Total Control author Lee Parks, Part 2 errata -- practice Step 7 with care

January 20, 1:11 PMDC Motorcycle Travel ExaminerMark Poesch

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In part 2 of my coverage of Total Control author Lee Parks' presentation at the DC International Motorcycle Show earlier this month, I captured his guidance:

Step 7 - Push inside grip (AKA the flop).  This is about timing, not energy (just like the archer/bow analogy).  You don't have to apply a big countersteer into the turn.  Remember the goal of minimizing the energy you put into the bike.  Steer with the inside arm only, to avoid a tug of war between your inside and outside arms.

I picked up his book last week, and have thoroughly enjoyed his writing and the points he makes at each step through the book.  I strongly recommend Total Control to riders of all skill levels. But while reading Steering Technique on p. 22, I felt an update was in order (also posted as an update to the original article):

"Warning: In his book, Total Control, Lee writes: "As I approached a turn [on the racetrack] that was giving me problems, one that had me almost running off the outside, I decided to test my hypothesis and just let my inside arm do all the work.  And, boy, did it ever work.  In fact, initiating the turn at the exact same position on the track, even with substantially less effort on the bars, I turned so much quicker that I ran off the inside of the track and actually crashed."  New students should apply the "inside only" steering technique described by Lee in an appropriate environment (e.g., a wide-open parking lot)."

I told you I was wary about practicing these techniques!

Trust your instincts and ride safe!