Crossover

**trumpy** · 10th January 2006, 14:40

No, not dubious night time activities........
Having been off road bikes for longer than some of you have lived, I got into dirt bikes about five years ago to compensate for the lack of two wheeled action. Now I am back on a road bike I am having a little trouble adapting to the different techniques required. More specifically I am having trouble getting out of the habit of weighting the outside peg instead of the inside one. (for you non-dirties, on a dirt bike you sit on the high side, tip the bike beneath you and weight the outside peg - i.e. the reverse of what the more experienced of you do naturally and without having to think about)
Any other ex dirt bike riders out there have the same problem or I have I just lost too many brain cells over the last 50 odd years and the remaining ones are just hanging on to what little they know?
I also find that I can push with my outside knee OR weight the inside peg but attempting to do a lateral movement with one leg and a vertical movement with the other has me flailing around like a demented octopus. (oh shite that's wrong, do it the other way, no that's not right, oh bugger the corners over anyway!)
Suggestions (other that brain surgery)?

Also, am I just being pathetic or does the liquid nature of some of our roads in the summer scare the bejeesus out of you as well?

**James Deuce** · 10th January 2006, 14:50

Sit in the seat, don't hang off either high or low side.

Look through the corner. Point your elbow at the apex of the corner. Keep your head up and your eyes level with the horizon as you go through the corner. It will become natural with practice.

**Motu** · 10th January 2006, 14:59

I can't be bothered learning how to ride a sportsbike,if it hasn't got wide bars with my feet in the right place I'm a fish out of water.Get a big dirt bike and get the best of both worlds.

**trumpy** · 10th January 2006, 16:25

Thanks guys. Guess I am just a bit frustrated my ride didn't go quite the way I wanted. Sunday's ride was great...Taupo to Karapiro and back via the Mangakino back rd..everything just seemed to "flow". You'll know what I mean by that.
Todays ride not so. Taupo, Murapara, Galatea,Whakatane, Ohope (for brunch) then back via the lakes, Rotorua, Aratiatia, Whakamara and Pohipi rd.
Nothing wrong with the roads (apart from the melted bits), great biking territory, just Trumpy's brain partly disengaged.
Spent a year or three peddling single seater race cars and found the smoother I got the more control and hence more options I had and then started to win the odd race or two.
Guess what I am trying to do is develop a much smoother riding style...just sometimes find myself repeating all the mistakes of my first year racing cars.
(you know...having to accelerate up to the apex because you braked far too early and too hard

)

**Motu** · 10th January 2006, 18:57

I think a lot of us older more experianced riders equate good riding with smooth riding....it's a mortal sin to not have it all together.After spending 10 yrs in a place where the fastest I could get a Yoshi something up to was still less than 160kph...coming back to Auckland I took a long time to get back up to speed,and it was embarrassing how ''new'' I felt,even though I had never stopped riding a day in my life.I finaly got back up to my old levels....well,they were the same levels,just a new enviroment.Now I have a lightweight stroppy 2 stroke,and for the life of me I can't ride it smoothly...it's bloody embarassing! Yeah,accelerate up to the turn after braking,two or three bites for the corner,coming out of the corner still trying to find the gear you were suposed to enter it in.....lucky I have grey hair and look the part of old fart quite well....it explains it all.

**ratusratus** · 10th January 2006, 19:02

im just pleased ya ride a trumpy!!!
watch out for the new 675 a beauty i am told

**trumpy** · 10th January 2006, 19:08

Originally Posted by ratusratus

watch out for the new 675 a beauty i am told

Mmmmm......yuuuum...just read a test on the 675. Had to wipe the dribble off my chin afterwards.

**Pixie** · 10th January 2006, 19:08

Originally Posted by trumpy

No, not dubious night time activities........
Having been off road bikes for longer than some of you have lived, I got into dirt bikes about five years ago to compensate for the lack of two wheeled action. Now I am back on a road bike I am having a little trouble adapting to the different techniques required. More specifically I am having trouble getting out of the habit of weighting the outside peg instead of the inside one. (for you non-dirties, on a dirt bike you sit on the high side, tip the bike beneath you and weight the outside peg - i.e. the reverse of what the more experienced of you do naturally and without having to think about)
Any other ex dirt bike riders out there have the same problem or I have I just lost too many brain cells over the last 50 odd years and the remaining ones are just hanging on to what little they know?
I also find that I can push with my outside knee OR weight the inside peg but attempting to do a lateral movement with one leg and a vertical movement with the other has me flailing around like a demented octopus. (oh shite that's wrong, do it the other way, no that's not right, oh bugger the corners over anyway!)
Suggestions (other that brain surgery)?

Also, am I just being pathetic or does the liquid nature of some of our roads in the summer scare the bejeesus out of you as well?

No problem.I use both techniques on the road