Mock my Riding Position
Discussion
redtwin said:
MC Bodge said:
Other than that, it looks to be a fair effort, Mr Bodge.
Need to sort it out really. Have tried getting on the balls of my feet but it felt unnatural. Think it will just take getting used to. I have noticed I keep touching down my foot on roundabouts which clearly ain't right!Like Fats and Fleegle say, unless you're really at the sharp end, why stress it? Have fun and concentrate on your lines and throttle control primarily.
But for me, on track, inside footis on the ball or even closer to the toes, whereas teh outsid oot os jammed firmly against the heel. This allows m to pressure up the outside leg when exiting the corner.
So my feet are constantly shuffling around, dependng on the corner.
And yes, i do use my back brake. Whole can of worms right there!!....
But for me, on track, inside footis on the ball or even closer to the toes, whereas teh outsid oot os jammed firmly against the heel. This allows m to pressure up the outside leg when exiting the corner.
So my feet are constantly shuffling around, dependng on the corner.
And yes, i do use my back brake. Whole can of worms right there!!....
I've never done a trackday, so take this with a grain of salt. I also haven't read through 4 pages of replies, so this may have been said already.
You aren't leaned that far over, you could go around those corners faster with more lean before you run out of ground clearance. Since you can go as fast as you want on a track, get confident going around corners faster and leaning over a bit more.
I'm wondering if you need this bit more confidence to start to go around corners really fast until your boot starts scraping before you need to worry about hanging off the bike (and I've never hung off the bike either, so again, others will have different opinions).
You aren't leaned that far over, you could go around those corners faster with more lean before you run out of ground clearance. Since you can go as fast as you want on a track, get confident going around corners faster and leaning over a bit more.
I'm wondering if you need this bit more confidence to start to go around corners really fast until your boot starts scraping before you need to worry about hanging off the bike (and I've never hung off the bike either, so again, others will have different opinions).
I'm not actually a champion motorbike racer, but....
Having read "Twist of the Wrist 2" when I first learned to ride, I press my knee on the tank/hang my weight from my outside knee and counter-steer with my arms. I lead with my shoulder and my chin.
Having come from a mountain biking background I naturally rode with the balls of my feet on the pegs. I think I'd feel a bit vulnerable if my toes were poking out/down.
Is your suspension balanced properly? If not, in my experience, the bike can feel a bit 'squirrelly' when you lean it over. It's worth checking pre-load/sag and changing springs, if necessary. The improvement can be massive and the bike will feel much more composed.
Having read "Twist of the Wrist 2" when I first learned to ride, I press my knee on the tank/hang my weight from my outside knee and counter-steer with my arms. I lead with my shoulder and my chin.
Having come from a mountain biking background I naturally rode with the balls of my feet on the pegs. I think I'd feel a bit vulnerable if my toes were poking out/down.
Is your suspension balanced properly? If not, in my experience, the bike can feel a bit 'squirrelly' when you lean it over. It's worth checking pre-load/sag and changing springs, if necessary. The improvement can be massive and the bike will feel much more composed.
creampuff said:
I'm wondering if you need this bit more confidence to start to go around corners really fast until your boot starts scraping before you need to worry about hanging off the bike (and I've never hung off the bike either, so again, others will have different opinions).
Riding circles, U-turns, quick figure-of eights and slaloms in a local car park for half an hour every so often helps my technique. Edited by MC Bodge on Friday 31st May 20:14
the front badly needs a rebuild it's never even had its oil changed in 15 year.
confidence isn't an issue, lack of ability probably is however.
I'm not looking to lean it anymore the lean angle is enough.
mainly just looking for advice as to where I park my arse so the bike behaves
to be honest though I wish I'd never listened to all the people who go "oh I'd never do a track day, you'll bin it"
i probably ride quicker on b roads that I did on the track that night.
the tracks wide, if you come off there is nothing to hit, there's paramedics why the f
k I was ever even a slightly but nervous ill never know, compared that to tight twisty narrow pothole riden roads around the troassachs with cars coming the other way and endless things to hit and if you come off no one is around for miles.
still it was my first time. everybody is st their first time
confidence isn't an issue, lack of ability probably is however.
I'm not looking to lean it anymore the lean angle is enough.
mainly just looking for advice as to where I park my arse so the bike behaves
to be honest though I wish I'd never listened to all the people who go "oh I'd never do a track day, you'll bin it"
i probably ride quicker on b roads that I did on the track that night.
the tracks wide, if you come off there is nothing to hit, there's paramedics why the f
k I was ever even a slightly but nervous ill never know, compared that to tight twisty narrow pothole riden roads around the troassachs with cars coming the other way and endless things to hit and if you come off no one is around for miles. still it was my first time. everybody is s
t their first timeMC Bodge said:
Get that sorted!
He is right - I never bothered getting suspension setup on my bikes for first few years of riding, and now it is first mod I ever do to any bike.I have said it before I nearly got rid of my 675r because it was such a pig to go round corners. Suspension setup (and proper tyres) and it was a different bike.
