Running Wide

[Biff]

We've probably all done it - run wide on a corner. If you're new to road bikes and feel some strange desire to run wide on a corner on purpose - I advise you do it on a right hand bend, as running wide on a left hand bend can be very messy.

So why did you do it? Chances are because you were going to fast. At least too fast for you. Yet.

If you enter a corner which then tightens more than you anticipated, or that you've taken a wrong line into, and you then realise you don't know how to turn the bike in any more, or you physically can't - you have just entered something often refereed to as an OFC - an ‘Oh Fuck Corner’. These are best avoided, and are a good indication that you may be riding faster than your ability.


My advice should you find yourself amidst an OFC:

- Don't panic.
- Ease off the throttle - the bike will tip in more.
- Counter steer (pull and push) hard. You'll be amazed just how far over some bikes will lean (it's times like these that you’re grateful for the fact you’ve got decent tyres )

Enjoy.

[Karma]

I had an OFC at the trackday on the 5th... stood up the bike, hauled on the breaks and held on tight.

[Gremlin]

thats ok for a track day... often you can't be that lucky on the public roads...

Something you shouldn't do is pull the front brake (part of the panicking Biff mentioned). The expected result is for the bike to stand up, and if stands up, you tend to go straight, and not corner. Trust me on this... I found it out twice in 3 days...

Sometimes, touching the back brake slightly can help you to pull the bike lower, and into the corner, but not always guaranteed, and something that should be experimented with, in relative safety.

For exiting a corner, it is best to be on the gas, rather than off, or coasting, as this helps to settle your suspension.

Your biggest point is Biff's first. Do not panic.

[Grahameeboy]

I find that not panicing is the key.......we all do it...often just not concentrating rather than too fast....with the SV you get a lot of engine braking which helps and I have found gentle use of front is okay.

[Drum]

heh, heh.......a tight feeling in your stomach/ anus, and a rapid rise in heart rate just as you're turning into the corner - is that an OFC?

[Grahameeboy]

heh, heh.......a tight feeling in your stomach/ anus, and a rapid rise in heart rate just as you're turning into the corner - is that an OFC?

Nah that's when your trying to get away from the cops.......Oh Fuck Cop.....sorry to our Cop friends....just a little light humour as I am not a cop basher

[paturoa]

..and DO NOT under any circumstances look at where you dont want to go, cos that is where you will end up

Only look where you do want to go

[diggydog]

yeah right,theres another reason to why going of line, taking a corner and that lose shit on the road, but do get the drift about too fast and trying to correct her.

[sAsLEX]

Something you shouldn't do is pull the front brake (part of the panicking Biff mentioned). The expected result is for the bike to stand up, and if stands up, you tend to go straight, and not corner. Trust me on this... I found it out twice .

You can brake in corner, but yes the bike will want to stand up, so you have to counter this with more counter steering .

[mynameis]

Ok good points raised there Biff and others posts do sound logical as well. But one question only?

I mean how the hell do you not panic? If you shit yourself then you just shit yourself :gob: how do you control your heart rate and "not panic"? Something we have control over? Let me attempt to answer my lame question.

If it's something that you haven't encountered before then you will panic big time, but if it's a situation you're slightly used to then you will have "contorl" over it and yourself to not panic?

Do I make sense here guys? So whats the solution to not panic?

[m99dws]

In the 1st week of owning my SV I was on the Darlington to Northallerton road (not that anyone will know it here!). I knew the road well from driving cars often enough but 1 bend caught me out.

It was a left sweeping bend and for some unknown reason I went wide and right into the opposite lane. If there were any cars coming at the time I'd have been squashed. It was an eye opener and was a lot more cautious after that.

[klingon]

I think you answered your own question....


If it's something that you haven't encountered before then you will panic big time, but if it's a situation you're slightly used to then you will have "control" over it and yourself to not panic?


If it's something you haven't encountered before, you may panic. So if you make sure you encounter everything you possibly can in a reasonable controlled/safe situation, then you're more likely to be able to handle it and not panic.

So read threads like this (thanks Biff) then find a safe place and practise.

[sAsLEX]

Ok good points raised there Biff and others posts do sound logical as well. But one question only?

I mean how the hell do you not panic? If you shit yourself then you just shit yourself :gob: how do you control your heart rate and "not panic"? Something we have control over? Let me attempt to answer my lame question.

