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Fast road riding skills

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Milesprower
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PostPosted: 23:10 - 17 Apr 2021    Post subject: Fast road riding skills Reply with quote

Just a quick one as to where everyone developed their fast riding skills on road, was it track riding, years of trial (and hopefully not) error, advanced rider training courses etc?
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Ste
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PostPosted: 23:40 - 17 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

Time on a tiddler, school boy trials, etc etc etc?
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Hong Kong Phooey
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PostPosted: 14:58 - 18 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

Almost 30 years of enthusiastic driving has helped me pick up on early warnings of other road users behaviour, and some past mistakes, crashes, and some that didn't end up as crashes but were enough to 'make a note to self'.

But when you throw your leg over a bike some of this changes, obviously. You can't push the edges of tyre grip on a road bike, and get it back in line safely like in most FWD cars, you can't smash the brakes on full on older bikes and let the ABS sort it all out for you.

But you can still use your vision, recognise that overtaking near a junction can be lethal, position yourself for the best view, spot the road surface is crap, drop down a gear to tighten a line, clock the corner opening up and wind on the throttle.

If you want to go quick on any road, always limit your speed to being able to stop within the view ahead, always realise that people will make a u-turn on a blind bend, sheep will emerge from nowhere.

That's the number one rule in my book.

Bike control is something that you can also work on, learning how to brake safely and heavily is a good one for starters, then after that it's cornering confidence, but that can be a sticking point for some as they are afraid of making large steering inputs and can run a bit wide, this makes them think they're already at the limit.

Self control is another, I'm pretty much a 30mph means 30, especially in built up areas. Elsewhere I'm no angel, but I choose where to be a dick, and if a guy is a dick on a b-road in a forest and nobody is there to witness it, was he really a dick?

So for me it's experience, and over time that means less crashes. Only had one on a bike back in 2006, and the only time I was injured, totally my fault. Only one since was somebody running into the back of me while in a car, 2014.
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chickenstrip
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PostPosted: 15:08 - 18 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

No skills, a refusal to admit it, and an awful lot of good luck, tempered by some chronically bad luck, have seen me to the level I'm at today Mr. Green
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Milesprower
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PostPosted: 16:44 - 18 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

Some good replies there...
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pepperami
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PostPosted: 18:36 - 18 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

I’m not fast so I can’t answer.
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Monkeypony
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PostPosted: 18:56 - 18 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ride fast on the track, ride defensive on the roads.

I'd you go trail braking into every roundabout you come across, even ones you think you know, you're going to come a cropper at some point.
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trevor saxe-coburg-gotha
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PostPosted: 21:41 - 18 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ste wrote:
Time on a tiddler, school boy trials, etc etc etc?


jumpers for goal posts, rolling the ball in dog shit before crossing it for a header, etc etc etc?
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MCN
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PostPosted: 22:34 - 18 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

Riding 'fast' on public roads is subjective as what you think of as fast may be me pootling.

It should take years/several 1000 miles to build skill to maintain a good pace. Where everything gets in your way.
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chickenstrip
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PostPosted: 22:57 - 18 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

MCN wrote:


It should take years/several 1000 miles to build skill to maintain a good pace.


Where did you go wrong? Razz
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stinkwheel
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PostPosted: 23:12 - 18 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

Trial and error, starting off makign the errors on something that was fairly slow and ineffective. A not inconsiderable amount of thoery collected by osmosis over many years.

Also riding with peoiple who are really good at it. I was out at the weekend and couldn't keep up with my mate on his 250 ninja (twin). I was on a VFR750...
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RhynoCZ
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PostPosted: 23:30 - 18 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

It's simple, OP.

slow bike fast = easy
fast bike fast = scary
smooth = fast

But in all seriousness, always keep the ''as long as I (you) feel safe, it's alright'' approach and you'll be fine. What also helps a lot is to have the right riding habits etched in your brain, so when you get into trouble you know exactly what to do without even thinking about it.

It's stuff like using the brakes gradually, smooth operation of the throttle, take it easy on the slippery stuff (for instance, the white markings on the road tend do be slippery as feck when wet), knowing that braking while cornering will force the bike upright (unless you loose all the grip), if the rear wheel slips under power never fully shut the throttle, reduce it accordingly (to prevent a very violent shift of momentum), and so on.

I feel very old saying this, but even if ABS and TCS means you can be very inconsiderate with the brakes and throttle, and even if ABS works while cornering now, I will probably never put my full trust into those systems while on a motorcycle.

