Sharp Turn process

[SJ]

as I approach a sharp turn my process is as follows:

roll off throttle
pull in clutch and downshift while simultaneously easing on front brake
i continue to hold in clutch and am using front brake to slow down as i enter turn
when happy with speed and direction, i ease off front brake and release clutch to add either maintenance throttle if long slow turn or accelerate to exit

The point being, I am not using engine braking during the turn. I only release clutch in turn when happy with speed and direction and I need to add either maintenance throttle or accelerate

[Keith Culver]

SJ,

Unless the turn is so slow that you will stall it with the clutch released, we prefer to have the clutch out during turns and curves. This leaves us more controls to use if we need to adjust our trajectory and should keep us in the right gear should we need to accelerate for any reason. It also lessens the chance of releasing the clutch in the wrong gear which can often be abrupt and end badly. Caveat*** – Specifically, you don’t really have to have the last clutch release done until you are ready to accelerate but we prefer to have it done before we turn when possible.

Here would be best-practices;
-Brake when you are nervous
-Start downshifting within the first 10% (or so) of the braking zone.
-Try to get all downshifting (including clutch release) done before you begin to turn (best practice but see above caveat)
-Release the brake when you are slowed enough and pointed in the right direction (happy with speed and direction)
-Use maintenance throttle (if needed) until you can take away the lean angle and see where you are going.
-Load the rear tire and accelerate

We rarely want to say Always or Never as every situation is different. Every bike is different. Your speed changes the situation. Some bikes have more engine braking. Some have less. Best Practices will typically apply to the most number of bikes and situations. Coing to a class in person and getting to practice this stuff within eyeshot of the pros would be hugely beneficial.

Cheers and happy riding!

[SJ]

Great info. Thank you.
As a new rider I certainly error on entering turns slow-maybe too slow- and therefore will need to use maintenance throttle more than your average rider.
Coming from a car background only, engine braking on a bike really slows you down and I’m not used to that.

And yes, my goal is to attend ChampSchool either in August or October.

• This reply was modified 2 months ago by SJ.

[SJ]

In street riding, do you find that when using engine braking that you frequently don’t need to touch the brakes when entering a turn?

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