Mr Citrus
New Member
One passed me on the highway with shorts, a tshirt, and a ballcap today.:banghead:
What Not To Wear (while riding)
- Thread starter JonKerr
- Start date
+1 I couldn't agree more with that statement.
dndfindley
New Member
Got it. So what you're saying is that if her body was leaning over even more than it is now she would be okay had she been a bigger, heavier person? DavidOther than the fact she's riding very hard, very fast, with no gear on?For the speed she's going and the lean angle she's at, her weight is way too high, way too central, and her arms are locked. Read Keith Codes Twist of the Wrist or Lee Parks Total Control. They talk a lot about proper riding form and body positioning.
The one thing that's working for her is the fact she's tiny. I've been on the hill the same time as her. She's about 5'2" and can't weigh more than 90 lbs. So her weight being that high up isn't quite as bad as if someone my size were sitting up like that with that much lean angle. That would be a crash waiting to happen.
They probably haven't gone down yet..........
WHEN THEY DO, THEY WILL REGRET.
I always think to myself
"have fun scrubbing the sand out of your wounds :squid:, as I ride past atgatt"
Id rather go down and get back up and have to buy some new gear and be ready to go again....than to go down, have reconstructive surgery, then wait 1-6 months w/ rehab and get back on a bike.
The main thing is if you get your weight into a low, inside position, as well as a lot of other things you can read about in those books, you can make the same turn at the same speed with A LOT less lean angle, keeping more of the tire in contact with the ground, giving you more traction. At the same time, you can make the same turn with the same lean angle, at a much higher rate of speed.
Here's two pics of me, both from the same turn, one when I first started learning about body positioning a little over a year ago, one from just recently. You can see the bike is at about the same lean angle. I'm going about 15-20 mph faster in the second picture.
The more you weigh, the more dramatic the effect is. That's why she's not in too bad of shape because there's just not as much mass raising the center of gravity as there is when my 230lb frame is sitting on the bike.
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dndfindley
New Member
Your first picture kind of looks like my present riding position when in the twisties. It'll be a while before I get to the position in your second picture. I'm not gonna push it. DavidThe main thing is if you get your weight into a low, inside position, as well as a lot of other things you can read about in those books, you can make the same turn at the same speed with A LOT less lean angle, keeping more of the tire in contact with the ground, giving you more traction. At the same time, you can make the same turn with the same lean angle, at a much higher rate of speed.
Here's two pics of me, both from the same turn, one when I first started learning about body positioning a little over a year ago, one from just recently. You can see the bike is at about the same lean angle. I'm going about 15-20 mph faster in the second picture.
The more you weigh, the more dramatic the effect is. That's why she's not in too bad of shape because there's just not as much mass raising the center of gravity as there is when my 230lb frame is sitting on the bike.
redwing-2001
New Member
he probably didn't go from one to the other overnight. do it in small, incremental steps. just get a little better each time you go out there and try to learn one little thing each time and it will come. when you stop learning is when you get in trouble.
I'm not looking forward to the day my pic ends up on here >.>... I normally wear helmet/gloves.... alternate between pants/shorts... hmm... I'm looking for a decent jacket but it gets to be about 95* with a heat index of 110+... If I wore my jacket over my work uniform I'd arrive drenched and smelly...
Florida sucks
Florida sucks
Thanks for this explanation Jon... It definitely helps out a lot =). And, I really love this topic, cuz it's something I'm constantly struggling with... (ie negotiating turns faster)The main thing is if you get your weight into a low, inside position, as well as a lot of other things you can read about in those books, you can make the same turn at the same speed with A LOT less lean angle, keeping more of the tire in contact with the ground, giving you more traction. At the same time, you can make the same turn with the same lean angle, at a much higher rate of speed.
Here's two pics of me, both from the same turn, one when I first started learning about body positioning a little over a year ago, one from just recently. You can see the bike is at about the same lean angle. I'm going about 15-20 mph faster in the second picture.
The more you weigh, the more dramatic the effect is. That's why she's not in too bad of shape because there's just not as much mass raising the center of gravity as there is when my 230lb frame is sitting on the bike.
I asked my GF to video tape me from behind to help me try to see what I'm doing... And, it helps a lot to be able to see what the heck I'm doing wrong...
I noticed that overall my turning lines are good, but I'm doing 2 things wrong.
1) I'm not going fast enough around the turns sometimes... I've noticed recently that unless I'm going 50+ (45 since our speedos are off) the 6R really doesn't want to lean much and wants to stay upright... So, this is both a matter of control, mind over matter, and nerves. It's something I can't force tho. Just takes more practice & time to improve & conquer the nerves to get faster I guess...
