Biking Techniques (Part 9)

Be Aware of Your Body

No matter what you weigh, you're a significant part of the weight of your bike/rider unit. Also, particularly with high-spirited sportbikes, it's easy to make inadvertent control inputs that can upset the bike. So be aware at all times of what your body is doing, what position you're in, where you have your weight, and so on.

Loose arms

Motorcycles steer themselves very well. All the rider needs to do is make it lean, roll on, and it'll happily complete the turn, unwinding the corner by itself. An ideal situation would be to ride around the track with no steering input at all, as anytime you steer you scrub off speed.
Motorcycles are also self-correcting systems. If some sort of wobble or glitch happens, the bike will tend to sort itself out. It might be unpleasant while it does it, but it generally will recover.

Your bike can't do any of that unless you, the rider, let it. To do that you must keep a light touch on the bars -- hard enough to steer, but light enough to let the bike even itself out. So your arms should be loose at all times. Try not to put any weight on your arms, even when braking. You should be able to flap your elbows -- do the chicken dance -- at every point on the track.

Body position

You need to be aware of how you carry your weight on the bike. You need to be able to move that weight around. That is best done on most bikes (forward control cruisers excepted) by using the ball of your foot on the peg. Keep your feet back and in, move them forward to brake or shift, then right back with the ball of the foot on the peg.
I see a lot of riders with pigeon feet, splayed out on the bike. All that does is makes it hard to shift your weight around, and gives you a fright when your boot touches down. Keep your feet in.

Keep your weight balanced with the wind pressure, your back, your legs, your butt. Remember to distribute your weight evenly so you don't tire out one set of muscles. Leave your arms free and loose.

Lean In

To balance the bike in the turn, and to increase your ground clearance, you need to lean into the corner. In this context I don't mean lean the bike in, I mean lean yourself relative to the bike. As you turn in --before, ideally -- move your inside shoulder forward and in, following with your upper body. That not only moves your weight where you need it, but it puts your arms in a better position to steer into the turn. Keep your body leaning in until the bike straightens up coming out of the turn, and then it's an easy movement from the lean in to a full tuck.
Go back to the two pictures of riders leaning in and out. Notice how the riders in the second picture are leading with their inside shoulder, and how much more comfortable and relaxed they look.

Hanging off

You don't need to hang off unless you're dragging bike parts consistently. Hanging off moves you around on the bike, changes your physical position and view, and alters the way the bike responds -- exactly what we don't want when we're concentrating on line and smoothness.
So I don't want anyone hanging off -- not at first, anyway. If you're dragging parts, you've reached the maximum speed you can do on that line -- and there are things you can do to reduce the need for clearance in a turn by changing your line, without hanging off. If you're consistently dragging, talk to me and we'll work on it -- which may include hanging off if you want.

Breathe

Or, to be more accurate, pay attention to how you breathe. Your breathing should be healthy deep breaths, no gulping of air, no short sharp breathing. The Buddhist concept of mindfulness begins with being aware of your breathing. The ideal is to keep the awareness of your breath while you are putting your focus onto the track and your ride.
The starting point is to be aware of your breathing and how it affects your riding technique. Are you breathing quickly, from fear or adrenaline? If so, the rest of your body is probably also tensing into a fight-or-flight reaction. This is the time to take a couple of healthy breaths and relax. Check yourself as you hit each straightaway, and try to have relaxed breathing as you enter the curves; it should help you to remain relaxed and responsive as you ride.

Head Position

Keep your head vertical as much as you can. No matter how much the bike or your body is leaning, keep your eyes level with the horizon. This helps you keep your view of the track consistent, without your picture constantly swinging from one angle to another. If your sight is consistent, you'll find it easier to be aware of where you are, and keep a good flow of vision without being distracted by changing viewpoints. It'll also help you judge lean angles more consistently.
Notice how in this picture (taken at TrackDoD 1 at Oak Tree) the rider's eyes are level, looking through the turn. The rider is hanging off, leaning hard, but his attention is focussed exactly where it needs to be. Keeping your head level helps you do that.

Photo by Mike Ragsdale

Be Smooth Yourself

The bike can't be smooth unless you are. When you lean in, when you sit up or crouch down, don't jerk around on the bike. Take the time to move smoothly so you don't upset the bike. That means leaning in before you brake and downshift for a corner -- you need to avoid bouncing the bike around with your body.

From TrackDoD Novice Group Orientation