zanshin
Well-known member
I've been looking through a lot of content lately, to send to my friend who has decades of street experience, and who just got a GS and wants to take it off pavement. Naturally, Riemann's material is up there. And as I was watching this video:
where he brings up counter-leaning, that I flashed back to "unenlightened / closed-minded" conversations on this topic, over the decades, with CA urban / street riders. Since riding trials in the 90s, I counter-lean on the street in slow and/or sharp and/or slippery corners. It's essential on a GS off pavement, and on a dirt bike. It's the 10mm socket in the toolbox of managing poor and variable traction.
The conversations tended to go something like this. I describe the feeling and the dynamics of vastly improved control when managing dicey traction situations, such as snapping around a 90 degree street corner in the rain with painted lines. Or with spooge on the ground, or with rain and sand on Mines Rd or something.
And the response is along the lines of, "Bruh.. do you see *any* track racers doing this? They maximize traction, and they all lean way the fuck the other way, leeping the bike upright. What are you even talking about?"
If there are any newer riders still reading here, and still learning.. pay close attention to Riemann, and then do the counter-lean thang when taking some 90 degree city street corners quickly / aggressively. You will be faster and way more confident. Drag some rear brake as you're approaching the apex. It helps to settle the suspension, fine tune speed, act as a buffer against snatchy / aggressive throttle response on exit, and if you need to scrub just a bit more speed at the last moment, you're already there -- suspension is settled, brake is being applied, reaction time is at the absolute minimum.
This can then be extrapolated to tight twisties, coming in with both brakes and then fading the front while maintaining a touch of rear, etc. But the "gateway drug" is the basic counter-learning technique.
As a bit of background / explanation.. I'm in the snow belt, and the hill + mountain twisties here get sanded and salted heavily during winter.. or else cars will just slide off into ravines every day. By the time March rolls around, the corners on backroads look like two track, where car wheels push the sand out of the way.. but in the center and on the sides, there can be an inch of gravel and sand and dust. Nasty and dangerous.
At intersections, there are islands of this stuff on the periphery of the normal paths of travel. A coastal biker will shit themselves seeing this for the first time, whereas come March we are crazy with cabin fever and want to ride as much as possible. "It's 40F and the snow is mostly gone.. fuck yeah! Great day to ride!"
Anyway.. this is to say that dirt / trials stuff becomes very relevant during early season. Counter-leaning, trailing rear brake.. it's essential, and it works great under these highly sketchy conditions. Warm weather city riders should also take notice, as the benefits apply to rain / paint / metal grating and all that.
My driveway, March 13 2023. At this point, you ride no matter what. F winter and all that, dodging patches of ice.
And then during planting and harvest season, we get this. Hydraulic fluid spills that can go on for miles, but especially in corners. Reading the road surface and managing variable traction is a way of life. The below spill is on the road I ride almost every day I go out. The farm machinery can take the entire road, both lanes and shoulders -- combines the size of a small house -- and sometimes they sneak between adjacent fields without a pilot vehicle. Thus, the mental and physical techniques are battle tested. I hope someone will find this useful and stays upright in a situation where "track-inspired technique" would otherwise land them on their head.
View attachment 1736540467696.jpeg
where he brings up counter-leaning, that I flashed back to "unenlightened / closed-minded" conversations on this topic, over the decades, with CA urban / street riders. Since riding trials in the 90s, I counter-lean on the street in slow and/or sharp and/or slippery corners. It's essential on a GS off pavement, and on a dirt bike. It's the 10mm socket in the toolbox of managing poor and variable traction.
The conversations tended to go something like this. I describe the feeling and the dynamics of vastly improved control when managing dicey traction situations, such as snapping around a 90 degree street corner in the rain with painted lines. Or with spooge on the ground, or with rain and sand on Mines Rd or something.
And the response is along the lines of, "Bruh.. do you see *any* track racers doing this? They maximize traction, and they all lean way the fuck the other way, leeping the bike upright. What are you even talking about?"
If there are any newer riders still reading here, and still learning.. pay close attention to Riemann, and then do the counter-lean thang when taking some 90 degree city street corners quickly / aggressively. You will be faster and way more confident. Drag some rear brake as you're approaching the apex. It helps to settle the suspension, fine tune speed, act as a buffer against snatchy / aggressive throttle response on exit, and if you need to scrub just a bit more speed at the last moment, you're already there -- suspension is settled, brake is being applied, reaction time is at the absolute minimum.
This can then be extrapolated to tight twisties, coming in with both brakes and then fading the front while maintaining a touch of rear, etc. But the "gateway drug" is the basic counter-learning technique.
As a bit of background / explanation.. I'm in the snow belt, and the hill + mountain twisties here get sanded and salted heavily during winter.. or else cars will just slide off into ravines every day. By the time March rolls around, the corners on backroads look like two track, where car wheels push the sand out of the way.. but in the center and on the sides, there can be an inch of gravel and sand and dust. Nasty and dangerous.
At intersections, there are islands of this stuff on the periphery of the normal paths of travel. A coastal biker will shit themselves seeing this for the first time, whereas come March we are crazy with cabin fever and want to ride as much as possible. "It's 40F and the snow is mostly gone.. fuck yeah! Great day to ride!"
Anyway.. this is to say that dirt / trials stuff becomes very relevant during early season. Counter-leaning, trailing rear brake.. it's essential, and it works great under these highly sketchy conditions. Warm weather city riders should also take notice, as the benefits apply to rain / paint / metal grating and all that.
My driveway, March 13 2023. At this point, you ride no matter what. F winter and all that, dodging patches of ice.
And then during planting and harvest season, we get this. Hydraulic fluid spills that can go on for miles, but especially in corners. Reading the road surface and managing variable traction is a way of life. The below spill is on the road I ride almost every day I go out. The farm machinery can take the entire road, both lanes and shoulders -- combines the size of a small house -- and sometimes they sneak between adjacent fields without a pilot vehicle. Thus, the mental and physical techniques are battle tested. I hope someone will find this useful and stays upright in a situation where "track-inspired technique" would otherwise land them on their head.
View attachment 1736540467696.jpeg
