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Everyone Wants to Find the ‘Right’ Position!

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After the much awaited debut of Marc Marquez to the MotoGP circuit, one can’t browse the social media networks or open any respectable magazine without hearing or seeing all the commotion over his infamous form and extreme lean angles.  Regardless of which school of thought you subscribe to on such drastic lean angles, one absolutely cannot dispute; …the kid has got talent!   While the rest of us mere mortals will never ride like Marquez outside of our dreams, (despite one or two chaps strutting around the club paddocks claiming this of course), we can learn much from his example.

Body position is typically the first area of focus instructors and riding coaches work to improve on with students, and often for most, one of the most challenging skills to develop.   New riders are notorious for a gamut of poor techniques that can potentially cause very big problems as their pace improves.

Some of the most common hot ticket items are:

*Sitting too upright (Think Driving Miss Daisy vs. Crouching Tiger)

*Shoving the bike underneath you (‘Motocross style,’ baby! Potentially the most dangerous)

*Not getting that booty off the seat (A hot button for coaches)

*And my favorite, the “crossed up style.”  (Everyone has seen this guy; he looks like he is falling off the bike and trying to climb back on with his shoulders at the same time.)

 

I will be the first to admit, my track photos from my NRS are the perfect example of what not to do and I’m surprised I didn’t tuck the front every lap through T9 with how I was shoving the bike down.  My riding coach used to scold me for this regularly.  There is much literature available on this topic broken down step by step scientifically, but the simple idea behind this being that when you drop your head and shoulders and get off the bike, you’re able to push the bike back up and away from you onto the “meat of the tire,” enabling you to get on the gas sooner and minimizing the chance of high sides.

Keith Code breaks it down for us, “Conceptually, hanging off couldn’t be simpler. Lower the combined center of gravity of the bike/rider and you go through the same corner at the same speed, on the same line with less lean angle. It’s a brilliantly utilitarian racer’s tool with huge residual benefits, chief among them an accurate, on-board gauge for lean angle.”  He also describes the tendency and detriment of riding crossed up.  Code says, “True to most evolutionary progressions, function now rules the look of roadracers. Riders are low and inside of their bikes. More and more we see them perfectly in line with their machines, not twisted or rotated in the saddle. The bum off/body twisted back across the top of the bike, which many Phase 4 riders had used, remains an interesting piece of self-deception. Having their torso on the high side of the bike not only neutralized the mass of their hips being off the bike, but actually raised the combined bike/rider center of gravity; thus defeating the technique’s main purpose.”

Mark DeGross, of 2Fast Trackdays & Instruction has developed the “Lean Machine” tool to help teach students proper form in the classroom sessions of his Performance School. DeGross explains, “We feel body position is foundational to riding, so we built the Lean Machine to work with riders.  By replicating the motion of a bike going from straight up and down to leaning over in a corner, we can work with students in our schools helping them to achieve an optimum smooth transition and body position.”

Professional racers at higher levels practice some downright astonishing techniques manipulating the center of gravity on their machines, but on a less complicated level, one school of thought suggests riders should utilize this concept by dropping their shoulders with their booty half off the saddle.  (We all have a handy little halfway gauge just for this.)  Riders lower their head below where a mirror would be with their outside arm stretched out over the tank and essentially “taking a bite out of their inside forearm” thus forming a more stable “triangle base” in which to maximize the contact patch of the tire.  Ladies, you will always feel much lower than what photographs will illustrate, so rock some Lil Jon in your helmets and “Get Low!”  …whatever it takes!

I have found that when you consciously make the effort to drop your shoulders, you’re better able to read the feedback of your tires and chassis at any point in the corner.  It also seems to slow things down a bit in order to better process your surroundings, which will be reflected in your lap times.  With a little practice and some seat time with your riding coach, you’ll see this too.  So get those shoulders down and ‘drop it like it’s hot,’ Vixens.

Rockstar Confidence and Target Fixation

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No matter how long you have been riding, whether it has been in the dirt, on the street or at the track, and at absolutely any level… confidence is paramount.  Confidence is what can often pull us through challenging situations in every circumstance elsewhere in our lives, why wouldn’t it be true for riding?  The person that exudes confidence on a catwalk, giving that toast at a wedding or asking their supervisor for a raise is usually the one that takes home the trophy at the end of the day; or, at the very least, makes an impression not easily forgotten.  We, as outsiders, are not privy to the fear or negativity that might be inside their heads, all we see is poise and self-assurance.

I cannot tell you how many times I have seen riders come barreling into a corner a bit faster than they are comfortable, and without even making an effort, admit defeat and run off the track.  Or worse, watched one rider follow another right off track in the same exact place.  …And target fixation scores two!