If it's something that you haven't encountered before then you will panic big time, but if it's a situation you're slightly used to then you will have "contorl" over it and yourself to not panic?

Do I make sense here guys? So whats the solution to not panic?

Train your mind. Mental exercises can make a large difference.

[yungatart]

You have to mentally override what the body decides is a natural reaction.
I had a moment yesterday on the Wairoa road, came around a left hand corner faster than I was really comfortable with, went wide (didn't cross the white line tho), there was a truck coming the other way. Don't look at the truck, don't brake, lean more - then breathe a sigh of relief as I made it around the corner.
I am sure the truckie saw the look of horror on my face and the whites of my eyes as I headed towards him!

[Hitcher]

I had a run-wide moment on a right-hand corner coming into Hunterville on this year's Grand Challenge. Fortunately I wasn't going excessively fast and was able to get back onto the asphalt on the left-hand corner that immediately followed. However there were a couple of raised driveways and some cherry trees to negotiate. My riding buddies applauded, but I suspect more good luck (i.e. no drains or parked cars) was involved than good management (i.e. resolving not to use the brakes).

[Drum]

......... So whats the solution to not panic?

The solution is experience.
Unfortunately no-one can ever gain enough experience to prevent all such occasions.

[MattRSK]

OFC are a certain thing!

[WINJA]

You can brake in corner, but yes the bike will want to stand up, so you have to counter this with more counter steering .

IF YOU HAVE TO TOUCH YOUR BRAKES MID CORNER TO MAKE THE CORNER YOU WOULDA MADE IT MORE SAFELY AND EASILY WITHOUT TOUCHING THE BRAKES , BRAKING IN A CORNER IS A FUCK UP WAITING TO HAPPEN IT PUTS MORE LOAD ON TH TYRES AND ALSO STOPS THE SUSPENISION WORKING AS GOOD

[cowpoos]

- Don't panic.
- Ease off the throttle - the bike will tip in more.
- Counter steer (pull and push) hard. You'll be amazed just how far over some bikes will lean (it's times like these that you’re grateful for the fact you’ve got decent tyres )

Enjoy.


I disagree....throttle off will make you run wider....I would sugget throttling on unless you bike is badly set up and then who knows what will happen...

[Gremlin]

So whats the solution to not panic?
There are varying degrees of panick, and experience plays a large part. A learners classic response to an OFC is to panic hard, and generally, freeze. This is compounded by the urge to yank on the brakes hard. When you have been in those situations, then you have been in the same thing, but got out of it, you have far more confidence in the knowledge you are capable of wrangling your way out of it. This confidence allows you to not freeze at the most critical point.

Often, if the rider had braked hard, and once in the corner, let go, and leant like crazy with a touch of throttle, they could have come out fine (this happened to me, and I realised I had started to learn how not to run wide). When you have your rear wheel skipping, sliding, and you're heading for the oncoming, and you are trying like hell to corner, let go of the brakes, and you will be surprised how easily the bike will respond. Obviously, if you are still going insanely fast... well, that was basically your fault...

Almost every learner has no idea just how far their bike can really lean. And if you are at the limit... well, you should know how to do your best to get out of the situation... if you don't... well, it was only going to be a matter of time before you found out the hard way, especially if you are doing it on the road.

[MattRSK]

I disagree....throttle off will make you run wider....I would sugget throttling on unless you bike is badly set up and then who knows what will happen...

I agree with cowpoos, if you make sudden throttle changes the bike will become unbalanced. I have read that it is best to maintain a constant roll on of the throttle through a corner to maintain the perfect weight balance of the bike. Correct me if I am wrong, but thats what I do.

[mikey]

I agree with cowpoos, if you make sudden throttle changes the bike will become unbalanced. I have read that it is best to maintain a constant roll on of the throttle through a corner to maintain the perfect weight balance of the bike. Correct me if I am wrong, but thats what I do.

ok. ill correct you. as you are wrong.

it is best to think of yourself as peter pan, knowing tink is looking out for you and you will be fine. i practice this every time i go out. normally happens a few times each ride. it is an art really.
not once have i had to worry about "braking gently/not breaking gently, accelerating , rolling off"

[MattRSK]

ok. ill correct you. as you are wrong.

it is best to think of yourself as peter pan, knowing tink is looking out for you and you will be fine. i practice this every time i go out. normally happens a few times each ride. it is an art really.
not once have i had to worry about "braking gently/not breaking gently, accelerating , rolling off"

When I am high, I am peter pan!

