I have driven a full dress motorcycle for 29,000 miles , yet a still have to slow for corners at 65 mph,?

Question

as other motorcycles go around with ease at 75 mph, what am i doing wrong? I tried counter steering, different handle bars.

Answer 1

You don't "turn" a motorcycle at those speeds, you just lean.

Look - Lean - Roll - from the motorcycle safety foundation class.

Look where you want the bike to go, lean in the direction of the turn (if turning left, lean left), roll on the throttle.

Another trick is to push down on the handle bar in the direction of the turn. (if turning left, push down on the left hand grip while leaning)

Answer 2

It sounds like you're doing good; always ride in your comfort zone, if you're scaring yourself .... slow down.

There are a couple of things you can look at to help you corner better. Make sure you are followong an outside-inside-outside path of travel through the corner. This will reduce the lean angle in the corner and allow you to feel more cofortable. Also starting on the ousde of the the corner will allow you to see further around the corner and gather more information about what is coming up.

If you need to slow, do it before entering the corner. You should be at a steady or slightly increasing speed so that your suspension is stable all the way through the corner. Any slowing or hard acceleration is going to shift the weight and make you more unstable.

Continue using the counter stearing, lean with the bike as it leans, but don't try to control it by leaning. Keep your knees in against the tank, Unless you're a racer, you won't see any difference, except feeling uncomfortable from hanging off your bike.

Of course it was mentioned before, but your best option is to take a rider class targeted at your skill level.

Answer 3

Not being able to see the corners and what you and the others are doing is a problem.

First, take the MSF course and find out if you really know how to counter steer.

Second, as the other reply said, handlebars will make no difference except for comfort.

Third, how do you know the other bikes are doing 75. Maybe they are doing the corners right, going in slow, and going out at 75.

And maybe you are going in too fast and having to slow in the corner.

Which brings me back to the earlier point, Take the MSF course and find out what you are doing wrong.

There is an experienced rider course you can do on your bike which costs less and may be of help.

Another point, what brand of bike are you driving, and what are the others that you are comparing yourself to?

Be good

Richard

Answer 4

not enough info in the Question,,, but I will give an answer anyway because im opinionated...(profile info helps)

Is the bike touching down on the road as you corner?

If its not then you can go faster through the corner.(if the tyres are good)..

grip from tyres is what makes the GP bikes quick in the corners..Racing slicks are great on the road bike till it rains..

So assuming you have good tyres , the bike is well maintained, & your not scraping on the corners.. the answer is confidence..

knowing the limits of adhesion can be a tricky thing.. get it wrong & your sliding down the road on your ***..

I would go & find a nice sweeping bend on a country road & then ride back & forth through the bend , going a little faster each time untill the bike touched the foot pegs/ floorboards/ exaughst on the road..Or the back started to feel unstable..

this is the maximum you can get through the bend without hanging of the side of the bike..( hanging off will give you a bit more, save this for emergencys untill your more confident)

the speed may be different each way , the bike may touchdown sooner on one side..

Once you work out how far you can go you will probably find your as quick as most people..

Another tip for getting through a corner quicker is to look further through the corner when riding,,Look where you want to go... If you look at the side of the road then you will end up on the side of the road.. always look further into the corner & focus on the centre line.. chances are thats where you will end up..

Answer 5

why in the name of god are u trying to push a dresser like a sport bike? do u really want to kiss asphalt? u are not going to be able to take a dresser thru a 15 mph hairpin at 75 and live to tell about it. the floorboards will dump u before u can get out of the curve.
a dresser with floorboards doesnt have the lean angle a sport bike has, and even a gold wing doesnt have the same angle.

i suggest u take some advance training in how to take corners properly before u wind up being turned into a skid mark. quit trying to keep up with sport bikes in the turns...it wont do it. after 29,000 miles, u should know better.

Answer 6

Different bikes will take corners at different speeds.
Compared to a sport bike (race track proven), your bike is heavy, top heavy, steering geometry isn't set up for high speed turns - the rake is greater.
Rake = the angle the forks extend out from the steering stem.
A sportbike's rake is practically straight up and down.
Then there's the wheel base, measured from axle to axle.
Sportbikes are very short compared to other bikes, making them turn on a dime.
Think about the other extremes - a chopper with the front wheel 3 feet ahead of the steering stem.
Choppers....you have to make a three point turn, just to turn left.
Then you have the added weight and how it's distributed throughout the bike.
Sport bike - low center of gravity allowing them to lean over to the point of scraping the foot pegs.
Because of your bikes high center of gravity, it's difficult to get it to lean over in a turn.
I've been on bikes that wouldn't take a highway exit ramp faster than 30mph without crashing.
I've never done it myself, but I've seen sportbike riders riding a clover leaf at 90mph (clover leaf - highway exit ramps - on-exit-on-exit-on-exit-on-exit - around and around the exit ramps).

Answer 7

I am the same way. I don't have the experience you have, but I find myself slowing more that needed coming into curves. I am planning on taking teh MSF experienced rider course this spring. I took the beginner course last spring, and it was a lot of help for a new rider. I think the best advice i got was the counter-steering...as teh instructor said numerous times-press left, look left, go left. you have to press FORWARD on teh left grip to go left. you can't really press too hard. the harder you press, the more you lean teh bike, the faster you can take a curve. press harder, and you WILL make the curve. now with all that said, I have to agree with the other post-Slow down, relax, and enjoy the ride...

Answer 8

Too much weight on the bike and not enough rubber on the road will make it squirrely . . . . Perhaps with the combination of all the stuff mounted on the bike and the size of the tires, it just isn't matched right for the speeds that you want to do . . .
There's no shame in driving the bike around the twisties at a lower speed - who do you want to impress ? . . . The morgue attendants have seen it all, already . . . .

Answer 9

The center of balance may be higher on this motorcycle then your previous one. So relax, the wind is in your face and that is all that matters. Why are you in such a rush, that is not what riding is about. Take the corners at 65 and enjoy the moment.

Answer 10

Put the first two answers together and add shift your body weight into the turn and you've got your answer. If possible borrow a buddy's bike that may be smaller in size and improve your cornering. After you feel more comfortable move up to your bike. Good luck!