Sunday 14 January - Where did you ride and what did you practise?

**Terminated** · 13th January 2007, 16:08

This weekend girlygirl and Steam are your selectors and they will be looking at good new rider training practice and welcome input from senior riders and mentors.

This weekend review will cover rides Saturday and Sunday reported here in this thread and selection will be made by Tuesday Evening.

Those selected will have their training comments copied to BuckBuck's Update - Newbie Training thread and they will in turn be the selectors for next Sunday's Where Did You Ride and What Did You Practise?.

I encourage all newbie riders to seek out a riding Mentor to review your riding skills and technique periodically throughout your graduated licence time. Go for mentor riding reviews and discuss the matters that have been identified.

When you go for your Sunday/weekend ride think about those things you want to focus on and review before you set off on your ride.

I invite any new riders to put forward their comments relating to specific training sessions they may have had recently, and not necessarily just this weekend's ride.

The key benefit that I am encouraging is: for new riders/all riders - to 'key in' their training comments to this thread and by doing so, this is a reinforcing personal training discipline.

For those posting to this thread, a degree of humour is welcomed as are pictures of your weekend ride, however please note that the emphasis is newbie training awareness.

You take the time to train on the motorcycle, you take the time to make an entry to this web site, and hence you have indirectly reviewed your own personal training discipline. Well Done.

Heads Up and Enjoy
Buck

**Steam** · 13th January 2007, 16:21

Okay people, I'm your selector for this week, I'm looking for some free-flowing play, tight work in the lineouts, and most of all some good scrum action.

**pritch** · 13th January 2007, 17:51

Originally Posted by BuckBuckNo1

[B]
When you go for your Sunday/weekend ride think about those things you want to focus on and review before you set off on your ride.

I'm a believer in the psychology of sport and I regularly do this still.

If going on a trip (or sometimes even a biggish Pie & Pint) I create some little "mantra" that I can repeat to myself along the way: "Touring not racing", "Smooth and safe", or a similar little phrase that adresses whatever is perceived as the problem of the moment. On reflection, I think both of those may have been composed to eliminate some marginal overtaking manouvers....

Because we (I anyway) can only concentrate on a few things at a time, I'm only currently working on two things: constantly checking that my elbows are bent (and wrists down), and weighting the outside foot when cornering.

There are two main reasons for the elbows thing, steering corrections from a horizontal forearm are more direct than from an arm at 45 degrees or whatever, and if that arm is also relaxed, unwanted steering inputs from the road surface are not transmitted through the rest of the bike.

Weighting the outside foot makes your body move with the bike as opposed to your moving the bike around underneath you, something that countersteering encourages. It also helps the bike remain stable if the road surface is less than brilliant as is so often the case in this country.

So as the weekend progresses, and in between showers, I'm hopefully beating a track up and down a winding section of SH3 (New Plymouth - Mokau) running in my new bike and cementing in a couple of new elements of riding style.

Ride safe.

**ZeroIndex** · 13th January 2007, 19:29

Went for a short ride with Sayam5 (who I still think should change his username to something more fitting, like... Dumpster <-- if that's available). Anyway, we went from Hamilton to the Narrows via the 39, and some other little backroads. Halfway there though, it started raining again. Went back to Hamilton, and went to the Hamilburgenring (otherwise known as the Bedpost carpark, the one across form the Cock 'n Bull pub). Raced around for a bit, learning how to lean my new RG150.. 30ish kgs makes a heck of a difference when cornering compared to the GPX (which is now gone, and hopefully will be forgotton). Slowly getting there, but it's a whole new ball game with close-ratio gearbox, powerband, and much skinnier tyres. Love the RG, and hopefully will be able to ride it how it should be ridden fairly soon

**_Gina_** · 14th January 2007, 12:50

Originally Posted by Steam

Okay people, I'm your selector for this week, I'm looking for some free-flowing play, tight work in the lineouts, and most of all some good scrum action.

Co-selector GG here.

If you want to win the girly vote, here's the down-low.

I like flowers, walks in the park, rides in the dark, number 68 and the colour majenta.

**crashe** · 14th January 2007, 13:16

Well what have I been practising.......

Ummmmmmmmm I have been very busy practising lying on the couch watching tv/videos/dvd's due to the crap weather.

But I am going to venture out this evening, practising going around some nice corners... some of them are nice sweeping corners.

Coming home in the dark later, on country roads I shall be practising taking it real easy.

**Chisanga** · 14th January 2007, 13:17

I went for a ride out to Kaiaua this morning/afternoon. Loved the scenery after Kawakawa Bay quite a few bikers on the road.
Practised entering corners smoothly and accelarating out. Just trying to be smooth especially on the twisties after Kawakawa.

Was a magic trip, latched onto the end of a four bike convoy coming back out of Kaiaua (Last two heavily loaded with reflector vests and one L-Plater) and then cruised back to Bucklands Beach again waving at many bikers on the way.

Confidence is building on the open road and at open road speeds still need to practise smoothly going into corners. Also easy to be suprised on some of the corners out to Kaiaua. All round my awareness is increasing and I am really enjoying the longer(ish) rides.

Need to keep building the km's and getting experience. Once University starts again in late Feb I guess I will be practising commuting on the roads from Bucklands Beach to town.

