be a frustrating experience, and your post clarifies that extremely well. Recently a riding buddy of mine got really focused on entry and although he didn't realize it, he slowed WAY, WAY down. He thought he was really pushing himself, and he WAS going into the corners faster than me but suddenly I was blowing him away on laptimes, because he was losing so much on his midcorner and exit. It was a great learning experience for me to watch it happen to HIM, because when it happens to ME I am so aggravated that I can't learn a damn thing.
Being able to observe it dispassionately was very enlightening!
Where We Are, And What We Are Doing
in School Questions/General Discussion
Posted
Hurray! Glad you're going to keep the thread going, I like it, too, nice to know what's going on.
Hey, you're in color again, nice photo!