Rider safety courses and performance schools alike all teach the same basic principals in this area, “Look where you want to go and commit.”  (If it’s about ‘commitment’, it’s no wonder why some riders are faster than others!)  Most all accomplished or professional racers will agree that the machines we ride are far more capable than what we give them credit, and more often than not in the early stages of riding, the reason for the crash or excursion into the dirt boils down to a simple decision in the heat of the moment.  The rider makes the decision in his/her head that he can’t enter the corner at that speed, changes his focal point from the apex of the corner to one off track, and in a split second, he’s grazing through the green grass in his pretty new leathers.   Racers at higher levels of competition have learned this.  How often do you see Marc Marquez or Ben Spies simply outbreak themselves into a corner and run off track?

Now I’m not suggesting students ride beyond their abilities and when they get into a situation outside of their skill level, to simply revert back to confidence and commitment, because “Hey, if Rossi can do it, I can do it!”  Keith Code states it best, “Making leaps into the unknown by hoping the bike will do your biding will often find riders biting off more than they can chew.”  However, he has much to say in the way of target fixation being our worst enemy, and not looking far enough down the track coming in at a very close second.  Code writes, “Our survival instincts aren’t concerned with what might happen 3 seconds ahead; they’re interested in the dangers they can perceive right now. Without proper training, survival instincts will default to just that.  Simply put, left untended, our visual system is designed to spot danger just far enough ahead that we’ve got time to either misjudge our situation or panic. I’ve long held that our instinctual survival reactions are what spoil any ride.”

The principal that I’m proposing here is simple.  Next time you find yourself diving into that corner feeling like your hair is on fire and you’re about to suck the buttons off your seat, make the mental decision in your mind that you are going to stay on track. Look three seconds ahead, find the apex, drop your inside elbow and commit like Britney Spears in a Vegas wedding.  Running a little wide and being off line is far better than yard-selling your bike.  (The marshals will thank you for this later.)  There is a world of information readily available that has already been specifically broken down bit by bit on visual points and target fixation.  I want to inspire students to believe in themselves in that panic moment and give themselves one more chance before they concede defeat.  On the street, this could mean the difference between running wide and eating a Prius bumper for breakfast.

Now whether you’re Steve Rapp or more like Steve Buscemi on a bike… Work it like Paris Hilton interviewing for a new movie role and ride confident, Vixens!

Steering

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Is the front wheel or back wheel is responsible for steering your motorcycle? Well, they actually both play a role, the front end turns the bike or changes the lean angle, but once the motorcycle is leaned over and stable it is the rear that takes over to maintain that lean angle. Once you are leaned over in a turn, the front end stabilizes the bike, but does not steer it. It still has importance in that it is still carrying 30-40% of the cornering load which accounts for that same percentage of cornering speed. Let’s say you took that 30-40% and added it to the rear, that would account in a full on slide. When you hear guys talk about getting their bike to “bite” they want to get that weight on the front end to load it for the turn. Understanding that the rear of the bike is mainly responsible for stability when the bike is leaned over helps us to make decisions based on that fact. The front end needs enough weight to stabilize itself and allow the rear of the bike to steer it in the direction you have placed it in, assuming you have constant throttle throughout, you will hold that line.

In Chapter 14 of Twist of the Wrist II, there is a question that is asked, “How many times do you steer your bike in any one turn?” *DRUM ROLL*…The answer is: One single steering action per turn. Mid-turn steering corrections occur when you try to correct your mistakes (going into a turn too hot, too wide, unsure where you are, etc.) and are purely a result of rider error. While one steering action is ideal, we tend to panic when we get ourselves into a situation that feels uncomfortable and we compound the problem by say rolling on or off the throttle and adding more lean angle. This causes problems with either loading one end or the other which then affects suspension and traction. This is where maintaining constant throttle is important, rolling on causes more weight to shift to the rear, rolling off causes it to shift to the front, keeping it constant keeps you from disturbing the bike in a turn and avoids that panic to lean more to correct that throttle inconsistency. Less is more in this instance.

There is a purpose and a goal to steering, I think Keith Code says it best, “The purpose of steering is to make direction changes. The goal of steering is to get through the turn accurately, with as little lean angle as possible (for the speed you are traveling).” It is true that there will be more lean the faster you go and this is due to centripetal force pushing you to the outside forcing you to steer at a steeper lean angle to hold that line. However, less lean angle means you have more of a safety margin, more traction and the ability to go faster with spare clearance (no pegs scraping) and it can all be obtained by just flicking the bike quicker into the turn. Learn more about “quick flicking” on Chapter 15 in Twist of the Wrist II.

There is more to cover on steering, but I hope that this intro into it sparks those brains cells into action and you apply some of the principles discussed (keeping it the speed limit of course, it must be said) out there on the road. Tackling some of those twisties with your newfound knowledge and giving you the confidence to overcome those once dreaded curves. Nothing feels better than that sense of accomplishment and the drive that follows to conquer even more. Ride on Vixens!