Fats25 said:
MC Bodge said:
Get that sorted!
He is right - I never bothered getting suspension setup on my bikes for first few years of riding, and now it is first mod I ever do to any bike.I have said it before I nearly got rid of my 675r because it was such a pig to go round corners. Suspension setup (and proper tyres) and it was a different bike.
k about with the 675 as well moanthebairns said:
the front badly needs a rebuild it's never even had its oil changed in 15 year.
confidence isn't an issue, lack of ability probably is however.
I'm not looking to lean it anymore the lean angle is enough.
mainly just looking for advice as to where I park my arse so the bike behaves
to be honest though I wish I'd never listened to all the people who go "oh I'd never do a track day, you'll bin it"
i probably ride quicker on b roads that I did on the track that night.
the tracks wide, if you come off there is nothing to hit, there's paramedics why the fk I was ever even a slightly but nervous ill never know, compared that to tight twisty narrow pothole riden roads around the troassachs with cars coming the other way and endless things to hit and if you come off no one is around for miles.
still it was my first time. everybody is st their first time
One of you fat arse cheeks off the seat, keep your heed up and look where you want to go.confidence isn't an issue, lack of ability probably is however.
I'm not looking to lean it anymore the lean angle is enough.
mainly just looking for advice as to where I park my arse so the bike behaves
to be honest though I wish I'd never listened to all the people who go "oh I'd never do a track day, you'll bin it"
i probably ride quicker on b roads that I did on the track that night.
the tracks wide, if you come off there is nothing to hit, there's paramedics why the f
k I was ever even a slightly but nervous ill never know, compared that to tight twisty narrow pothole riden roads around the troassachs with cars coming the other way and endless things to hit and if you come off no one is around for miles. still it was my first time. everybody is s
t their first timeCheck your tyre pressures before going out and give yourself a couple of laps to get heat in them before going for it.
Make sure your brakes and suspension are up to the job.
You will be going as fast on track as you do on the road, it just doesn't seem like it because of the lack of things to hit. Falling off on track still hurts, especially if you high side.
Finally, stop crying and just get on wi it laddie.
this was my second trackday and I know I would have been faster if I hadn't be over thinking !! More concerned about getting my knee down that being smooth , will hopefully do another this month or next . Track bug bites hard I spend most of my free time on eBay looking at track bikes I can't afford lol 
Wee update.
Done my second track day and thought I’d let you know how I got on and thank everyone for all your help.
Knockhill again on my recently purchased zx6-r in the novice group. I’d been looking at the weather for weeks. Nearly every forecast came back as dry for my booked time, the sun was splitting the sky at lunch, I was dead excited, then just as I left work the heavens opened.
fk I thought as I rode up in torrential rain on super corsas, why the fk didn’t I change my tyres to my PR3’s I kept thinking. Got in with plenty of time and had a few fags to calm the nerves. Met a few guys and got chatting, experience varied from first track day to advanced. It was a much better atmosphere than the previous night where everybody stayed in their own wee group.
After the briefing it was on to the track first. Only 15 out of about 30 novices went out in the first section, lots were holding off thinking it would dry.
It was soaking but they gave you two sighting laps behind the safety car. This helped massively instead of just being flung in, great idea. I was dreading a track day in the wet, I don’t mind riding in the wet on the roads but least there I can knock my speed down to the speed limits if I feel uneasy… after a lap or two I started to love it, completely different challenge and I learned loads.
My throttle was smooth as silk, down changes and rev match was great, my lines were spot on, my head was up, I was looking at the exit before I hit the apex and to my surprise I was the quickest out there apart from the guys on the full race wets with track bikes. It probably was slow as fk compared to what some on here can do but as I said I learned loads. The super corsas came out a few times but on the whole were ok. Much better than I thought they would be. Im actually glad it rained as I loved it.
Next session it was damp but drying, everyone went out and what a laugh it was. After riding in the wet you had much more confidence, speeds were up and later braking. I was gutted to see the session end. Again the only people who passed me were on track bikes or 1000cc machines.
Final session was the best though, bone dry now, leaning the bike over much more, head and body out at the wing mirror, no more duck feet, looking beyond the apex. I tried thinking about what I was doing a few times but then I started making mistakes, so I switched my brain off and thought of nothing. this seems to be the only way I can ride a motorbike, a complete trance of emptiness. Every once in a while a thought would pop into my head, a quote from here of “look up, past the apex” bloody hell this works especially when you’ve hit a corner too quick and having just watched twist of the wrist for some reason the presenters gay voice would creep in a few times in my head. Two guys went off in the final session on duffus, one ran wide and the other target fixated onto him and binned it after going into the back of the guy. Looked fking sore but all I could think of as I seen it develop while full on braking was “survival instinct number 2 target fixation” in that wky voice. Out of the 30 I was in the top ten easily, again the only people who passed me were on track bikes or 1000cc. my only problem in the final session was that my brakes had gone. I was cleaning the pistons up the day before where I found all bar one were sticking, I cleaned them up as best as I could but they need rebuilt but I never had the seals or the time. The new pads that were in them are now fked (pish gold ones at £12).