[Fatjim]

I disagree....throttle off will make you run wider....I would sugget throttling on unless you bike is badly set up and then who knows what will happen...

Cutting the throttle on the VTR makes in run tighter, but not enough to get you back on the right side of the road. It does the trick if you are starting to run wide though. Must need setting up properly.

[hamie1]

Running wide today was totally my fault. Over took an old lady in a cage approaching a 55km/h corner, doing nothing like 55km/h. I thought it was the bushes for sure, even a car coming the other way seemed to slow down. I expect he was thinking he was going to be getting me out of the bushes. Saved it just. I'll admit I looked at the bushes, ditch and through the corner. I changed down, breaked way to late and got through, but hell it took a few minutes to get the head down and through a few other corners without a 'granny approach'.:shit: I did everything worng I know it but I made it out and I'm learning from it.

[Biff]

I disagree....throttle off will make you run wider....I would sugget throttling on unless you bike is badly set up and then who knows what will happen...

I strongly disagree with you ole chum. It's all down to physics and centrafungal forces. Increasing throttle is the worst thing you can do during an OFC for two reasons - firstly a bike wants to stand up the more power you lay down. Secondly the faster you go the less time you have to react, and milliseconds can count in times such as these. We're talking mid OFC split second decision time here - not attempting to maximise your exit speed.

It's the same principle as a gyroscope. The faster a gyroscope spins, the more upright it stands. It's the same with a bike - throttle off, and gravity will begin to overpower the perpetual motion balancy manthingy, and your bike lowers to the ground.

This is how I corner on the mighty Biffbird all the time - I choose a gear which offers me relatively high RPM then I enter the corner at a speed I feel comfortable doing - I then (very gently) roll off or on the throttle to 'chase the vanishing point', gently rolling off the throttle to turn tighter. But as quite rightly pointed out - sudden significant changes in throttle on the apex of a corner can unbalance the machine.


http://www.dps.state.mn.us/mmsc/latest/MMSCHomeSecondary.asp?cid=5&mid=190
http://www.oldguy.us/easy-riding/articles/sa-cornering.php
http://www.virginiawind.com/tips/steering.asp

Adjusting the throttle alone may not help you, but it's as sure as shit an effective tool to add to your skill set when used and understood properly.

[Ixion]

This only applies on seal. Gravel is another matter. If in the shit on gravel, gassing it may get you out of trouble. Maybe. Or you crash faster. But it usually works. Usually.

[MattRSK]

So now I am thinking a steady roll on or off will maintain the balance of the bike through a corner. Maybe even a neutral no change through a corner will keep the balance.

[Roj]

Running wide today was totally my fault. Over took an old lady in a cage approaching a 55km/h corner, doing nothing like 55km/h. I thought it was the bushes for sure, even a car coming the other way seemed to slow down. I expect he was thinking he was going to be getting me out of the bushes. Saved it just. I'll admit I looked at the bushes, ditch and through the corner. I changed down, breaked way to late and got through, but hell it took a few minutes to get the head down and through a few other corners without a 'granny approach'.:shit: I did everything worng I know it but I made it out and I'm learning from it.


This is called experience, as you said, having done it once you are less likely to do it a second time, the problem is that it is hard on the nerves gaining it in this manner, not sure if I am right but I suspect you weren't quite looking far enough ahead when you started passing.

Look ahead, and plan an escape route if needed.:yes:

[TerminalAddict]

the twist of the wrist suggest a throttle off will cause the rear of the bike to lower, and decrease ground clearance.
it also loads the front tyre with more weight, asking it to grip more, when in the perfect situation, the rear should have 75% (maybe even more) of the weight.

From my limited research (reading some shit on the net :D ) in any corner, most of the steering is done by the rear.
An example of this when I power out of a corner sometimes (like maybe twice ;) ) my front can lift off the ground, and yet my bike continues to corner through the exit.

All the pros say throttle on, and it is what I have used so far ... in an OFC I would add an extra bit of throttle (maybe 5-10 degrees .. I dunno .. just a bit) plus I move my upper body, and counter steer ever so carefully .. I don't want my excessive heart rate translating into a heavy hand on the bars, and an eventual over reaction.
the times I've been in an OFC, what I have done in reality is shed as much speed as possible, tip the bike as much as my pea brain will allow it, then gas it . .gently


then again, I could be talking from hole in my arse .. wtf do I know :nya:

[The_Dover]

i generally shit my pants and hope I make it.

the rest is just instinct, talent and instinct.