Countersteering II

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In my ongoing thirst for knowledge from different sources, I encountered a section in a book that discussed Lee Parks’ book Total Control and the concept he uses in the effort to help people understand counter steering. As I talked about countersteering in my last blog, it was guiding in an opposing manner or direction according to Keith Code’s explanation. However, Lee Parks uses the concept of instructing riders to use only one arm at a time for steering inputs, when turning right, only use the right arm to push the bar and when going left, use the left arm and focus on using nothing from the right arm except throttle control. To take this even further, I chose to do it by taking my other hand completely off when going right and just lightly having my right hand controlling the throttle when going left to challenge myself and the truth was it took very little input to get my bike to make those turns. What required more effort was reading entry speed at the turn and actually looking through the turn. If you are struggling with your bars or even man handling them at every turn, you are working way too hard, ease up on the bars and take it slowly, this is a strange concept for people when they are learning it. It is counterintuitive, it seems as if you want to go left you turn left, you want to go right you turn right, right??? Well, when on two wheels we are dealing with forces, remember the gyros? If you are holding the bars down in a corner you are working way to hard and we want to work smarter not harder right Vixens?

Being smooth is key overall though, being smooth in your acceleration, braking, cornering and transitions will make you a better, faster and confident rider, but most importantly you will enjoy your ride more. Relax (seriously), you have to be in control of your mind, emotions, body and machine, remember the saying of “when the helmet drops, the bullshit stops?” The moment the helmet is on you can’t have lingering thoughts or worries, you have to focus (don’t get on angry or distracted). Also, know your limits, don’t push yourself beyond your comfort zone and keep your fatigue and attention levels in check. Add more skills gradually and keep riding and experimenting with different techniques. If you really want to learn, test and push your limits in a controlled environment try out a track school in your area. For those of you in the Pacific Northwest, more specifically Washington, we have one scheduled on June 10th, check out our events schedule for details. Looking forward to seeing you Vixens out there and on the streets!

Counter Steering

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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.

Throttle Control

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A lot can be said about throttle control and how crucial it is in riding and cornering.  As riders we have the ability to make it easier, harder, smoother or scarier based on how we control our throttle.  I learned from an instructor in an MSF class that you should treat your throttle like “Barry White” (SMOOTH) and you won’t be surprised by a choppy and unpredictable ride.  This also rolls into rider input, the fact that if we do not relax our hands and arms, it can lead to disastrous results.  Today’s machines are so perfectly balanced that if you let go and just rode, the bike would right itself, we are the cause that things go wrong when we ride.  Try it and see, don’t death grip your bike, gently roll on and off (the bike immediately responds), push on the bars (gently) and see how easily it turns?  You have so much more control and it required way less effort.  The trick is being confident in your abilities and to relax, but to relax we need to have confidence in our abilities, yeah it is always a catch 22 isn’t it?

When coming off a stop I personally like to be in that friction zone, that place where you can pull in the clutch a bit to roll back and if you twist on a bit of throttle you will roll forward, either way it keeps you from stalling your engine.  This is so important when you are stopped on an incline, so mastering that technique is important.  Then there is the turning the key hand position so as not to fatigue your hand.  If you hold your hand as if you are turning a key in a door your hand doesn’t get tired and cause you to reposition it often and have an unpredictable position on your control that requires adjusting often.  Your hands should have a firm, but gentle grip on the throttle (relaxed) and it should be easy to engage and release the throttle with little to no effort.  This will allow you to ride for lengthy periods of time without your hands going numb or tired, it is all about a light touch.

Cornering is where throttle control can cause you to either panic and have that “Oh Shit” moment or that feeling of absolute exhilaration as you hit that throttle and nail that corner.  Cornering is something we all want to be confident in and be able to take confidently at speed, but many of us can be intimidated by it.  Just seeing that turn up ahead can cause us to tense up and then give the bike way too much input.  Just relax and loosen your grip on the bike and know that you can do this, practice, practice, practice.  Taking a class with a racetrack school where everyone is learning how to corner and corner well is a safe place to learn how to corner precisely and gain that confidence you will need for the street.

I distinctly remember an “aha” moment at a school I was attending where the individual who was reviewing my video of my laps asked why I wasn’t cracking on my throttle earlier?  I remember thinking, “I don’t know, I think I may run wide?”  He was quick to say that I would run wide only if I didn’t crack my throttle on early enough.  He made it very basic for me, he said upon entering a turn you brake, that breaking creates instability for your bike which you need to get it into position to turn. Once you have gotten into the lean position (which should have started before you entered the turn) and are in the trajectory you intend to go, you hit the throttle to stabilize your bike to complete that turn.  In every corner crack on the throttle as soon as possible (not too early though as it will cause you to run wide) and keep a light acceleration through the middle of the turn with the most aggressive turn on at the end to exit.  It was at that moment, I realized that my own fear was keeping me from initiating and completing that turn smoothly and precisely.  It was all about throttle control, when and where to apply it and how much.  Once you get throttle control mastered or at least partially mastered, you can ride knowing that you have the skills necessary to take on any situation and that is powerful.

Throttle control is the key to enjoying your ride, so master it and you will find out how much more enjoyable your riding experience will be.  For some reading during the off season, try Twist of the Wrist and Twist of the Wrist II from Keith Code or get the DVD’s and brush up on your techniques before the season starts again.  Please check out the forums under riding techniques where I will be posting some subjects to discuss.