Originally Posted by
vtec
Haha, well I'd be your man.
Worked as a bicycle/motorcycle courier in Auckland CBD which is hilly as, so you get some insane speeds on the bicycle.
On the road bicycle you hardly touch the rear brakes on dry days. I got good enough on the brakes that I could balance it on the front wheel going down steep CBD streets. Although I lost all my wheelying confidence when I flipped it and landed on my radio in my shirts back pocket and couldn't move for like 2 minutes.
I also had a solid steel framed Giant boulder mountain bike. Had really hard rubber tyres on it, but I could still get to the edges of the tyres. With good tyres, you could probably lean nearly as far as a proper race bike. But I was mostly concerned with their ability to not wear out and get punctures. I lowsided it near the end of last year going down the blocked off road on constitution hill, and grazed my knuckles to the bone and broke two ribs. Not much fun. Still couldn't afford to take any days off. Managed to keep the blood off the packages.
On the road bike I've lowsided it maybe 3 or 4 times. Although I've had moments where I had both tyres sliding and just managed to keep it up and avoid the parked cars I was about to slide into.
Best bike for learning bike control skills would be a mountainbike with rigid frame (no suspension) and quality grippy road tyres. Pretty sure you could get knee down on something like that.
I remember picking my leathers up from the repair lady at the st Kevins Arcade, had to wear them cause they wouldn't fit in my pack. The riding my bicycle full tilt turning right onto Nelson St where my work is and trying to get the knee down hahahahaha.
Bicycles rock. But you do stupid shit you will crash.
In the wet, don't expect to be able to slow down much at all. This job was lethal in the wet. Some cobbles around Auckland CBD became like Ice skating rinks for the bicycle tyres. I don't know how many times I fell and sprained my wrists in the wet. My right wrist will never get full strength again. It's actually loose in the joint a bit. Luckily my brother and his wife are physios.
But for becoming a motorbike racer nothing compares to track time on the bike you want to race. Bicycles do however sharpen and guide your reactions. You need to have lightning reactions and excellent peripheral vision to be a fast high earning bike courier in Auckland without ending up roadkill.
I'm doing it again in December... So damn excited. It's only fun if you are a maniac.
... I think it's possible to use a bicycle to simulate most of those phenomena to a scaled down extent... I'm thinking of doing the high side on a astroturf kind of surface if i can find something. Just couple of things...
If i want to spend time and get confident at 45/50 degree lean angles then i want to be sure the bicycle can do it eh. Have you guys managed to crank bicycles right over? I couldn't even find any clips of this on youtube.
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Not doing just ride . As you ride you get better 
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