I was gutted to see the flag come out to finish it, on my first visit I wasn’t bothered. I’ve well and truly got the bug now. My arms were bloody sore from the braking though, maybe im holding on to the bars a bit much in the braking (need to use my legs more to hold the tank).
It was such a better experience than the last time, I got chatting to loads, everyone was dead friendly, overtakes were courteous and having a bike that had track tyres and suspension rebuilt compared to my other ninja with 15 year old oil in them made the difference. People I ride with say they would never ever buy a bike that’s been round the track, after a few days I feel the complete opposite. The track highlights any flaw in your machine instantly. I can see why people spend thousands on their machine now as a small niggle can feel huge.
Sadly the photographer never showed up last night (quite pissed about that) and to my knowledge there wasn’t a replacement, so no photos. But here’s one of my tyre that I’m quite pleased with.
Done my second track day and thought I’d let you know how I got on and thank everyone for all your help.
Knockhill again on my recently purchased zx6-r in the novice group. I’d been looking at the weather for weeks. Nearly every forecast came back as dry for my booked time, the sun was splitting the sky at lunch, I was dead excited, then just as I left work the heavens opened.
f
k I thought as I rode up in torrential rain on super corsas, why the fk didn’t I change my tyres to my PR3’s I kept thinking. Got in with plenty of time and had a few fags to calm the nerves. Met a few guys and got chatting, experience varied from first track day to advanced. It was a much better atmosphere than the previous night where everybody stayed in their own wee group.After the briefing it was on to the track first. Only 15 out of about 30 novices went out in the first section, lots were holding off thinking it would dry.
It was soaking but they gave you two sighting laps behind the safety car. This helped massively instead of just being flung in, great idea. I was dreading a track day in the wet, I don’t mind riding in the wet on the roads but least there I can knock my speed down to the speed limits if I feel uneasy… after a lap or two I started to love it, completely different challenge and I learned loads.
My throttle was smooth as silk, down changes and rev match was great, my lines were spot on, my head was up, I was looking at the exit before I hit the apex and to my surprise I was the quickest out there apart from the guys on the full race wets with track bikes. It probably was slow as f
k compared to what some on here can do but as I said I learned loads. The super corsas came out a few times but on the whole were ok. Much better than I thought they would be. Im actually glad it rained as I loved it.Next session it was damp but drying, everyone went out and what a laugh it was. After riding in the wet you had much more confidence, speeds were up and later braking. I was gutted to see the session end. Again the only people who passed me were on track bikes or 1000cc machines.
Final session was the best though, bone dry now, leaning the bike over much more, head and body out at the wing mirror, no more duck feet, looking beyond the apex. I tried thinking about what I was doing a few times but then I started making mistakes, so I switched my brain off and thought of nothing. this seems to be the only way I can ride a motorbike, a complete trance of emptiness. Every once in a while a thought would pop into my head, a quote from here of “look up, past the apex” bloody hell this works especially when you’ve hit a corner too quick and having just watched twist of the wrist for some reason the presenters gay voice would creep in a few times in my head. Two guys went off in the final session on duffus, one ran wide and the other target fixated onto him and binned it after going into the back of the guy. Looked f
king sore but all I could think of as I seen it develop while full on braking was “survival instinct number 2 target fixation” in that wky voice. Out of the 30 I was in the top ten easily, again the only people who passed me were on track bikes or 1000cc. my only problem in the final session was that my brakes had gone. I was cleaning the pistons up the day before where I found all bar one were sticking, I cleaned them up as best as I could but they need rebuilt but I never had the seals or the time. The new pads that were in them are now fked (pish gold ones at £12). I was gutted to see the flag come out to finish it, on my first visit I wasn’t bothered. I’ve well and truly got the bug now. My arms were bloody sore from the braking though, maybe im holding on to the bars a bit much in the braking (need to use my legs more to hold the tank).
It was such a better experience than the last time, I got chatting to loads, everyone was dead friendly, overtakes were courteous and having a bike that had track tyres and suspension rebuilt compared to my other ninja with 15 year old oil in them made the difference. People I ride with say they would never ever buy a bike that’s been round the track, after a few days I feel the complete opposite. The track highlights any flaw in your machine instantly. I can see why people spend thousands on their machine now as a small niggle can feel huge.
Sadly the photographer never showed up last night (quite pissed about that) and to my knowledge there wasn’t a replacement, so no photos. But here’s one of my tyre that I’m quite pleased with.
Sounds like you're going great guns. Plenty of good riders get twitchy about wet track days. Just keep racking up the miles on track and where possible, have a chat with track day instructors that are usually at the circuit. You might be able to get one to follow you around for a few laps and give you some tips.
All I would say without wanting to sound patronising, don't do anything daft.
All I would say without wanting to sound patronising, don't do anything daft.
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