Riding...............................................

Feeling fast and going fast are two different things. But why is this?

Why does riding a bike seem faster than it sometimes is?

T he harder we ride, the less smooth we become until we can get to a point when we think we are absolutely on it – and it really does feel like we are on it. In truth, however, we’re going a lot slower than we think and the only thing we are ‘on’ is a knife edge of traction created by aggressive, sloppy and frantic control actions. I’m sure we’ve all done this and tried and tried to push through the barrier – only to find we are going slower and slower and massively increasing the risk of a very big crash!

When you put your mind to it, riding proper fast will actually feel slow. It sounds like a contradiction, but when we are riding fast we will find a rhythm and with that comes speed where you feel like you are, to use an American phrase, in the zone. Everything you do will be in a very controlled and very precise manner.

The three main areas we tend to get over active with when riding ‘fast’ are the throttle, the gears and the brakes. Smooth progressive roll on goes out the door, replaced with sudden, aggressive and jerky throttle openings. This causes the bike to become unstable as weight is transferred front to rear and back again, compressing and unloading the suspension to such a degree that the tyres can lose grip, even with little lean angle!

If you want more acceleration out of the turn then start your roll on a little sooner and be more progressive as you go through the corner. This will reduce the chances of losing traction and having to roll off and then back on again – but harder...

Jumping down through the gearbox is another ‘fast riding’ trait. This causes a mismatch between the front and rear wheels speeds and the bike slews and sways into the corner making it hard for you to judge when to turn, or even if you can turn at all! Match your rapid downshifts with a smooth blip of the throttle to keep the front and rear wheels in line. Slipper clutches do help if you are rough, but there is no substitute for being smooth.

Advice on the initial brake pull is an example. We’re told it should be a gradual application to settle the bike’s suspension and not lock up the wheel. Sounds good and logical, but like most good advice it can have severe consequences if applied in the wrong situation.

Let’s take a one second (one heartbeat) gradual squeeze at 60mph and compare that to a racer’s fifteen hundredths of a second (that’s half the time it takes to blink) brake pull. How would that impact your accident avoidance capabilities? Without doing the maths, but knowing you are travelling at 88 feet per second, it’s safe to say it would be many more yards before you stopped the bike. Advice? Hard fact? Hmm, Keith and I prefer hard fact and the school is all about teaching good old fashioned solid information!

Put your mind to it and riding fast will feel slow...