We’ve gone over throttle control and how important it is in riding, so now let’s talk about steering. You can tell a lot by watching a rider steer, how experienced and comfortable he/she is. Counter steering is confusing to most people and it is also one of the reasons that they ask you if you have ever ridden a bicycle before in signing up for the MSF BRC (Beginning Rider Course) class. If you have ever ridden a bicycle you know it isn’t like piloting anything else, in order to go right you have to apply some pressure to the handlebars to the left, to go right, same applies to a motorcycle. We tend not to think about it on a bicycle, yet when we climb onto a motorcycle all of a sudden we overthink the concept to death, it is fear that causes us to freeze up. So let’s just break this down, in a 4-wheeled vehicle if you want to turn right you turn that wheel right and if you want to go left, you turn the wheel left. On a two wheeled vehicle, the same does not apply, in order to go right you need to apply pressure on the bars to the left in order to initiate the turn and in order to go left you need to apply pressure on the bars to the right. This was best explained in Keith Code’s book, Twist of the Wrist II, chapter 12 where he explains counter steering as two magic words. Counter: In an opposing manner or direction and Steering: To guide. It means simply to guide in an opposing manner. “You have the bars in your hands and you’re going straight, but you would like the bike to turn, let’s say, to the right. “To guide in an opposing manner,” you then apply some pressure, at the handlebars, to the left. The bike goes right.” The two wheels on a motorcycle produce a gyroscopic effect, as long as you don’t disturb it, it’s completely stable, but when you try to change the direction on a gyroscope it becomes unstable, which is what you do when you steer. To complicate matters, the faster you go, the more difficult it is to turn because of the gyro effect created by the wheels. The center of mass on your bike also determines how quickly and easily it will steer. The closer the front tire is to the center of mass (determined by the forks), the faster you will be able to steer your bike, like a sport bike, it is very agile and flickable. Now let’s look at the cruiser, where the front forks are extended out more and the front tire is further away from the center of mass, it is not designed to turn on a dime. Steering and throttle control can be a trigger for fear, knowing that everything is stable in a straight line, but the minute we need to turn (steer) that will produce an instability (and in our mind, that is bad). The truth is we need that instability, that moment, in which to change the direction of the bike and then regain that stability by applying the gas back on to provide that force to work in our favor again. As I’ve stated before, your bike wants to be stable and will find a way to return to stability unless the rider does something to stop it, it is about too much rider input. Think less is more (relaxed arms and hands) and you and your bike will have a much better understanding and relationship, getting the optimal response from the bike and more enjoyment from the experience.
