Why knee down

[Motu]

Cabin fever.

[Deano]

Motu,

Give us some names of current GP or WSB riders who don't get off the seat and stick the knee out and we will all look out for them this year ??

Kicka, hope that isn't you with the knee out in your avatar (lol) !!

[Motu]

Uh,I think you better go back and read my posts on this subject - I'm only saying it's only for ego and show on the road - you will never get up to the speed of the racers street riding - but it's fun to try it's why we ride bikes.

Some of the aces of the past would hang a cheek - I used to do this in the early 70s on my Triton,a shift of weight to the inside would help pull the bike down,it wasn't unusual at all.

I also think some of you are confusing hanging a cheek and draging a knee - while they are often done at the same time,one can be done without the other.Tucked in but well off the bike,knee out but bum in the middle of the seat.Go and look at some old photos - at a glance they are old farts on old bikes with black leathers,but with study you will see they all had a different style.

Mike the Bike,Ago,King Kenny,Foggy,The Doctor - the greatest of their times,they have all given us something,pushed the limits and set new standards....they are ALL my heros.

[Kickaha]

Motu,

Kicka, hope that isn't you with the knee out in your avatar (lol) !!

Ooooopppppppps I've been sprung,but I did say it felt better when I was racing,I just think its wank during normal road riding,but that may be because I don't treat the road as a racetrack.

[Deano]

Uh,I think you better go back and read my posts on this subject - I'm only saying it's only for ego and show on the road - you will never get up to the speed of the racers street riding - but it's fun to try it's why we ride bikes.

Some of the aces of the past would hang a cheek - I used to do this in the early 70s on my Triton,a shift of weight to the inside would help pull the bike down,it wasn't unusual at all.

I also think some of you are confusing hanging a cheek and draging a knee - while they are often done at the same time,one can be done without the other.Tucked in but well off the bike,knee out but bum in the middle of the seat.Go and look at some old photos - at a glance they are old farts on old bikes with black leathers,but with study you will see they all had a different style.

Mike the Bike,Ago,King Kenny,Foggy,The Doctor - the greatest of their times,they have all given us something,pushed the limits and set new standards....they are ALL my heros.

True, it was Jackrat who suggested the faster racers didn't put the knee down. And scraping pegs is a crock of shit also ?

[Hitcher]

I wonder how it would look if I did it? Hmm?

On a Volusia you'd need a cantilevered leg so your knee beat the peg to the ground!

[Pickle]

Motu,

Give us some names of current GP or WSB riders who don't get off the seat and stick the knee out and we will all look out for them this year ??

Kicka, hope that isn't you with the knee out in your avatar (lol) !!

I made the comment that the top GP guys dont hang off and I am looking at a photo of Rossi & Gibernau and they are not hanging off, look at the Grand Prix and Superbike calendar from 2002 the TOP guys are not hanging off as there simply isnt room they drop their knee and shoulder, their bum is still on the seat.
I think everyone is getting confused between what is needed to be done on the track & what is done on the road wether its needed or not. This could be due to pose value or mistankenly thinking that hanging off is necessary to get a modern bike around a corner at road speeds.
All that movement getting to the hanging off point and concentration off getting the knee down is probably slowing you all down, why not just concentrate on your lines and being smooth.
When racing I used to go all out be all over the bike fall off regularly and be slow, then after talking to my brother concentrated on lines, turn in point, braking markers etc etc I got a lot faster, didnt fall off as often and had more fun

[wkid_one]

You only have to see them thru the a chicane to see how much they have to move from side to side between the different corners.

They do 'hang off' in the sense that they are shifting their weight considering from the centre of the bike.

Watch the esses next time and see how much they do infact move

As I said I prefer it because I find it helps me set up for the corner......and it gives me a better sense of security in the corner - however this is only on the 30-55kph corners......prefer to take the faster corners tucked in just dropping the shoulder to the inside

2002 the TOP guys are not hanging off as there simply isnt room they drop their knee and shoulder, their bum is still on the seat.

Don't wanna pick bones - but these pics do kinda suggest that they hang a cheek or so off there bike.....which is all we are talking about - their bum is barely on the seat in some of these pics - and this is Abe, Hayden, Bryne, Melandri

[750Y]

I am liking that first pic. 8-).

[Coldkiwi]

for me, comfort and confidence probably plays the biggest factor. I know moving on the entry to a corner takes effort and if I move lots I'll be more buggered by the end of the ride. But I've tried it with my bum on the centreline and the whole show just feels twitchy and unstable, so whether its theoretically faster or not is irrelevant if I think i'm about to add myself to the landscape.
pivoting round the tank (yes, my gsxr has a dirty great tank but its thin where it needs to be) and getting the shoulder down gives me the greatest feeling of confidence by miles.

and is it still wanky having sliders on the road if you actually scrape them?

[speedpro]

Sliders are another issue I think when riding on the road. As far as being required because your knee is getting worn out goes, that is all bullshit. However as another layer between you and whatever, in the case of a crash, they are very useful. I did a job on my left knee at Ohakune a few years ago and the missing bits would have been covered by a knee slider and probably still attached if I was wearing them.

For a bit of "street cred" you could always hook up with a racer and do a swap when his sliders get worn. Bit of a win/win situation there.

[Motoracer]

For a bit of "street cred" you could always hook up with a racer and do a swap when his sliders get worn. Bit of a win/win situation there.

Anyone is welcome to PM me for this offer

[FzerozeroT]

I am still trying to get some knee down action, so i can say "because i can" mainly, It may be shit for cornering speeds but it's fun, why do i ride a bike? for cornering speed? no.

any knockers, have you tried ice skating? the tyre section is equivalent to 0.5 and there is grip until the sole of the boot touches down (equivalent of a footpeg?) so all cornering mechanics is done by throwing bodyweight. I used to ice skate a lot and could drag knee on ice, like i said... FUN..

If you want to get through a corner fast get a good line, if you want to have fun, drop knee . Or in jackrats case, get a line that has a sharp kink just before apex, weight on outside peg, nail the gas and roost / drift through the rest, probably have same exit speed.

[Coldkiwi]

Sliders are another issue I think when riding on the road. As far as being required because your knee is getting worn out goes, that is all bullshit.

why? because you can't?

[wkid_one]

Sliders are another issue I think when riding on the road. As far as being required because your knee is getting worn out goes, that is all bullshit. However as another layer between you and whatever, in the case of a crash, they are very useful. I did a job on my left knee at Ohakune a few years ago and the missing bits would have been covered by a knee slider and probably still attached if I was wearing them.

I use my sliders but that aside.

They can cause more harm than good in an accident because the last thing you want is a great big lump of solid man made material at a localised point on your body. I had a bruise for 7 weeks from where I hit the road with my slider when I came off