Cornering - Episode IV, No Hope

[Easy-X]

Okay, so I admit I'm a total n00b and I've only had some sort of bike since Jan/Feb and passed my test in the summer but I seem to have some sort of mental block when it comes to extreme hairpins, i.e. > 270 degrees.

Bonus side effect on small roundabouts though (where you're almost doubling back on yourself) I've been tooted by cars for going slow and, once at my exit, it's full throttle; goodbye, baby! Almost like I'm trolling them...

This is not helping
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Royal Enfield Continental GT 535, Husqvarna Vitpilen 401, Yamaha XSR700, Honda Rebel, Yamaha DT175, Suzuki SV650 (loan) Fazer 600, Keeway Superlight 125, 50cc turd scooter

[stinkwheel]

As ever. Look where you want to go.

On a sharp hairpin, this may well involve looking over your shoulder.
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“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[Easy-X]

[chickenstrip]

Relaxed grip on the bars. Well, on anything other than a cruiser, anyway
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Chickenystripgeezer's Biking Life (Latest update 19/10/18) Belgium, France, Italy, Austria tour 2016 Picos de Europa, Pyrenees and French Alps tour 2017 Scotland Trip 1, now with BONUS FEATURE edit, 5/10/19, on page 2 Scotland Trip 2 Luxembourg, Black Forest, Switzerland, Vosges Trip 2017
THERE'S MILLIONS OF CHICKENSTRIPS OUT THERE!

[chris_hu_cheng]

PRACTICE

Every bit of advice is just guidance, helpful in some contexts but not in others and every person is a different size, shape, and level of balance, body feel, control etc.

You can look and not turn that way (being able to do that is a skill to learn in itself). You can hurtle down the motorway lean off the bike in one direction and push the bike away from you to a fairly alarming angle and still continue in a straight line, so all the advice about weighting pegs etc. etc. may or may not apply to you as you may be doing whatever that bit of advice helps with naturally without thinking anyway.

I just practice regularly in car parks, a rolling uturn from 20mph without using brake (apart from engine braking and cornering braking) within two parking spaces. Uturns with rear brake and slipping clutch within 1.5 parking spaces. Ride a 125 on tick over (no throttle) and uturn.

Faster speed uturns, see how narrow you can make them if you can find space to practices. I am learning sliding turning stops with rear brake and stoppies now (more practical skills, I will worry about flashier things like wheelies much later).

Go around in every decreasing circles.....

I force myself to keep practicing by looping around in a tight space in front of the garage when I come home etc.

I find it relaxing and fun.. almost like a meditation and you can do the same thing 30 times in a row which is hard to do on a road.

Oh yeah do it sometimes when it is raining, or cold, or you are feeling tired riding home from work, just like real life.

I had a comment once along the lines of "what is the point practicing u-turns in two parking spaces when the Mod1 gives you more than a third more space?" Well one thing I can pretty much guarantee. If you can reliably u-turn in small spaces (in various ways) and you add some practice of other manoeuvres, just to get better.... NO FUCKING MINI ROUNDABOUT OR HAIRPIN BEND IS EVER GOING TO BOTHER YOU AGAIN.

[SpiritMr89]

If you are a total noob. Then you won't be going knee down to the shops for milk.

Just wait for a dry day and have a laugh. The more relaxed you are the easier it will be.

And at the end of the day if you are enjoying it then what is the problem?

Seen plenty of nobs who scream down straights then hammer the anchors on.
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Hello

[Kentol750]

Think about what your riding, it's never going to turn quickly. Just get it out of your head that you're going slowly, follow the advice above, and above all take it easy in the shitty weather conditions we are experiencing.
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Some bikes.

[P.]

[doggone]

It sounds like you aren't really understanding what makes the bike lean into a turn and stand up again, it would be beneficial to watch a few videos about counter-steering and practice doing it somewhere safe.

[barrkel]

Look where you're going to be exiting, almost over your shoulder if necessary.

On actual hairpins (on mountains, rather than U-turns on mini-roundabouts) it helps to widen the turn: move to outer edge of corner first (on opposite side of road if necessary), and turn in sooner so you end up around the bend on the correct side of the road. Uphill is generally easier than down.

On tight turns: practice slow control at full lock, revving engine and balancing rear brake and clutch to control power. This is enough for almost any situation on the road, and is safest if it's really wet - roundabouts can be awash with diesel. On anything less than a sports bike or sports naked you can u-turn on most roads with this.

Even tighter turns can be done at slow speed with counter-lean, where you tip the bike into the turn underneath while you lean off the other way, effectively keeping your torso upright. But you need to master slow control first because you need to be able to apply a burst of power if it tips in too far. You also need clearance, it's a riskier way to go between e.g. cars when filtering; with the bike tipped over, if you tap the front brakes you will drop it.

