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Knee dragging is NOT sexy.....

My dos pesos---on some of the larger bikes---it can be quite beniifcial to get off the bike to steer is smoothly---however, it rarely means draggin knee---but on the other hand I have seen non-squids---a few women come to mind that drag regularly---BUT---they also have near perfect body positioning--so its more their style than some "need" to drag all the time or carrying too much speed---doesnt seem particularly dangerous to me---and yes, as far as I know, they learned this technique AT THE TRACK
 
I think half the people posting on this list are a bunch of whiney old 'better than thous' who need to grow a serious sense of humour.

Yeap, if your SOLE intention in riding a corner is getting your knee down and you're using the street as your practicing place, then you're probably going to fuck up - and fucking up on the street is a very bad thing. No argument there...

But...

I've been riding for over 14 years and for 10 of those years I never even had a car, so I've ridden a LOT. I didn't 'learn' to get me knee down until I had a few close calls when I didn't 'THINK' I could make the turn. But I wasn't dragging anything, nothing slid, it was all in my head. I wasn't going too fast, I was surprised/misread a corner/a blind lesbian jumped out in the road swinging a 10ft dildo. Whatever. Spare me the 'every accident is avoidable' crap too - sometimes shit just happens and learning that you aren't limited to a certain turning radius can help you avoid a hazard better.

So, I took myself off to a deserted roundabout (on a road that wasn't open yet, so I could practice both ways) and went round and round in circles at about 30mph to find out how far the bike would lean, then how much faster hanging off and getting me knee down would take me.

LO! A miracle. I could go MUCH faster dragging my knee and peg, than just the peg. I could also drag my knee going SLOWER than when I was dragging my pegs. I therefore knew that I had quite a large margin left over if I was hanging off, even going slower than I would normally.

Getting your knee down on a blind-right on Highway 9 at 10am on a Sunday is pretty damn stupid. But getting you knee down EVER on the street being ALWAYS unsafe? Spare me! Ever ridden Mines Road at 8am on a Sunday? Visibility on some sections is MILES, especially the lefts at the end going toward Livermore. Ok, I know this is hard for you fuddy-duddies to take, maybe some people don't do it to pose, or to impress - maybe it's just FUN! Isn't that what biking is about? Or did it suddenly turn into a politically-correct friggin nightmare while I was napping? Did I miss the vote? Was it in Florida?

I've also got into the habit of hanging off when I have no intention of dragging my knee just because it gives me a larger envelope to play with in case anything goes wrong. And, if you do it ALL the time, you get to be pretty damn smooth. So I'd take umbrage with all these 'holier than thous' spouting on about 'I never lean off the bike except at the track, blah blah, it upset the bike, blah blah' - it upsets the bike because you're CRAP AT IT!

Maybe if you got down off your high horses and just practiced it all the time you'd do it as second nature. Even going slow, this gives you more cornering clearance ergo a bigger safety envelope.

And all the AFMers on here who I know could blow me into the weeds at the track, screw you - I can outride you on the street anytime - and by that I mean making smooth, safe progress without endangering myself or anyone else and not beating myself up over OMG I LEANT OVER 2 DEGREES TOO MUCH IN THAT CORNER TO BE SAFE! Shock horror. The street is changeable and learning to react and having an extra bit of ability left over is more ammo in your reserve for the unexpected. Yeah, you pick your places to practice wisely and there are MANY assholes out there who have no business trying to get there knee down yet, or even ever - but there are plenty of old farts like me and many others who pick and choose their places to do it and if the site of my dragging my knee on a deserted stretch of blacktop in the middle of BFE offends you, then please, use your neck muscles and turn the other way...
 
Whoopsie...

Has someone been hitting the Old Grandad a wee too much this evening? :laughing

I think the point was not to make it a priority Joe... but since you'll be out on the Saturday rides from now on, I for one can't wait to see your magic!
 
Jack and me are good friends ;) Tho right now, we're more casual aquaintances, lol!

Hey 900CR - naw, I completely understand about the squiddly aspect, but you gotta admit, it's getting so you can't take a piss round here without someone crying fowl, you shouldn't do this, that and the other and it's getting old. And I KNOW you've had it aimed at you a few times, so don't get all coy with me...haha!

I've worked on more than my fair share of R1s with 601 miles that have been written off because some testosterone-head thinks they can pull wheelies/get their knee down/do stoppies (all at once) and it's pretty sickening.

