Al9000
stranger
Reged: 12/05/2009
Posts: 4
Loc: Lancs,UK
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I've been reading all the riding clinic articles in several mags over the last few months and got myself a bit confused. Grip is obviously pretty critical the more leaned over you are and I've been reading how braking into corners loads up the front tyre effectively squishing it into the road to give you plenty of grip. I've also read that once you're in a corner and off the brakes/ on positive throttle that the bike is at its happiest and most balanced, and in fact you are past the danger point of losing front end grip.
My question is this, surely if you've come off the brakes and applied throttle you are unloading the front end and have less grip? What I really want to know is, am I ok circulating big (50-70mph) roundabouts on a positive throttle practising knee (and toe) down, or am I risking binning it?
Bike is 1050 Speed Triple on Michelin Pilot Powers. Any advice would be gratefully received! Cheers, Al.
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Look Dave, I can see you're really upset about this. I honestly think you ought to sit down calmly, take a stress pill, and think things over
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BigHam
veteran
Reged: 12/11/2006
Posts: 1420
Loc: Letchworth, UK
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When you're actually leant over you don't have a huge contact patch, so if you're on the brakes at full lean at the same time you're asking the tyre to turn and brake on a very small area and thus you're more likely to crash.
You have to remember that at full lean the forks don't really work that well(since they only work 100% at the vertical plain) and the frame of the bike takes up part of the work at full lean by flexing.
So if you get on a positive throttle you transfer weight away from the front tyre. This allows the front tyre to just concentrate on the turning force as oppose to having to worry about braking too, so you have more grip.
To put it another way(sort of the way Keith Code puts it) at full lean you have say £1.00 worth of grip.
If you use the brakes that's taking up say 70p of your grip, but you also need 50p of grip to maintain the current radius of your turn, so you're asking for £1.30 worth of grip from a tyre that only has £1.00 of grip, so you'll crash.
If we remove the brakes you still need your 50p of grip to maintain the current radius, but you also have 50p of grip in reserve in increase your lean angle if you so needed too.
If that doesn't make any sense basically on the road get all your braking done before the corner and turn on a slightly positive throttle, that was assuming the surface is good (i.e. no diesel, gravel etc.) you won't lose the front. This is basically because you aren't asking as much of the tyre as you would be if you were trying to brake at the same time.
HTH a little.
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Where there's a will and Gaffa Tape there's a way!
Edited by BigHam (12/05/2009 12:20)
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BigHam
veteran
Reged: 12/11/2006
Posts: 1420
Loc: Letchworth, UK
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Only when you're fully upright does gradually applying more brake = more grip.
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Where there's a will and Gaffa Tape there's a way!
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Al9000
stranger
Reged: 12/05/2009
Posts: 4
Loc: Lancs,UK
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Ok, cheers Big Ham, everything you've said makes a lot of sense. I think I will be a lot happier the next time I go out roundabout hopping!
Al.
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Look Dave, I can see you're really upset about this. I honestly think you ought to sit down calmly, take a stress pill, and think things over
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Al9000
stranger
Reged: 12/05/2009
Posts: 4
Loc: Lancs,UK
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What does HTH a little mean?
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Look Dave, I can see you're really upset about this. I honestly think you ought to sit down calmly, take a stress pill, and think things over
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manxnorton
journeyman
Reged: 05/12/2006
Posts: 60
Loc: Southern England / France
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Quote:
What does HTH a little mean?
Hope that helps a little?
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BigHam
veteran
Reged: 12/11/2006
Posts: 1420
Loc: Letchworth, UK
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Aye, HTH is hope that helps.
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Where there's a will and Gaffa Tape there's a way!
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Al9000
stranger
Reged: 12/05/2009
Posts: 4
Loc: Lancs,UK
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Ah I geddit now
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Look Dave, I can see you're really upset about this. I honestly think you ought to sit down calmly, take a stress pill, and think things over
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cbreddie
newbie
Reged: 21/05/2009
Posts: 47
Loc: Rochdale, Lancashire
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Quote:
Ah I geddit now
I'm glad you asked that, cos I felt stupid for not knowing lol 
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Only worry about the things you can change, never worry about the things you cant!!
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