Mastering Corners

Understanding Visual Cues

by R. Bruce Thomas

So, there I am watching a MotoGP race recently when one of the riders, and these are the top racers in the world remember, misses a corner. He runs straight off into the gravel but manages to stay upright before maneuvering back to the track. One of the commentators mentions that the rider may have missed his braking marker or that a tailwind could have pushed his speed too far over 300 kph and the rider wasn't ready for the effort to drop from 300+ to under 100 for the corner.

And the question that formed in my mind was that these riders, doing that kind of speed, have braking markers? I've never been on a race track on my motorcycle so I'm not familiar with whatever sort of visual cues there might be when approaching a corner. Neither do I usually ride the same circuit more than 50 times over a weekend to get used to the surface or the layout. But I'm also not scrubbing off over 200 kph to make a turn.

Then it hit me that as a road rider I too have visual cues and indicators to help me navigate turns, whether it is an unfamiliar road or one of my favorites. We just have to pay attention and make sure we don't miss any.

While this sign indicates "Fun Ahead!" the underlying message is "Wake up and BE IN CONTROL"

One of the first cues we have is also one just about every rider yearns to find - the Curves Ahead sign which is also usually accompanied by a lower speed limit sign. These are definite visual cues that carry the subliminal message to "WAKE UP!!!" You do not want to be missing any corners, as curvy roads are regularly found alongside curvy rivers or going around hills and other objects not meant to be hit at speed.

What the signs can't tells us is the makeup of the corners, whether they are blind, tight, decreasing radius, off-camber, bumpy, if gravel has been dragged onto the surface by someone pulling a trailer, or if there is an obstruction on the road around the bend. Oftentimes a lower speed limit is an indicator of extra care and attention being required.

Positioning yourself on the outside of the lane (white line for left turns and yellow line for right turns) when approaching a corner gives you the best chance to see further around the corner. Just as in any part of your riding, look as far ahead as you can. Just make sure you are still aware of any oncoming traffic that may be cutting a corner short when you are near the center of the road.

Adjust your speed before you get into the corner so you aren't having to make radical adjustments in the middle of a corner. Be smooth on the controls. Hitting the brake if you've entered the turn too fast can be a real problem for your suspension and cause problems keeping your line. Also realize that leaning into a corner puts your bike on a smaller radius of the tire so you will naturally lose speed unless you keep on the throttle. Be aware of this but don't be too aggressive on the gas.

Turn your head and don't just move your eyes. Moving your head forces you to look where you want to go. This is important as only the central two to three degrees of your field of view is actually clearly in focus. The remainder is peripheral vision that doesn't help with accurate control of your bike.

Pay attention to the far outside edge of the road as you get into the corner. If the far edge is getting closer to you it is an indicator that the curve is tightening up. If the far edge is moving away from you then you should recognize that the corner is opening and the road is getting straighter.

Don't ride faster than you can see.

And I feel I've barely scratched the surface of cornering techniques but no more words are coming.

Ride responsibly, and often.