Countersteering

I'm new to riding..
I just got my r6, took a Safety Course, learned about Counter steering.....tried to practice it a bit with it but I had a really hard time doing it. The front tire hugs and sticks to the road so well its really hard to countersteer at moderate speeds. I just can't seem to do it properly. I'm really afraid if I push any harder on the handle bars I'm gonna dump the bike because I'll lose control. The bike I trained on was not a sports bike.

Any tips on how to do this properly?

What is "moderate" speed to you? Sport bike isn't tons different from others- it is just easier to turn. Why do you feel that you will lost control? Just do what you learned. Slow, look, push, lean. Find some non-variable-radius turns to practice on.

Ohh take a course. Pridmore CLASS is great.


Countersteering is a technique not a way of life. If you get the bike around a corner you are countersteering to some extent.

going around corners easily and well is an integrated effort that involves moving weight, pushing on the handlebar in the direction you are turning, using your legs to as shock absorbers, sometimes leaning forward to weight the front and a lot of other things. It is really just like walking. It sounds simple but involves a very complex set of movements and procedures.
If you think not, talk to someone who had a brain injury and learned to walk again.

Ernie

moderate speeds would be 65-90 km/h

I understand it's a technique and not a way of life but I still would like to get it down pat in case of a ECA ( Emergency Collision Avoidance) situation ever arises and I need to get the R6 around an object QUICKLY.

Sorry, I will try to clarify.

One of the things that people run into is tension in the upper body and shoulders, where you spend so much energy fighting yourself that it feels like you are getting beaten up by the bike.

If you are leaning forward, weight on the pegs, and belly on the tank, with your shoulders loose, you will almost fall over onto the tank. that is a good position to initiate a turn from. You can lean in the direction of the turn, weight the inside peg, and push on the bar all at the same time, that will initiate a turn quickly. It is more than pushing the bar, if you shift your weight forward, to the side, and weight the peg, the bike WANTS to go that way when you push the bar.

ernie

afm199 - I like how you said its a technique and not a way of life :thumbsup . But it seems to mean you may be suggesting "body steering" inputs..haven't we learned from Keith Code (aka GOD ) that body steering DOES NOT exist and thus cannot turn a bike? :rolleyes

Don't make it harder than it actually is. Just get out there and do it

Yeah, Code puts down Reg Pridmore but how many championships did he win! Code has a great line though. He is twice as articulate as Pridmore, and half as honest.

Code is an asshole. Making yourself look good by criticizing others is cheap shit. Reg Pridmore will be the first to tell you that he countersteers, he just does a lot of other stuff too. If you are leaning off the bike, weight forward, and then push the bar, the effect is much more pronounced than if you are sitting bolt upright.


Nobody, including Code, rides a bike by countersteering. If they did, you would not see top racers hanging off, pushing the tank with a knee, and leaning forward and weighting the pegs.

Check out Nicky Hayden's leathers. They are worn out at the inside of the knees and thighs where he grips the tank. He says he uses his body to initiate steering and control it. The leathers he was wearing at Sears earlier this year were three months old and almost work through at the knees.

Screw Code. Jerkoff, scientologist, and worst of all, smoker.

Ernie

You do countersteer to initiate the turn. And smokers have feelings to.

Read awhile back an article about a guy who built a second set of handlebars on a bike that was stationary but did have throttle. 100's of people rode it and were not able to turn by body lean alone. It takes both do turn properly.

damn afm199, I like the way you think . I think Code has some really good points in his books, but I disapree with him saying that the ONLY way a bike can steer is via countersteering. The bike (at least my bike) reacts to my body inputs, such as leaning and weighting various parts. I am no racer by any stretch of the imagination, so don't think I have this "know all" attitude, because trust me, I don't. You learn constantly and I still have a lot of learning to do.

The bike with stationary bars is referred to as the "no b.s." bike, or no bodysteer bike. I'm not sure if Code came up with it or not, and am not sure how the bars are mounted or anything. But I have seen something in Cycle World or Motorcyclist (for whatever its worth) about the bike and how they didn't buy into it as Code was teaching. Countersteering works and is absolutely great, but saying that it is the ONLY way to steer...its a tough sell for me. But thats just my opinion, I could be wrong (from Dennis Miller ;) )

But my questions is this: when I take both hands off the clip-ons and lean one way or the other, the bike turns in the direction in which I am leaning...why is this if there is no bodysteering?

The BS bike is just that, bullshit.

Code's a good marketer, and there is something to learn from his books. But I'm with afm199, Code's an ass, and he's wrong about steering.

If you don't believe that using body your body to steer the bike works, try a right hand turn with no weight on the inside peg. Then try is again with a fair amount of weight on the inside peg. Case closed.

Reg has won numerous races, as has Jason--now leading the AMA FX standings. Jason is a friend of mine and I've have spent a lot of time as his school. I also did level 1 with Code-never again. I'll stick with Jason...