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Best Advice you have received that improved your riding

R

Red Brown

Guest
Hey...what has been the few things that have really improved your riding?

For me it is really four things...

It is not the bike nor tires... it's you.

Forget performance parts for your bike when you can't even ride it to its potential stock.

Take the MSF class.

Stay away from cliffs. :trust:

RB
 
1) Keep your eyes on the curve head..look up!

2) Everyone is out to get you so make allowances and give yourself an out.

3) Not every day is a good day to ride. Listen to warnings going off in your head and don't ride if you feel squidgy.
 
Best advice I've gotten for riding (and shooting, coincidentally): Keep your eyes on the target

I had a b of a time getting around corners until a riding buddy of mine told me to just look where I wanted to go, and the bike would follow. Sure enough, it works quite well, and I find myself hitting corners a lot more confidently.
 
1) Look where you want to go. Eliminate target fixation.

2) Let loose of that death grip on the bars. Relax your hands and focus more on "pushing" on the bars rather than pulling on them.

3) Ear plugs! It took me awhile to acclimate to them, but once I did it allowed me to concentrate and focus so much better. I feel that they help reduce fatigue on long rides also.
 
"Good decision-making is more important while riding than in just about any other area of life."

-- Chief MSF Instructor Fred Barney (The guy who taught me how to teach)
 
1. The bike will go where you look, look through the corners.
2. Ride like everyone is out to make you a hood ornament.

:sun:
 
Ok all the obvious stuff has been covered.


I revelation to me was "Get off the seat"


Weighting the inside of the bike and decreasing the amount of lean needed to complete a turn (or allow you to go faster through the same turn ;-) ) made a huge difference in my riding
 
Ok all the obvious stuff has been covered.


I revelation to me was "Get off the seat"


Weighting the inside of the bike and decreasing the amount of lean needed to complete a turn (or allow you to go faster through the same turn ;-) ) made a huge difference in my riding


Same here. Decreasing the lean angle helps confidence, and makes being faster easier.
 
I learned the hard way dirt biking that when you come up fast -too fast to stop on a log or tree laying across your path, Brake till your almost at it then gas it and most of the time you will jump over it without eating the ground like a dragline, Too old for dirtbikes now but that trick saved me from certain doom more than once.
 
Good question.

Ride your ride.

If you're riding with people with a higher skill level or better equipment, don't try to keep up. Ride your ride.
 
1. Ride chicken.

2. Ride with people that don't fall down.

3. The bike rides better than you do.

4) It isn't good enough to recognize an obstacle, choose a line over or around the obstacle, then execute that line. Riding is not a step-by-step endeavor. Instead, be aware of the riding environment and ride the best route in the present moment.

5. Don't be afraid to stop and think about your options.

6. Apex cornering is fine on a race track, but sucks on blind curves on the street. Instead, imagine the lane is divided in thirds. Ride with your tires on the line between the outside and middle thirds. This will keep you away from oncoming traffic, even if they are over the line, avoids most gravel and grease in the middle of the lane, provides better visibility of the road surface ahead, and gives you room to manuever if necessary.
 
"You are invisible to half of the cagers out there and the other half want to run you over."
My MSF instructor said that in the first 10 minutes of our class.
 
Parking lot practice your riding skills at relatively low speeds.
 
Don't fall down.

Another vote for look where you want to go. Eyes up!
 
1) Don't hit anything
2) Keep the rubber on the down side
3) Bring the bike back the same way you left with it
 
OK-Get the BIG picture, Keep your eyes moving, check your mirrors every 10 sec. Leave yourself an out, Make sure they see you if possible but ride like they dont. Dont linger in other drivers blind spots. Look for light runners when coming to an intersection, People running late for work will KILL you and then be MAD because you are making them late by being pinned under there car.
 
Aside from looking where you want to go, its gotta be this one:

Cagers never see you. Those that do see you are aiming. :wary:
 
Concentrate on practicing countersteering everytime you are on the bike until it becomes second nature.

I had a tough time with this when I first started riding and I would go out and specifically concentrate on countersteering just to change lanes or move from side to side in my lane until it became ingrained in my muscles.

This has saved my butt more than once when something unexpected happened and I needed to swerve quickly to avoid trouble.
 
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