Heartstopping moment.....
Dan
Hey all,
Yesterday (sunday) I was heading up Gorge Rd (Adelaide), and as I got to the
fast part (locals will know what I mean - too hard to explain the details of
the road) two bikes pulled out of a rest area and started up the hill ahead
of me. So naturally I wind on the throttle a little more to try and catch
them. Up the hill, flick right for a dip then through the uphill
left-hander, gaining on the bikes ahead, bike leaned right over, knee on the
ground then ***WHOOOAAAAA***!!!!!!!! The back end let go in a big way then
grabbed again, both my feet came of the pegs and I bashed my shin and
another crucial part of my anatomy on various parts of the bike <ouch! @#&$^
that hurt!> Luckily for me the bike stabilised itself in time for the next
corner and I continued somewhat slower, the bike unscathed but me in some
(!) pain.... Next time I'll make sure my tyres are slightly warmer before
going hard into the first fast corner!
Does anyone else do this on a regular basis? Deliberately or otherwise?
And how on earth can you control a non-deliberate slide?!? If this happens
to me again, I still don't think I'd be able to react fast enough to do
anything about it. I'm now even more in awe of guys who race and can do
this every lap.....
Dan :-)
VTR1000F - One of my two girlfriends
Graham Byrnes
In article <349e5...@duster.adelaide.on.net>, "Dan"
<dma...@cpms.com.au.nospam> wrote:
>
> Does anyone else do this on a regular basis? Deliberately or otherwise?
Wayne Gardner apparently used to need a new screen after most sessions.
He'd smash them with his head... check the video of the '90 Phillip Is GP.
> And how on earth can you control a non-deliberate slide?!?
Weird as it sounds, it was because you weren't going fast enough :-)
I've found that if you wick it up too much exiting a curve you tend to
do one of those feet off the pegs numbers. Fun, huh? Otoh, if you
carry more corner speed the back is more likely to let go gradually,
because the tyre is already closer to the edge, so it doesn't require
a fist full of neddies to break it loose. I still wouldn't recommmend it
for the road... get to know that "I'm gonna let go soon" squirm from your
tyres and pay heed. If you are really on the limit and there is some
crap on the road, you're gonna make a big mess.
Of course if your tyres are cold anything can happen.
If this happens
> to me again, I still don't think I'd be able to react fast enough to do
> anything about it. I'm now even more in awe of guys who race and can do
> this every lap.....
Every time I do it it costs me 2-3 seconds. If you do it every lap you're
a prat (or you're riding a 500GP bike with circa 1990 tyres...).
The answer is not about reacting fast. As you said, the bike does it for
you. Just let it go about it's business and try not to shake it about too
much when you come down.
>
> Dan :-)
> VTR1000F - One of my two girlfriends
Hope the other one is kinder to your fragile bits...
Graham
Shawn Foo
In <G.Byrnes-231...@graham-byrnes.maths.latrobe.edu.au> G.By...@latrobe.edu.au (Graham Byrnes) writes:
>In article <349e5...@duster.adelaide.on.net>, "Dan"
><dma...@cpms.com.au.nospam> wrote:
>> And how on earth can you control a non-deliberate slide?!?
>Weird as it sounds, it was because you weren't going fast enough :-)
>I've found that if you wick it up too much exiting a curve you tend to
>do one of those feet off the pegs numbers. Fun, huh? Otoh, if you
>carry more corner speed the back is more likely to let go gradually,
>because the tyre is already closer to the edge, so it doesn't require
>a fist full of neddies to break it loose.
Graham, please expline.
does the "slow in, fast out" rule not apply in racing?
Shawn
Graham Byrnes
It does, but fast in is good too...
First the exception. If you have a corner like Honda (T4) at Phillip Is,
you approach flat out in 5th, shift down to 1st, turn, change up to 2nd,
maybe just get 3rd and then go back to 2nd fo siberia. Coming out of Honda
fast won't gain you that much, but going into it faster will, because you
get to stay at >200km/h for longer.
Otherwise yes, you arrange your lines so that you can accelerate out hard.
The problem is when you start trying to do too many things at once. Ideally
you should be using max brakes, then max lean, then max acceleration. This
can be done either in the classic high corner speed method of 125's or the
stop & pivot that 500's sometimes use.
In reality, it's useful to carry a bit of brake while you are getting the
bike onto its side and start getting on the throttle before it's fully
upright.
However you don't just whack the throttle wide open while your knee is still
on the ground (unless it's a *very* fast corner).
If you are carrying lots of corner speed, you wouldn't even try because the
bike is already right on the edge or even sliding. However, if you are
a bit off the pace the tyres are still sticking nicely and it's tempting
to get on the throttle hard to make up time. This is when you get to play
superman :-(
Of course there are times when you do need to use lots of throttle at
moderate lean, ie continuing corners. Then you can either just get right
on it from the start and get the back loose (fun, but not necessarily fast)
or you just have to be careful... (Ukawa did a nice demo of how it can go
wrong in the 250 qualifier at the last GP: BIG highside, dislocated
shoulder).
In summary, it's not so much slow in, fast out as "as fast as possible
going in without compromising my exit speed". Have a look at a GP tape:
those guys are not on road lines, they use every inch of the track on the way
out (and often a chunk of ripple strip as well).
This is not recommended on public roads.
Also note the very quick transitions upright to lean to upright: no poncing
about on half lean, it wastes time and track space.
Graham
Bradley Gray
>Does anyone else do this on a regular basis? Deliberately or otherwise?
>And how on earth can you control a non-deliberate slide?!? If this happens
>to me again, I still don't think I'd be able to react fast enough to do
>anything about it. I'm now even more in awe of guys who race and can do
>this every lap.....
The back end of the BMW stepped out the other day, I was only going slow
(50kmh) and the instinct took over. Probaly did all the wrong things but i
didn't hurt myself and i didn't fall over.
Reaction 1: Countersteer more - I think this made the bike lean over
further but it pointed me in the right direction.
reaction 2: Stick leg/foot out speedway style and kick bike upright. No
injuries this time but last time I did this 14years back I broke all the
cruciate ligaments in the same leg. Ligaments still cactus, leyg feels
fine.
reaction 3: Deep breath through nose to check for telltale shit-in-pants
smell - none present - head for work.
Brad
'93 R80 - Good Dog
'83 R80ST - Bad Dog