RSS
Home
Riding with your sixth sense, Part 2
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
So, in Part 1, I suggested that for motorcyclists, my so-called "11th sense" can mean the difference between life and death. Here's why:
The natural reaction to a loss of control is panic. With only two wheels between you and the ground, panic while losing control is the worst possible combination, and can lead to exactly the wrong automatic response. Honing not only your skills in controlling the bike, but also your senses to all the feedback the bike is providing, can make the difference between an unfamiliar feeling that causes panic, and familiar sensory information that gives you the cues you need to know what to do next.
For riders, the panic reaction can involve braking when acceleration might be warranted, acceleration when braking would be better, or my favorite for novice riders: above 20 mph, turning the wrong direction!
Non-riders and novice riders might wonder how you could possibly turn the wrong direction. To go right, you turn right, to go left you turn left. Uh huh. Try that on a motorcycle at 40 mph and see what happens. Just make sure you have lots of room on both sides!Riders who have been through the MSF Basic Rider Course and any motorcyclist with any real experience can tell you the opposite is true. It's called countersteering: Push left to go left, push right to turn right. Until you're at speed, it's also totally counter-intuitive.
Now, imagine the scenario of a brand new rider, with no training, pushing the bike to 40 mph, then leaning into a tight left turn and "turning left" (pushing right). The bike will tend to counteract their lean, and steer (and lean) to the right. Panic ensues, and the rider pushes harder right, forcing the bike to steer harder right. Non-riders are now thoroughly convinced that I'm insane and have no idea what I'm talking about. Imagine their panic when they actually experience this lack of control.
Some experienced riders are thinking, "That's not a real problem. Even if talking about it isn't intuitive, you don't have to have a degree in physics to feel it. Pushing left to turn left just feels right." Yep. It's intuitive once you've learned that's how you're supposed to control the bike. Some are still saying, "no new rider really has that problem."
Tell that to the guy who ended up with his bike parked in the culvert under our driveway many years ago.
Continued in Part 3.
Related Articles:
Add a Comment
When they're attached! Investigating the strength of the magnet I attached to my bike's faring a couple of years ago, I took a paperclip out to the …
A prayer for all faiths; for riders, their families, and all of us who share the road: For all vehicle operators on the road, thank you for Your …
- Motorcycle Travel Examiner (National)
- Baltimore Motorcycle Travel Examiner
- Charlotte Motorcycle Travel Examiner
- Colorado Motorcycle Travel Examiner
- Colorado Springs Motorcycle Travel Examiner
- Dallas Motorcycle Travel Examiner
- Denver Motorcycle Travel Examiner
- Houston Motorcycle Travel Examiner
- LA Motorcycle Travel Examiner
- Newark Motorcycle Travel Examiner
- Omaha Motorcycle Travel Examiner
- Phoenix Motorcycle Travel Examiner
- Portland Motorcycle Travel Examiner
- SF Motorcycle Travel Examiner
- Seattle Motorcycle Travel Examiner
- Shreveport Motorcycle Travel Examiner
- Spokane Motorcycle Travel Examiner
- Motorcycle Examiner (National)
- Atlanta Motorcycle Examiner
- Atlanta Motorcycle Lifestyle Examiner
- Atlanta Sport Bike Examiner
- Austin Motorcycle Examiner
- Boomer Biker Examiner (Florida)
- Burlington Motorcycle Examiner
- Charlotte Motorcycle Examiner
- Chicago Motorcycle Examiner
- Colorado Springs Motorcycle Examiner
- DC Motorcycle Examiner
- Dallas Motorcycle Examiner
- Detroit Scooter Examiner
- Harley Davidson Examiner
- Hartford Motorcycle Examiner
- Houston Motorcycle Examiner
- Houston Sport Bike Examiner
- Kansas City Motorcycle Examiner
- LA Motorcycle Examiner
- Manchester Motorcycle Examiner
- Miami Motorcycle Examiner
- MotoGP Examiner
- Nashville Motorcycle Lifestyles Examiner
- Orlando Motorcycle Examiner
- Portland Motorcycle Examiner
- Phoenix Motorcycle Lifestyle Examiner
- Phoenix Motorcycle Mechanic Examiner
- Sacramento Motorcycle Examiner
- San Diego Motorcycle Examiner
- Seattle Motorcycle Examiner
- Tampa Motorcyle Lifestyle Examiner
- World Superbike Examiner