Hope everyone had as great a day as I did.

Stay Safe

**Kendog** · 14th January 2007, 13:27

Originally Posted by pritch008

Because we (I anyway) can only concentrate on a few things at a time, I'm only currently working on two things: constantly checking that my elbows are bent (and wrists down), and weighting the outside foot when cornering.

This is exactly what I am focusing on as well. Great description of why these two things are important and good tip with the "Mantra"

**Lissa** · 14th January 2007, 15:11

Went for a ride today with elle.. to the gladdy.. love that place! Just a short ride today, not much to practice.

1. Practiced parking and not hitting elles bike when doing so. Done
2. Then practiced how to look inconspicuous when alot of Harley riders turn up. Done
3. Practiced not to stall my bike when taking off so I dont look like a complete noob infront of them. Done
4. Practiced taking complements for my cool looking Ginny, even though I think he was taking the piss. Done

Will seriously have a good practice session next sunday!

**Grub** · 14th January 2007, 16:01

So I had a day at Manfield and really really enjoyed it of course. It's not a race day, it's a day to learn to ride. Really learn to really ride. This was the day to learn corners, to learn about entry speads and the different efect lines have into and out of corners.

For a while, I though nothing was happening until the third session when I realised I was having to brake *really hard* at my braking point. Clearly I was exiting the corners at a much higher speed and therefore terminal speed down the straights were higher.

And the Basic Skill learned? Relax your elbows. I started the day stiff elbowed and sometimes finding myself fighting the bike. It knew what to do, I didn't. The bike naturally wants to get around the corner and after couter-steering to drop it into the corner, the trick is to relax your inside elbow and allow the bike to steer itself around. It's trying to do it anyway, why fight it

This is not just a skill for the track, coming home everything was just so much smoother and in control. I never feel that I have nothing to learn and love it when a plan comes together.

Brett

**Hitcher** · 14th January 2007, 16:16

Originally Posted by girlygirl

number 68

Isn't that the "You go down and I'll owe you one" position?

Yesterday was a Fush brunch, Castlepoint, Riversdale kind of day. Vented jackets all round and it was still ferkin hot everywhere except on the coast. The heat that came off the engine of a big IL4 sauteed my privates nicely.

Some more high-speed braking practice -- taking care to get the loading right fore and aft so the nose doesn't dive and the rear wheel lock up.

Today was a comparatively chilly Raumati brunch, Otaki, Pauatahanui, Haywards, home kind of day. Practicing XP@'s cornering technique, which appears to work nicely. Thanks for that tip, James!

**Matt** · 14th January 2007, 19:25

Just had chance to pop out for an hour yesterday afternoon, went up the 'takas for the first time (quite a change from my usual commute into/out of Wgtn, it's only the second time I've been out on a weekend!) - practised being smooth on throttle and looking through the corners, without worrying that I never got near 100k's!

Had a can of coke at the cafe at the top, said hello to a couple of bikers (although most were doing a good impression of ignoring the geeky noob!) and set off back home again - harder work on the way down, practiced braking early and settling the bike around corners - then got caught up in traffic and watched a couple of bikes fly past me - nearly decided to follow, but then decided I'd rather get home in one piece than try and keep up with the ZX14 biker dude!

Matt

**Blondini** · 14th January 2007, 20:26

Well the weather cleared up so I went up to visit a mate on waikaukau valley road.I headed up the back way through old north road.On my return home I headed through kumeu and headed home taupaki ways,but my bike was not ready to return home so instead of turning into waitakere road we went along nelson road and turned back on to taupaki road back to the main highway and headed back to kumeu and headed towards riverhead road then back riverhead road to main highway and back down don buck rd but alas I could still not bring myself to go home...so I gapped it up red hills road to taupaki road and back onto nixon rd and back to kumeu and did a u turn by the showgrounds and finally headed back waitakere road along swanson and home again.I was practising counter steering when the roads where clear and putting my weight on the pegs.AND then I just could not help myself,I found a fellow kb member and we headed from swanson up the back ways to kumeu and then out to muriwai and then back to the main highway and across to waikaukau valley to old north rd and rode up to kaukapakapa pub and then headed back home old north road.I have been practising cornering and also using my rear brakes also as I tend to favour the front brakes.AHHHH obsessed???

I love it.Thanks to the patience of fellow kb member and for making me aware to watch my helmet line when cornering and to keep my head on my side of the road

**elle-f** · 14th January 2007, 20:35

Today I rode out to the Gladdy to meet Lissa and i practised looking through corners whilst dropping my shoulder when going through. That might be wrong but it works for me on my big clunker......

I too, practised looking inconspicuous when the Harley Guys turned up and i was about to tell them that wearing jeans WITHOUT kevlar just isnt cool but they were kind of isolated from us! We all managed to talk and smile when we saw a HP glide on past - and i think one was even chatting Lissa up as i zoomed off.....remembering NOT to stall my bike in front of them all!

On the way home I practised taking corners smoothly and staying the same speed right the way through which was great because it makes things more......smoother!

I also practised eating chips and having a drink with a bikey buddy WHICH i might add - i passed with distinction!

That was my Sunday avo ride - just a small one as i was busy fishing all morning! Have a wonderful week all and remember, be safe out there

Elle