[The Stranger]

Ok good points raised there Biff and others posts do sound logical as well.

We were talking about this the other day and duc-girl made the comment that when this happens she tells herself "I know the bike can do it".

I find it works, puts your faith in the bike and relaxes the rider, and hell if the bike can't do it you're probably screwed anyway, so what the hell.

[onearmedbandit]

I'd agree with keeping the gas on or increasing it a little. All to do with not loading the front tyre any further, which in an OFC is already loaded probably too much. Increasing the throttle input will take the load off the front onto the back (where the majority of the 'load' should be) allowing the front to do it's job better. I've done this myself before, into a corner a little hotter than I was expecting, and given the bike a little more gas, you can feel the front 'ease' up and the bike tips in further.

[vifferman]

The most important thing is from your first post, Biff.
If you think you're not going to make it around the corner, the chances are you're looking AT the corner, rather than through the corner. If you keep looking at the vanishing point, you're not going to panic so much, and you're not target-fixating on where you don't want to go.

Also, as OAB and others have said, feeding in more throttle (gently) may seem counter-intuitive, but the shift of weight to the rear it produces, and the dynamics of contact patches, gyroscopic foces, etc etc do help you to make the corner.

[Motu]

the twist of the wrist suggest a throttle off will cause the rear of the bike to lower, and decrease ground clearance.
it also loads the front tyre with more weight, asking it to grip more, when in the perfect situation, the rear should have 75% (maybe even more) of the weight.

From my limited research (reading some shit on the net :D ) in any corner, most of the steering is done by the rear.
An example of this when I power out of a corner sometimes (like maybe twice ;) ) my front can lift off the ground, and yet my bike continues to corner through the exit.

All the pros say throttle on, and it is what I have used so far ... in an OFC I would add an extra bit of throttle (maybe 5-10 degrees .. I dunno .. just a bit) plus I move my upper body, and counter steer ever so carefully .. I don't want my excessive heart rate translating into a heavy hand on the bars, and an eventual over reaction.
the times I've been in an OFC, what I have done in reality is shed as much speed as possible, tip the bike as much as my pea brain will allow it, then gas it . .gently


then again, I could be talking from hole in my arse .. wtf do I know :nya:

Yep,I can't even edit your post as it's all true,even the talking out your arse bit.Sports bikes are a bit limited in what you can do with narrow bars and the tank in the way - but I move forward as far as I can go,on my adventure bikes that means right up the nose of the seat onto the tank....my balls have shrunk into my body at this stage so no worries there.Now I am right over the bars and can use my shoulders to muscle the bike....I'll push the bike down and bring on a tad of throttle,just lifting the slides,gently does it and bring it on more as you get control and tighten the turn.With the throttle shut you'll just keep pushing.

I still do it,apparently years of experiance can't cure stupidity.A few weeks ago I came across a tight uphill lefthander and I often push on these....I wonder....? Sure enough I pushed wide right to the gutter on the otherside of the road (plenty of visability,no danger to myself or others) A few hours later I came back through the same corner and did it exactly the same way! I need to go back and sort this one out,do it several times and see where I'm getting it wrong.

[terbang]

Survival Errors
Each of the common, garden-variety survival reactions most of us
have can either cause or contribute to crashing. On the less dramatic but
very important side, they are the source of 100 percent of all rider errors.
They do, in fact, ruin your riding. Let's look. On a motorcycle, survival
reactions have specific results. Each carries with it enough force and
command value to change the rider's mind and control actions. Take, for
example, rolling on/off the throttle while cornering. My survey of over 8000
riders concluded that not one of them ever intended to roll on/off; that 100
percent of them intended to roll it on, throughout the turn, as their basic
plan. Something changed their minds. Rolling off the throttle is survival
reaction (sr) number 1. Survey shows it to be the front line of defense
when any circumstance triggers a SR. The standard SR triggers are:
"In too fast."
"Going too wide,"
"Too steep lean angle."
"Concerned about traction."
Bumps, traffic and others are secondary sources of unneeded
throttle roll-off. That riders most often realize the roll-off was not
necessary, right after doing it, is also further proof it was an automatic SR,
Ever happen to you?
Survival Reactions
The enemy is tough but limited in number:
1. Roll-off the gas.
2. Tighten on bars.
3. Narrowed and frantically hunting field of view.
4. Fixed attention (on something).
5. Steering in the direction of the fixed attention.
6. No steering (frozen) or ineffective
(not quick enough or too early) steering.
7. Braking errors (both over- and under-braking).
Survival reactions (SRs) usually affect the arms first. Your arms control:
steering, braking, throttle and influence handling.
Everyone has had all of the above happen to them. Are they
automatic? Take tightening on the bars as another example. Do you
command your arms to tighten up, or do you find they have done it on their
own? Do you choose to have your attention narrow and target fix? Did you
over-brake on purpose?
Whether for a real or an imagined reason, anything that triggers
one of the above survival reactions (SRs) is an attempt to reduce or
avoid injury. None of them work in harmony with machine technology
or rider control.