2) Overall my body position is ok, but due to #1, my lean angle & the bike aren't always consistently forming a straight line. Sometimes it does sometimes it doesn't. When it does, the turn looks smooth and natural regardless of the speed. But when it doesn't, then it just looks outright funny & crooked. LOL. But again, I feel this is part of the learning process. I need to start negotiating the turns at slightly faster speeds. But, it will get better with time and cannot be rushed...
And, like Jon says- lean angle and speed feels like a ratio. That is the faster you go into a turn, the more you have to lean your body to counterbalance the g force of the turn... But, it's better to shift your body weight low/ off the bike and keep the bike more upright rather than to lean the bike- unless you know what you are doing like the more advanced riders...
The more I practice the more frustrating it gets. LOL But, a majority part of the fun is just being out there. At the end of the day the only thing that matters is that I had fun & got home safe & sound
Mr Citrus
New Member
It was 107 here sunday.
Most motorcycle crashes do more damage to your lower body than your upper body. If you lowside, your knee,thigh,shin, and or butt are the first thing that's going to hit the ground. The only time I wear just jeans without protection is riding a few minutes to the summer car show I go to or if I'm running down the street to my parents house. I'm still in jacket, boots, gloves, and helmet even then. I even wear armored over pants when I'm riding to work.
Exactly. There's about 14 months between those two pics. That's one of the great things about having local phogs like we have. It's a great tool. You can go through my files in chronological order and just watch the evolution of the form. And I'm far from perfect. I think I have decent form, but there's always something that can be improved.
Yes, if I saw a picture of you riding like that, you'd be posted up. If it's too hot to ride in proper gear, it's too hot to ride. Get in a car in the A/C. I've ridden in 110º heat in the desert in full leathers. Was it hot? F*ck yes it was. Did I bitch? Nope. Because I knew if something happened, I'd rather be sweating my ass off and get up off the ground, than be nice and cool, but be picking asphalt out of my legs for a week. It's one thing for me to think guys are crazy for riding around town, to work, etc... in your jeans/shorts and shirts. But the roads that most of these pics are taken from are not roads for the faint of heart. They get hundreds of bikes a week on them for a reason. Guys come out dressed like that, see all these other bike haulin' ass up and down the hill and around corners, think "hey, I've got a Gixxer, I can go that fast." Then because they don't have the knowledge, experience, skill, whatever you want to call it, they're the ones who end up on the ground and scrubbing asphalt out. I've seen it on many occasions. I wasn't going to post this pic, but here's one I posted up earlier.
I was on the hill at this time. As I was coming down the hill, I saw this:
Sorry to say, but he had more bike than his skill supported, tried going faster than he should have, and lowsided right into a car on the other side of the road. Rash on the legs, and the arms. I pulled over and made sure he was OK before the paramedics came. He was lucky it was just rash.
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I sometimes see guys dressed like that popping wheelies and stunting on the road leading into Azusa. They ride pretty damned fast in the canyon too and seem to handle themselves fine. But, I think they have serious ego problems. At stop lights they avoid all eye contact and are all prancy waiting to gun it the minute the light changes.
I hate it cuz they kinda make all of us look bad as a collective.
I hate it cuz they kinda make all of us look bad as a collective.
alaskanflyboy
Premium Member
Join the Dark Side
We're ATGATT
plus we have the red lightsabers! They're better
Join the Dark Side
We're ATGATT
Squid season has officially opened on Palomar. These are ALL just form one photographer just yesterday!
For some reason a lot of people lately protecting their upper body wearing jackets and gloves, but aren't wearing any kind of boots. The few times I rode when I first started in skate shoes I felt so exposed. And after seeing a compound fracture of an ankle a few weeks ago on the freeway, I won't ever ride without proper boots.
Leathers and Nikes????
Again, cruiser or sportbike, riding in a tank top or t-shirt is just dumb.
That hoodie is going to do such a good job protecting him because it says Icon on it.
Ugh more helmet hawks. Can't wait until those things go out of fashion.
For some reason a lot of people lately protecting their upper body wearing jackets and gloves, but aren't wearing any kind of boots. The few times I rode when I first started in skate shoes I felt so exposed. And after seeing a compound fracture of an ankle a few weeks ago on the freeway, I won't ever ride without proper boots.
Leathers and Nikes????
Again, cruiser or sportbike, riding in a tank top or t-shirt is just dumb.
That hoodie is going to do such a good job protecting him because it says Icon on it.
Ugh more helmet hawks. Can't wait until those things go out of fashion.