Cornering techniques

[stewm_21]

I started following a thread in STn v1 about cornering techniques, basically asking the best way enter and exit a corner and how to stand up/lean in the bike and change direction to avoid stuff.  
 
Talk among yourselves, I'll follow along as will others I'm sure.

[Bodhi]

Do yourself a huge favor and buy one of the excellent books by the experts. Or better yet, go to a track school.

[black hills]

Yes, "Sport riding techniques" by Nick Ientasch or "Total Control" by Lee Parks will explain it much more clearly than anyone here.

[GRN]

Yes, "Sport riding techniques" by Nick Ientasch or "Total Control" by Lee Parks will explain it much more clearly than anyone here.

+1, "Total Control" covers a lot of good general material as well.

[scott-sts]

Forget body position for now and work on countersteering in to the turn, getting on the throttle early and driving out of the turn.  Master throttle control before worrying about body position.  Learn to mesh countersteering with throttle inputs and you will be a corner carving motherf***** before you know it!:D   Understanding how throttle and steering interact with each other is critical to riding a motorcycle smooth and fast.

[meanstrk]

Reading does wonders, but practicing what you are reading will make the biggest difference. Get 95% to 100% of your braking done before entering the corner, begin looking through the corner, and practice accellerating out of the apex. Through it all, stay loose on the bars and let the bike work under you. Staying loose will prevent any unwanted input to the bars.
 
Understand technique, and then practice it. Much better to understand WHY you are doing something than to just do something because you are told to without understanding why.

[Fourstring]

Forget body position for now and work on countersteering in to the turn, getting on the throttle early and driving out of the turn. Master throttle control before worrying about body position. Learn to mesh countersteering with throttle inputs and you will be a corner carving motherf***** before you know it!:D   Understanding how throttle and steering interact with each other is critical to riding a motorcycle smooth and fast.

Very well put

The breakthrough moment for me was discovering that the bike really does go where you look.  Before that, I was worrying about the road ten inches from my front tire, my lean, and everything else.  Looking where I want to go and keeping that mindset fixed all that for me.

FWIW, I still need a lot of practice.  Lots of good stuff here.

[Bodhi]

Lee Parks' "Total Control"
 
Reading alone isn't enough of course. But I purport that reading one of the experts (Nick or Lee's stuff) is a more prudent start than listening to strangers on an internet forum.

[jed]

Stupid question time.  I've read a couple of the books but haven't taken a class.  How do you downshift going into a corner.  Says its a 4th to 2nd corner.  Do you clutch 3 / 2 clutch or do you clutch 3 clutch 2 clutch?

I find myself dropping two gears on the street with the clutch in instead of letting each gear engage and then shifting again.

[Bodhi]

Time for MSF!

[SWriverstone]

Ditto on the throttle control. One of the best tips I read in Nick Ienatsch's book was "practice rolling on and off the throttle as slow as possible. However slow you're doing it, it's probably not slow enough."
 
I work on this all the time and have only gotten marginally better at it. It seems especially critical in corners: how many times have we heard stories of mishaps (or near-mishaps) where someone says they got on the gas a little too [pick a word] hard/vigorously/aggressively in mid-corner.
 
In my (limited) experience, this makes a BIG difference. Rolling on too hard mid-corner really upsets the chassis and throws a big jolt into a seamless arc.
 
Scott

[Mr Sunshine]

Get 95% to 100% of your braking done before entering the corner, begin looking through the corner, and practice accellerating out of the apex.

Are we talking about cornering techniques on the street or also on the track.
 
The above is great advice for the street.
 
On the track when you want to go fast the advice is lousy.
 
Just curious.

[Mr Sunshine]

Time for MSF!

We want to help people learn how to corner. Not ride their bikes in a parking lot at 10-15mph where what you do there doesn't translate very well to taking a corner at 60mph.

[Mr Sunshine]

Stupid question time. I've read a couple of the books but haven't taken a class. How do you downshift going into a corner. Says its a 4th to 2nd corner. Do you clutch 3 / 2 clutch or do you clutch 3 clutch 2 clutch?
 
I find myself dropping two gears on the street with the clutch in instead of letting each gear engage and then shifting again.

Both works.  If you are going to do the "clutch 3/2 clutch" action you better be sure you are going to enter the corner at the right RPM range.

[scott-sts]

Are we talking about cornering techniques on the street or also on the track.
 
The above is great advice for the street.
 
On the track when you want to go fast the advice is lousy.
 
Just curious.

 
I won alot a races using this technique. *shrug*

[black hills]

How can you not brake in a corner? What if you mis-judged your speed, there is something in the road, it's a decreasing radius corner?  If you can't see the exit, and all of the road surface when you go into a corner you better be prepared to get on the brakes while cornering. Otherwise you are just asking for an accident.

[scott-sts]

Stupid question time. I've read a couple of the books but haven't taken a class. How do you downshift going into a corner. Says its a 4th to 2nd corner. Do you clutch 3 / 2 clutch or do you clutch 3 clutch 2 clutch?
 
I find myself dropping two gears on the street with the clutch in instead of letting each gear engage and then shifting again.

Downshift one gear at a time.  Doing multiple gears could cause the rear to skid.  An easy way to smooth out your corner entry is to not use brakes.  Yes, don't use the brakes at all.  This forces you to think about corner entry speed and proper gear selection.  It also prevents you from entering a turn too hot which is the mark of a true rookie squid.
Of course, no advice on STN even matters unless it's been published in some f*cking book so I refer you to Keith COde's "No brake drill".

[scott-sts]

How can you not brake in a corner? What if you mis-judged your speed, there is something in the road, it's a decreasing radius corner? If you can't see the exit, and all of the road surface when you go into a corner you better be prepared to get on the brakes while cornering. Otherwise you are just asking for an accident.

 
I believe all of the instances you mention warrant using the brakes.

[Mr Sunshine]

I won alot a races using this technique. *shrug*

 
Which one? Trail braking or getting it all done before the corner?

[Gaolee]

He proably meant precise throttle control. My son is now learning to drive, and one thing I have been telling him is that he should use the minimum input necessary to achieve whatever it is he wants to do, be it slow down or speed up or turn. He is at the stab-stab-stab stage of vehicle control, but it applies to all of us.