What also helped me a lot, I went to my local unused airfield to try all the emergency stuff in a safe environment.
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chickenstrip
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PostPosted: 23:39 - 18 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

RhynoCZ wrote:
It's simple, OP.

slow bike fast = easy
fast bike fast = scary
smooth = fast


Hang on, I think I got it...

Slow = fast
Fast = slow
Hard = easy
Easy = scary...


No, wait, give me a minute, I can do this! Confused
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chickenstrip
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PostPosted: 23:43 - 18 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

RhynoCZ wrote:

But in all seriousness, always keep the ''as long as I (you) feel safe, it's alright'' approach and you'll be fine.


But no one ever got better at anything by staying in their 'comfort zone'. You can't learn how to go fast by going slow all the time. Trouble is.... Razz
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1198
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PostPosted: 07:26 - 19 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ste wrote:
Time on a tiddler....

is seldom time wasted!

I’m sure I read that somewhere.
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arry
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PostPosted: 09:51 - 19 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

1198 wrote:
Ste wrote:
Time on a tiddler....

is seldom time wasted!

I’m sure I read that many, many times somewhere everywhere.


Fixed that for you Thumbs Up
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Weisse Schlange
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PostPosted: 09:56 - 19 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

Riding for over 30yrs makes you a bit quick.

For me though, my pace increased dramatically when I bought a supermoto and started riding with a club racer.

Following someone fast and learning always helps.

I'll finish by saying , as far as I'm concerned, very fast road riding is dead. Finished.

I've bought a supermoto again to keep top end speeds down and will be using it on track as well.
There are times and places, but they are getting fewer and further between.

The cops will ruin your life for going fast, even if you are doing it safely. Kinda makes it too much hassle for me now.
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chickenstrip
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PostPosted: 13:23 - 19 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

Weisse Schlange wrote:

I'll finish by saying , as far as I'm concerned, very fast road riding is dead. Finished.

I've bought a supermoto again to keep top end speeds down and will be using it on track as well.
There are times and places, but they are getting fewer and further between.

The cops will ruin your life for going fast, even if you are doing it safely. Kinda makes it too much hassle for me now.


Partly why I took more to touring. You still get your fix enough, but you get far more from it all beyond that.
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MarJay
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PostPosted: 15:59 - 19 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

A lot of my early riding knowledge came from the final few pages of Bike and Ride mag where they used to do little riding tips columns. I built on that, a little trial and error, a little training, a little bit of trackdays, a little bit of riding with others (both good and bad).
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Diggs
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PostPosted: 16:13 - 19 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

I was quite fast in my day so I've been told. Much steadier now though.

My tip - take it easy and watch what the fast folk do, but don't try to keep up or you'll die. Slow in, fast out and you'll speed up.

As a previous poster said, fast riding in the UK isn't what it used to be...
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chickenstrip
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PostPosted: 16:17 - 19 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

I picked up a couple of techniques from Road Racer magazine. That was a brilliant publication. I think that's what it was called. Alan Cathcart was a major contributor, plus Matt Oxley and others, interviews with racers about their technique and so on.

When I had my GSXR750, I got so I could rear wheel steer on a couple of favourite corners. Then I thought, what the feck am I doing this on the road for, it'll only end in tears Laughing One was a particular roundabout exit, but you used to get some HGV traffic there, and I thought, what if this sucker suddenly grips and throws me over the high side into the path of one of those? Shocked I stopped doing it Laughing

And as I said in another thread, I honed things a bit by riding a lot on those great Welsh roads Smile
Rusty as feck again now though. Don't think I'll ever get back to that standard. Not inclined to try tbh.
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Weisse Schlange
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PostPosted: 19:43 - 19 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

https://i.ibb.co/Rz6dB9R/962-F0-EDF-948-C-434-B-AD0-A-D9-C0-AD639700.jpg


My new instructor.
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hellkat
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PostPosted: 19:52 - 19 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

I don't really do fast, even when I'm not on a Harley.
But the thing which I have discovered is my Thing (filtering) is just a matter of practice and red lipstick.
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Milesprower
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PostPosted: 19:52 - 19 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

Yeah great stuff...
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Weisse Schlange
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PostPosted: 19:58 - 19 Apr 2021    Post subject: Reply with quote

Filtering just feels sooo,, superior !

Makes my day tbh.
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