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Adjusting A Rear Wheel Slide


marcato

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situation: you're in a left hand corner and you slide the rear while on the throttle (either intentional or unintentional)...and the rear is coming around.

 

a. if you need the bike to steer more towards the inside of the turn you give it more throttle, yes? (and the rear comes around a bit more)

 

b. if you need to steer the bike towards the outside of the turn do you...

 

1. push on the left grip to get the bars to turn right...in this manner countering the direction of the rear wheel slide (as you would in a car)?

 

or

 

2. push on the right grip to pick the bike up from its lean? (i realize you ideally shouldn't have the bike at extreme leans when spinning up the rear...)

 

its always mentioned that you steer the bike flat-tracker/dirt bike style when the rear wheel is sliding in a turn (on the throttle).

 

what isn't so clear is how exactly you steer the bike in a flat tracker style? (i.e. in a left turn with the rear wheel spinning on the throttle... push on the left grip to do x, right grip to do x, etc.etc.)

 

sorry if i used too manywords...tried to get it as concise as possible... :(

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The cool thing about the way a bike works is you don't need to steer it in a slide, the trail will turn the front wheel the way it needs to go.

 

As for how to control a slide the first thing I do is pick it up, take some lean out of it by lowering my body to the inside. If this is enough (meaning if you caught the slide soon enough) it's the fastest (lap time) way to handle it.

 

If I am in the middle of a turn going flat with the throttle is the first thing I do. If that doesn't stop the slide from getting bigger instantly I will shut it down some. Being the recipe for a high side I don't normally say that but the measure of the slide is a subjective thing and how much you can get away with can be a costly lesson. The key to getting out of the gas is being able to get it back on the instant the rear starts to grip. The timing on this is probably less than tenths of a second, the difference between a highside and the bike rushing forward out of the slide.

 

The best comparison would be a dirt bike landing from a jump. If you are off the gas when the bike lands you are going to be forced forward, if you are on the gas when you land all is balanced.

Will

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  • 4 weeks later...

3 weeks ago all my ice riding this last winter paid off in full when I was in the carousel at Road America, running 5th in an endurance race on a SHOT rear tire with my buddy's brand new 04 GSXR1000.

 

The corner is insane fast, and 1/2 mile long. Perfect in every way... About 2/3 through it, dragging a knee, the rear end lit up and started coming around. Ice instinct and racing habits kicked in and I kept feeding throttle until I was at the exit. I was countersteering like a mother and there was smoke rolling off the rear tire. At the exit, I squared the corner and lifted the bike up. It wheelied out into the new "bend". It was one of the coolest moments of racing in my life and nobody got video of it...

 

On subsequent laps I could see the blackmark and it was about 200 yards long. Absolutely incredible...

 

The bottom line is that you have to keep the rear spinning until you can get the bike upright. You will end up countersteering the slide, but the bike will do this automatically. Just don't fight it... B)

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Full lean and feeding the throttle to a slide, that is a great recipe for a crash. Without lifting the bike into the slide, feeding it gas would have brought it right around. Smoke of the rear at full lean, LOL. Do you have mirrors on your buddy's bike? Not even the GP guys are spinning the tire the way you have described, every picture of them will show very little lean angle when you see smoke from the rear. And that is with BIG power, not a measly GSXR 1000.

Big slide with a long darky I can believe, most of the rest though is just too much to swallow.

Will

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Big slide with a long darky I can believe, most of the rest though is just too much to swallow.

Will

hehe... embellishment at its finest I guess :D

 

I'll say with absolute honesty that the slide and black mark was well over 100 yards. When it started sliding, I guess I did pick it up a bit, but was still dragging knee and feeding gas into it.

 

Smoke? well, yeah, I mean, I looked back and there it was :D lol... busted :P Okay, "but it felt that way"...

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Big slide with a long darky I can believe, most of the rest though is just too much to swallow.

Will

hehe... embellishment at its finest I guess :D

 

I'll say with absolute honesty that the slide and black mark was well over 100 yards. When it started sliding, I guess I did pick it up a bit, but was still dragging knee and feeding gas into it.

 

Smoke? well, yeah, I mean, I looked back and there it was :D lol... busted :P Okay, "but it felt that way"...

Good stuff, now we are on the same page. I always look for the marks I think I leave, and at times do find them. Too bad they are only temporary.

Will

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So , what was the correct answer?

There are a few things you could do;

 

#1. flatten the gas.

 

#2. Lift the bike.

 

#3. Shut the gas off for an instant.

 

What would make the difference is the speed of the corner and the swiftness it broke loose. In fast corners if you have good throttle control #1 should work. If you are close to the end of the turn #2. And the slower you are going the sooner #3 is the answer.

Will

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I have been talking to top riders about using the rear brake and this is one point that they will use the rear brake to slow the spinning rear and regain traction - no change in throttle, just drag the rear brake a little to gain traction/control.

The only reason to do this is if the throttle doesn't work right, the bike stumbles or bogs. That leads back to it origins Harley dirt trackers.

Will

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  • 2 weeks later...
Does anyone initiate a slid by moving weight forward on the bike by applying pressure from their arms onto the tank, I read about it but thats about it?

 

Balistic is the only person I personally know who purposely slides his bike and some times (last CODE RACE school at Streets) the bike comes around a bit too much - like to the locks.

 

I do not intentionally slide - ever. When I do slide, it is a mistake and it usually happens so fast that by the time I know what is going on, the bike has already straightened it self and I am on my way.

 

Steve

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Get on the Slide bike!

 

I learnt by riding in the wet (ok, I'm in the UK so it's possible far too often) and then went on to do it on the street and finally for photo sessions for the magazines I used to work for.

However, on a photo shoot becuase it has to be done in a particular place and point you have to go against ALL the good rules.

 

1. Carve a really tight arc

2. Drill it on HARD

3. If it isn't spinning then push the bike under you (Arrgh I hear all CSS Instructors cry!) with more throttle until it breaks away then NAIL IT.

 

Looks ok for pictures and does give you a really good handle on sliding. :o

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