The only way out once it starts to tip in is applying throttle and straightening up - it'll be too fast to stop with your leg and probably too heavy. So work your way up to this gradually from the slow control at full lock situation. Do it in an empty car park on a Sunday, and don't push too far too fast unless you don't mind if you drop it.
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Bikes: S1000R, SH350; Exes: Vity 125, PS125, YBR125, ER6f, VFR800, Brutale 920, CB600F, SH300x4
Best road ever ridden: www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2MhNxUEYtQ

[Alex A]

All sorts of people will give you all sorts of advice. We don't all work the same way. Some of the advice will be helpful, some will make you over-think and will be counter productive, and some will be outright wrong and unhelpful.

There's no substitute for mileage, especially the right mileage.

Ride whenever you can. And ride mountain roads!

This is a good one
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Current: Ducati Panigale R / Ducati Streetfighter S / Suzuki GSX-R1000 L5

[Kentol750]

How many switchback mountain roads do you encounter daily?
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Some bikes.

[ThatDippyTwat]

Go see the instructor you passed with. Practise what you learn. actually practise it, actively thinking about it. Most will offer lessons in actually riding a bike, not passing a test. With no test to potentially fail, you'll have fun doing it as well.

I tagged along on one to give feedback when an instructor I know was starting to offer them to new riders with a fresh license, and learned more than I thought I would.
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'98 VFR800 (touring) - '12 VFR800 Crosrunner (Commuting) - '01 KDX220 (Big Green Antisocial Machine)

[om15]

Lots of duff gen on the internet about cornering, some strange ideas, for some basic information try to source the IAM full control document, I have tried a google but the link is disabled unfortunately, I have a pdf copy which I can email to you if you give me a contact.
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Alcohol doesn't solve problems, but neither does milk

[The Shaggy D.A.]

[Easy-X]

Here's a odd thing: I've ridden to work today and been comfortably flicking the bike left and right - almost like I knew what I was doing! So what has changed?

"You've received quality moral support from BCF members!"

Yes, of course
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Royal Enfield Continental GT 535, Husqvarna Vitpilen 401, Yamaha XSR700, Honda Rebel, Yamaha DT175, Suzuki SV650 (loan) Fazer 600, Keeway Superlight 125, 50cc turd scooter

[RhynoCZ]

Less thinking, more riding.

Years ago, I found this video and it changed the way I ride today: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zt9lB-LErQ4

Especially the bit about leaving some space between the tank and your manly parts. Also, keeping my torso up with my core muscles rather than using my arms. Many people tend to push their bars, efectly doing pushups while riding.

The video above combined with perfectly executed rev matching will give you tons of stability and confidence. Especially on bigger displacement engine bikes, where being careless about your downshifts may result in the rear wheel getting locked. Even if for a split of a second, you do not want your rear wheel to skip under braking/slowing down in front of a corner.

Don't be aggressive, be smooth, as it is a smooth approach that leads to greater stability, speed and confidence.
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'87 Honda XBR 500, '96 Kawasaki ZX7R P1, '90 Honda CB-1, '88 Kawasaki GPz550, MZ 150 ETZ
'95 Mercedes-Benz w202 C200 CGI, '98 Mercedes-Benz w210 E200 Kompressor

[WreckTangle]

I found a good way to learn how to corner. If you can find a oval shaped roundabout (or as close to a oval shape that you can get) , late in the evening, when there is no one around, go round the roundabout multiple times. first start slowly, then each time you go round , see how fast you can go round without falling off.

I found that if push the right handle down a bit when you go round the corner, the bike will lean in to the corner, keep doing this until the corner stops, and rinse and repeat. Try to steer in to the corner, by pressing the handle bar down, if you can, try and steer with your body ( cannot explain this, you will learn in due course) and avoid looking straight ahead, try to look in to the far right corner (as much as your head can turn), and you will realise that you bike and the body will kind of 'flow' into the direction you aim your head in to

I remember going round the same roundabout about 13 times before I got the hang of it

Obviously, as I said, make sure this is in the evening, when there is no one round to ask why you are doing this......
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My wife asked me to get her something that goes from 0-100 in under 5 seconds for her birthday. ......................I got her a bathroom scale.

[RhynoCZ]

[MarJay]

Some bikes probably don't have the capability of certain combinations of speed and corner.

Am I making a subtle dig at cruisers? Well, it seems not so subtle now!
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British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[Easy-X]

[Easy-X]

I'm starting to believe swapping from a back pack to a top box is seriously improving my cornering. Does that make any sense?!
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Royal Enfield Continental GT 535, Husqvarna Vitpilen 401, Yamaha XSR700, Honda Rebel, Yamaha DT175, Suzuki SV650 (loan) Fazer 600, Keeway Superlight 125, 50cc turd scooter

[chickenstrip]

[Ribenapigeon]

Go at your own speed and don't feel pressured to speed up. Roundabouts are a Bastard as well as they are often pasted with oils and crap and worth being more cautious on.

[Easy-X]