[Toaster]

I wondered where that 5 metres of fencing wire wrapped around me fairing came from.

Good thread dude.

[idb]

The 888 definitely doesn't want go around a corner under brakes or trailing throttle, and it's a heavy pig to try and countersteer under those circumstances.

More throttle is the answer for me.
The main times that I have what I call a 'sphincter moment' is if there is gravel, wet or oil in the corner.

With the Darmah the technique is a bit different.
The steering is a bit more lazy on that so I keep the bike upright as far as I can into the corner and hard on the front brake, then tip it in just as I let go of the brake.
This steepens the fork rake and sharpens the steering up hugely.

Mind you, as said before, this has only come from experience and knowing my bikes, they both react differently.
Probably the hardest thing to learn when I first started riding, and the biggest cause of sphincter moments, was to trust my tyres to keep gripping...that is - leaning is a good thing and your tyres will handle plenty of it.

[terbang]

Something I keep in mind is that I know that my bike/tyre combination will easily and safely lean over untill it scrapes (on a dry surface) and If I overcook a corner a bit then I atleast owe it to myself to take it there before standing it up and going wide. I have seen many a rider sail off the edge of the road without getting anywhere near the limits of their bike because of the afore mentioned SR. We often need to be able to rely on our bikes ability to turn. I find that if I overcook a corner, leaving the power where it is and just dropping my shoulder into the turn (forces more countersteer) while tightening the turn it gives me time to re-evaluate my situation and apply more or less countersteer and to adjust power. It is the front wheel that controls the bike and the rear that provides the (majority) turning force. A good thing to keep in mind is that once you decide to start rolling on the power in a turn, it should be a one way action and at the worst you should only freeze it where it is (no more power). The only time you should take it off is when you, and there comes a last ditch effort time when youve really, really overcooked it and decided to straighten up and hit the picks..!
All that said and done as an escape response and like most things in life, prevention is better than the cure. If you are unfamiliar with the road then don't be surprised when you find a few curves that look benign and then just seem to tighten up. If you are allready on the edge of your and your bikes ability and the curve unexpectedly tightens, then basicly, you have allready fucked yourself. That is one of the fundamental differences between a road rider and a track rider. The track rider has the advantage of familiarity (yes I know there is the first lap). The road rider often has to take into account or tap dance in a much more unpredictable environment, often with a few cages coming from the opposite direction there as well.

[Motu]

Analysing the corner in my previous post,it's the opposite of a corner tightening up,it's an increasing radius corner.I think because I always look well into a corner I am seeing the open exit and coming into the tight entry too fast,there is no way I can carry that speed early in the corner and so push wide.I need to either cut my entry speed....or turn from the right hand gutter.Considering the low traffic and good visability,I will choose the latter,but you didn't read that....

[bert_is_evil]

What do you do when you run wide, bike is leaned over so bottom of fairing is scraping and back tyre starts to lose grip? I had quite few of these brown trouser moments at track day - I increased the throttle and tried to countersteer as hard as I could but it eventually ended in a low side (no surprises there I guess)

[terbang]

And quite simply once you have met the physical limits of your bikes ability to turn any tighter, and you are required to turn tighter then your available options and the results aren't all that nice.

[Fatjim]

I was under the impression that rolling on the the throttle to lighten the front wheel is a good thing, but only once you've got the right lean on. The question was to do with running wide, i.e. not having the right lean on, not losing front end grip.

[Motu]

The question was to do with running wide.

The answer is you need to turn tighter.....just what all the replies have been about.

[Wenier]

The only time i have a problem is when the hard engine braking combined with hard braking gets the back to start skipping as then ya just cant brake up to the corner as hard. I then run wide under braking upright, and at the last minute (centre line) throw it in hard and throttle it through the corner and out the other side. Usually works quite well, rolling on usually gets a little bit of drift at the end of the turn but thats alright.

