Flat Land Cornering Skills: R=mph

[Ulvetanna_imp]

"All riders need to know that freeway on-/off-ramps are terrible places to push the limits and often punish crashes harshly. Many are lined with Armco or cement barriers, have had oils and coolant spilled on them, or have drop-offs on one side. A good reminder is Kenny Roberts Sr. discussing certain corners where he never pushed to the limits because of the consequences of a mistake."

-Nick Ienatsch

Pretty good article about cornering in a land where curving roads are few.

 

[metallyguitarded_imp]

Good article. I forwarded it to my kid whose been riding for about 6 months now and itching to go faster. For better or worse, we have plenty of twisting canyon roads nearby. Thanks for the link!

 

[Retsel_imp]

Great article. A long time ago, in a land far far away, I dropped my Suzuki GS750ES on an on-ramp. I remember not having a clue I was in trouble until I recovered consciousness strapped to a gurney. I went back to the site later, to try and figure out what went wrong, and pick up a few missing pieces of my bike. What I found was exactly what this article talks to. There was a pretty dramatic "crown" in the asphalt in the center of the ramp. In addition to that the asphalt, on the outside of the curve, was almost smooth with the buildup of road grime. So, I figure I was overly accelerating into the curve and when I started to accelerate to bring me around I increased my radius and passed over the crown losing angle on a surface where I should have been doing the opposite. I was young and lucky. This post brought back memories of a hard won lesson. Thanks!

Sent from my SM-T710 using Tapatalk

 

[LongRanger_imp]

Good article. Thanks for sharing.

 

[redbirds_imp]

I learned a lesson the hard way on an expressway on-ramp in 1975. Pushing a little too hard, I dropped my BMW. Fortunately there were no Armco or concrete barriers and I only suffered a broken rib. Examining the ramp showed an oily patch and a great deal of built up road grime. Lesson learned.

 

[Ulvetanna_imp]

Great article. A long time ago, in a land far far away, I dropped my Suzuki GS750ES on an on-ramp. I remember not having a clue I was in trouble until I recovered consciousness strapped to a gurney. I went back to the site later, to try and figure out what went wrong, and pick up a few missing pieces of my bike. What I found was exactly what this article talks to. There was a pretty dramatic "crown" in the asphalt in the center of the ramp. In addition to that the asphalt, on the outside of the curve, was almost smooth with the buildup of road grime. So, I figure I was overly accelerating into the curve and when I started to accelerate to bring me around I increased my radius and passed over the crown losing angle on a surface where I should have been doing the opposite. I was young and lucky. This post brought back memories of a hard won lesson. Thanks!

Sent from my SM-T710 using Tapatalk

I have couple of memories like that too. I've been checking out "Tuesdays with Nick" over at cycleworld.com from time to time. His main focus is safe riding.

Another trap are roundabouts. We are seeing more and more of these in my area. Very dangerous for motorcycles. I just crawl around them.