But this whole THOU SHALT NOT HAVE FUN ON A MOTORCYCLE crap is getting old. Ride like a squid, you end up sqashed like one. But having fun once you've earned your skills and picking safe places to do it is something else.
 
First time I rode my new R6 on 9 both my knees touched the ground. I wasn't trying too cos I didn't even had pucks on my leathers. I was just riding the way I learned to ride on my SV650
I ride to have fun, sometimes in the hills my knee puck will get used. No big deal, that’s why they're there
I agree that dragging knee just for the sake of it is dangerous and stupid.
But riding fast on the street without dragging knee is not any safer than if you do. I saved a front end tuck on my knee on hwy 25 and quite few times I found that the extra lean angle that I had in reserve for hanging of saved my ass in decreasing radius turns
 
Joebar4000 said:
... it's getting so you can't take a piss round here without someone crying fowl, you shouldn't do this, that and the other and it's getting old. And I KNOW you've had it aimed at you a few times, so don't get all coy with me...haha!
Click to expand...

:laughing :laughing :laughing :laughing

Joe:

I've noticed the older I get, the more fowl my piss is anyway.

I haven't had it aimed at me for at least 48 hours... guess I'll have to take the Harley out and spit a few times?:teeth
 
JeffKoch said:
So were you riding side-saddle? Or were you crashing? :laughing
Click to expand...

He saw god and was praying.

Or maybe just hanging out with 280Squaggler? Or a Catholic Choir-boy...doh!

It's not just my piss that tastes nasty then? Phew! Thought I was alone!
 
[IMG]http://216.40.249.192/s/cwm/cwm/rcain.gif[/IMG] said:
So were you riding side-saddle? Or were you crashing? :laughing
Click to expand...

:twofinger

I was chasing a dude on a 93' 900RR on the lower part of 9 , after 236.
kneesparx and his R1 knows that guy and his bike "intimally" ;) :laughing :p
 
Was that the same guy that got all pissy because Jaehne overtook him while riding his wife's 250? It was like handbags at 20 paces with him and Gary, quite funny. I think Gary was just minding his own business and passed him, then the guy got all pissy and started trying to race him and Gary never even noticed, lol!

Frankly, if I'd had my ass handed back to me by some guy on a Ninja 250, I'd keep my mouth shut. The best part was when he said 'I've done track days, I'll see YOU at the track' Bwahahaha!
 
Aaa... no I'm sure it wasn't the same guy , but that sounds really funny. Who was that ? :wow
 
No idea, some ASS tho. Thought he was a cool rider obviously, Gary was sitting minding his own business and the guy walks over to almost literally start a fist fight.

And the 'incident' was from the day before! So no excuses for adrenalin rush, the guy was just a prick. Starts challenging Gary to a race up 9 (on a Sunday afternoon) then at the track ('I've done trackdays') bwahaha! Everyone else was like, 'dude, do you know who the fuck this is?' Lol! And they all looked at his shiny 900 'Blade and we're just silently laughing because Gary was on the baby Ninja. They all bust out laughing when the idiot finally left. Even my girlfriend who has no idea who Gary is was all 'Who was that ASS? I mean, I'd keep my mouth shut if I got spanked by a Ninja 250'

Maybe Gary can tell it better?
 
Hey Pocket Physicists;

The main reason to keep the bike more upright is that the suspension works best to absorb the road's changes this way. Leaning the bike "less" in itself doesn't allow you to achieve greater cornerspeeds, contact patches being equal.
 
Which does not explain why dirtbikers do what they do, so just don't listen to a word I'm saying.
 
donoman said:

The main reason to keep the bike more upright is that the suspension works best to absorb the road's changes this way. Leaning the bike "less" in itself doesn't allow you to achieve greater cornerspeeds, contact patches being equal.
Click to expand...

I disagree that it's the main reason, but it is one reason, true. Good point.
 
donoman said:
Hey Pocket Physicists;

The main reason to keep the bike more upright is that the suspension works best to absorb the road's changes this way. Leaning the bike "less" in itself doesn't allow you to achieve greater cornerspeeds, contact patches being equal.
Click to expand...
That's not the main reason...just one of the reasons.

The main reason is keeping more tire on the ground which does allow us to acheive greater corner speeds.

On some bikes bikes you need to hang off to keep hard parts off the ground.

Scott

P.S. Does this make you a "Pocket Rider"? ;)
 
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