[MSTRS]

I read something recently that said that Guzzis actually like a bit of rear brake in the corners. That said I've never seen it said anywhere that rolling off the throttle makes the bike tip more. Yes, I know it's on the track, but have a look at the rear tyre of any (successful) race bike - they don't get like that on the sides from throttling off

[idb]

I read something recently that said that Guzzis actually like a bit of rear brake in the corners. That said I've never seen it said anywhere that rolling off the throttle makes the bike tip more. Yes, I know it's on the track, but have a look at the rear tyre of any (successful) race bike - they don't get like that on the sides from throttling off

Also using the throttle mid-corner can have an effect on Guzzis because of the gyroscopic effect of the crankshaft and flywheel.

[Motu]

My XLV750 had huge engine braking tyre wear - with not so good tyres it would step out on corner entry,on better tyres you could see it had been really working on that mid section of the tyre,only trail braking there,this was all caused by engine braking.My Guzzi experiance is a long time ago,but they definatly pull down on right handers,coming out of a left you just relax and they roll up all by themselves...they squat on corner entry engine braking,more than any shaft drive bike I've ridden.

[MSTRS]

Also using the throttle mid-corner can have an effect on Guzzis because of the gyroscopic effect of the crankshaft and flywheel.

Guzzi's are a bit of an anomoly....I mentioned them since not all bikes are the same and technique has to be adjusted to suit. In general though a bit of throttle is the way to go in a sticky moment

[mynameis]

We were talking about this the other day and duc-girl made the comment that when this happens she tells herself "I know the bike can do it".

I find it works, puts your faith in the bike and relaxes the rider, and hell if the bike can't do it you're probably screwed anyway, so what the hell.

Cool bananas maybe you could explain it to me this sunday at Whenuapai. I am in for the last RRRS course of the year. Finally got my ass around it :love:

mynameis

[Biff]

Guzzi's are a bit of an anomoly....

From what I've read most 'shafties' suffer from similar differences in terms of gyroscopic effect to chain/belt driven motormacycles. The horizontal spin of the shaft combined with the effect created by the wheel wheel spinning means that they handle differently in corners, and require a different kind of riding technique.

[Ixion]

Guzzi's are a bit of an anomoly....,,

Not half as much of an anomoly as Guzzi riders :devil2:

[Biff]

Not half as much of an anomoly as Guzzi riders :devil2:

Like Dangerous, he rides a Guzzi - no...wait..sorry.... he's animaly

[Hitcher]

Not half as much of an anomoly as Guzzi riders

Or an anomaly either...

[MSTRS]

You know - I tried that first, but it didn't 'look right'. The shame...the shame...*hangs head*

[Hitcher]

*hangs head*

Commenting on the apostrophe as well would be churlish.

[black_trash]

i generally shit my pants and hope I make it.

the rest is just instinct, talent and instinct.

Totaly agree :yes:

[Richard Mc F]

Keep off the brakes, steady throttle and lean ......or more correctly countersteer, you do not want to use up your "traction budget" on any thing other than manouvering the bike through the corner, as has been noted we have more cornering grip and clearnace available than we know.

Thanks to Keith Code and "twist of the wrist" I learned these lessons in my previous life trying to tame Z1's, CB750's GS1000....and the one that taught me respect and control........the mighty XS1100.......roll off the gas in a tight situation, rear squat, front dived, you fucking near bent the bars steering it then, especially if the pegs and cases were down.

Ride that pig with smooth controlled agression ( S&W suspension, pipe, modifed timing curve, re jetted, steering damper and pirelli phantoms) and sport bike riders of the day wept :rockon: ..........BUT IT'S A TOURING BIKE ( would have made a fucking good tui ad)

Look where you want to go........counter steer :done:

[boomer]

Something you shouldn't do is pull the front brake (part of the panicking Biff mentioned). The expected result is for the bike to stand up, and if stands up, you tend to go straight, and not corner. Trust me on this... I found it out twice in 3 days...

i found this to be not true on sunday, doing silly speeds on a long sweeper to come across someone turning across our path into there driveway. i grabbed a huge handfull of the front and made sure i pushed the bars down to avoid the t-bone. it worked, the bike stayed over and infact i managed to get an even tighter line.. that along with a soiled g-string.