advice on how to ride through different road conditions. | GTAMotorcycle.com

advice on how to ride through different road conditions.

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noob_in_mid_age

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Back in November I was riding and came upon a segment of road that was being resurfaced. They had scratched the road to lay new asphalt, I slowed and went on it. Needless to say, the rear end was sliding everywhere, I felt several times like I was going to go down.

Now, can you guys give me some insight as to what is the best way to handle this type of road surface, especially seeing that spring time is construction time. Thanks
 
Are you sure the rear end was sliding? It only felt like it was. Steady throttle, easy grip on bars, no sudden inputs, go with the flow. There is nothing you can correct.
 
Was not skidding - go find some dirt roads and practice including using the back brake.

The bike will roll through on those rough resurfacing but feels very unstable and there have been a fewI've gotten pretty tense especially on the QEW when it was both rough and a chicane - the smaller tires on the Burgman like to track the ruts and the even small ones on the Silverwing was worse.

The bike will find a way through if you don't panic but practice on different surfaces is good.

Grate bridges are good practice - they feel very uncertain as the bike squirms which is what is going on. Slow down with the throttle and stay relaxed on the bars - hard to do I know when it feels so unstable.
Even after 40 years riding it can feel scary especially at speed with cars around.
I was avoiding the QEW last year just to get away from the damn resurfacing.

Get up on some of the dirt roads up and down the escarpment and get some practice for the time that instead of rough pavement it's muddy slippy gravel that's in the construction zone. Now that is really skittish so some practice under controlled conditions is a good idea.
But you're not alone in not liking those resurfacing ruts.

•••

What are you riding ? As that helps - different bikes handle very differently depending on where your weight is positioned and how upright your riding position is.
 
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just follow the bike, if it wants to go a bit to the left or right and its safe then just follow. stay relaxed
 
zeniceguy said:
just follow the bike, if it wants to go a bit to the left or right and its safe then just follow. stay relaxed
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Yep, it's sort of like riding a dirt bike in deep sand. The bike will "wander" a bit, just go with it, you can still make it do where you want it to go fairly easy.

I increase the weight on the pegs (instead of all my weight on my arse and feet just resting on the pegs), allows you to use your legs to take some of the wiggle out. Don't lock your arms, stay relaxed. Pretty simple once you get used to it!

As suggested, go play on some dirt roads, or go get some real dirt experience. I've started drifting my FZ6 through the dirt lanes in the pits at our tracks, and it's my dirt experience that allows me the skill to do it, not the 4 years I've spent on the street.

Dirt riding will prep you in so many ways for the street, especially emergency situations.
 
+1 :D

I was suprised how dirt skills came back.

a) when I got into some streambed on the Burgman thanks to buddies GPS

b) getting off road on the KLR in Australia.

Was nervous as hell initially after 30 year layoff from a trials bike but surprising it came back pretty well tho still not comfortable at speed.

But even a road bike should be taken on the dirt to get some skills and know how it handles.
Not sure as a noob when that point should come. Just go easy and stay out of really soft stuff. Maybe go with another rider.

Stay out of wet dirt or deep sand or gravel. The latter are difficult on a road bike for anyone.
Wet dirt is okay but wet clay a nightmare and sometimes it's hard to tell.

This is a good one that is just off the main road at the Forks

ScreenShot2012-10-21atOct212012102220PM.jpg


but even there go easy - it's got a slippy under surface if wet. But pavement at both ends and pretty. Ride a road like that for a half hour once a week and your skills will build and you'll relax.
 
Thanks guys for all the input. i ride a ninja 250 and that occurred on my 5th time out (i'm a real noob at this) on the bike. Good advise as always from the members on this site.

Thanks again
 
Light on the bars. Smooth inputs through the controls.

No heavy braking or hard rolling on or off the throttle.

Mainly those grooved pavement things just make the bike feel odd as it tries to follow the grooves.
 
Ugur Dinch said:
It does so even more if you have squarish tires. New, round tires are much more smoother and comfortable to ride on.
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I usually don't realize how squarish my tires are until I get fresh ones put on :p
 
ain't that the truth. Especially the Metzlers which have a rather steep profile when new.

OP - your seating on the Ninja 250 ( great bike btw ) puts your weight on the front so feels like guiding a uni-cycle through train tracks. Your front tire is narrow as well and the bike doesn't weigh much. Try and sit up and get weight on the pegs so a bit less on the front. Might help but you do want to be comfortable and guide the bike.
Dirt road practice should help and grip the tank with your knees so you are nicely one with the bike. Relaxed in control and well seated is the goal...how to do that in practice not so easy to describe but no white knuckles gripping the bars.
Good luck.
 
MacDoc said:
ScreenShot2012-10-21atOct212012102220PM.jpg


but even there go easy - it's got a slippy under surface if wet. But pavement at both ends and pretty. Ride a road like that for a half hour once a week and your skills will build and you'll relax.
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Where's this road? This is the type of 'off roading' I'm interested in with my bike.
 
mimico_polak said:
Where's this road? This is the type of 'off roading' I'm interested in with my bike.
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Go out to Guelph area, get on one of the rural highways, turn off it at a random road. In my experience 95% of the time you'll end up on some sketchy gravel road leading to nowhere that is full of pot holes and I can barely go the speed limit without scaring myself, lol.
 
You get the same action, but even more pronounced, on open steel web bridges. Just relax. The bike wants to stay up, all by itself. So long as you don't screw with it, it will get through most things just fine.

You may also want to get used to the feel of the rear wheel sliding a bit, as noted by others above. The first time your rear slides due to poor traction or too much throttle it can surprise you. Overreacting to that can put you down quickly.
 
zeniceguy said:
just follow the bike, if it wants to go a bit to the left or right and its safe then just follow. stay relaxed
Click to expand...

+1. Squeeze your knees to grip bike, that helps me to relax grip on handle bars.

Hopefully you see the road condition ahead of time and get to a speed you are comfortable with. Maintain constant speed and throttle while in the zone, and no sudden/jerky movements. Let the bike and its technology do the rest.
 
thanks again for all the advise. My tires needed changing (was told by the seller and during safety). I have since purchased a new set and will install before I begin riding this yr.
 
You go where you look ... so look where you want to go.

In this case, it means looking WELL ahead of you, far down the road.

Don't rigidly try to force the handlebars. Apply force to steer as needed but let the handlebars move, even if it means moving against the force that you are applying.
 
Where I live they were doing resurfacing on one of the main double lane highways last year. When I hit that resurfaced area to me felt like the bike was sliding all over the place. I too have a Ninja 250. I know the back end WAS NOT sliding, it just felt like it. The whole bike was shifting all over the lane but no slippage. Being new and not used to that feeling I just relaxed, let the bike slow down on its own and guided the bike the best I could until I was back onto "solid ground".

That floating feeling was very unsettling for sure, just one of those things we as new riders have to get used to riding on. I try to avoid areas under construction now just for this reason but you can't always avoid it. Lots of good advice on what to do in this thread.
 
You go where you look ... so look where you want to go.

In this case, it means looking WELL ahead of you, far down the road.

Don't rigidly try to force the handlebars. Apply force to steer as needed but let the handlebars move, even if it means moving against the force that you are applying.
Click to expand...

yup excellent advice.
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