how to know when your at the limit?

[Razza]

hey guys,

ive being riding for almost 6 months now and i think my cornering is improving. i can get enough angle to be scraping my toe sliders easy enough but im not confident enough to lean it over any further because i dont know how close to the limit i am! is there an easy way to tell? can i basically keep leaning until the pegs are nearly scraping or am i pretty much going as hard as i can without risking a lowside?
bike im riding is a 2008 ninja in case that helps

cheers,
Daz

[MrWasabi]

depends on the bike and the tyre profile its running. But if you are scraping your toes, tuck them in by putting them on the pegs. Get your ass off the seat and stick the knee out. :Kuda:
Generally the higher the bike is the more you can lean it.
On my zzr if i didnt get my ass off the seat i would scrape my toes then my side stand if i pushed further i knew that was my bikes limit

[robracer]

Daz if you have any chicken strips left on the rear tyre then keep leaning once you have warmed up the tyres (really warm) then go for it, you should be able to bring the front of your boots up on the edge of the pegs for more clearance & if the pegs scrape (take off the hero knobs) then you are getting close to the limit. I am guessing you ride with your heel wedged against the peg & if so most punters would be able to scrape toe sliders because your toes stick out in this position.
Have fun with your cornering & at the end of the day don't go past your comfort zone

[hoffy]

mate, its all about corner speed, not so much lean angle. lean angle is a result of corner speed.

best way to see where you are is to go on a ride with a group and get someone to hold a steady pace out in front, then get feedback from them to see where you are atm.

[Razza]

i kind of have the middle of my foot on the peg with my toes pushed up against the gear lever, i have being trying to slide my foot up further so i have more clearance but then i get paranoid that i mite be leaning over too far because i dont have anything to gauge it by ie my toes clipping the bitumen. lol
oh and i am getting off the seat and sticking the leg out although maybe not as much as i could as i have no knee pads so prob best not to get too close to the road

if i were to scrape pegs/sidestand is it going to upset the bike enough to cause problems? lol i love the process of finding out where the limits are on the bike but i scare the crap out of myself sometimes....maybe thats what i like about it! haha

umm...oh yeah i dont think i have chicken strips? both tyres look like they have pretty even wear to the edges...its a little more shiny on the edge but there isnt a ridge or anything...

btw im riding a 250

[Tack]

You know your at the limit when..................

a.) You pass Rossi on the outside of the last corner leading to the main straight to receive the chequered flag and win the Australian Motorcycle Grandprix.

b.) You pass anyone in a corner whilst riding a bike fitted with Chinese made tyres.

c.) You pass a Harley on the down hill run of the spur on your push bike.

d.) Your on a honda and your trying to pass a kwaka.

[Razza]

and im keen as for a group ride hoffy, just gotta wait until we have some better weather

[Nelso]

If you still have the hero knobs on your pegs just tuck your feet up on your pegs and keep leaning till the pegs scrape. They should just touch lightly if you are cautious about how far you lean and will only give you a bit of a fright but shouldn't unsettle the bike too much. Once they start touching get the spanner out and take them off otherwise you might start grinding them into the ground harder and harder until they do dig in and your nice new blue Z1000 is sliding down the track and.......... Where was I? Oh yeah, you will probably find the bike is capable of leaning much further than you think it can.

[Razza]

ok sweet, so is it still possible to lowside before you even make it to the point where you scrape the pegs or can you pretty much be confident that you still have a small buffer available to you?

i think im probably being slightly cautious about it and the bike will as you say lean further than i think but hey its prob better than putting too much faith into the bike and dropping it
cheers for the replies

[timmyrocks]

take a photo of your rear tyre and post it up
dont worry about scraping pegs, scrape ya knee

[hoffy]

low siding is not all really a result of lean angle.

improper bike balance, improper braking and incorrect timing and use of throttle application and road conditions play a bigger part in the low-side.

[MrWasabi]

if i were to scrape pegs/sidestand is it going to upset the bike enough to cause problems?

First time i did it was coming out of corner 12 in OP. absolutely shit myself as i wasnt expecting it, but as for upsetting the bike, i didnt notice much apart from my paranoid off the throttle and standing the bike up, which was a stupid idea anyway

umm...oh yeah i dont think i have chicken strips? both tyres look like they have pretty even wear to the edges...its a little more shiny on the edge but there isnt a ridge or anything...

btw im riding a 250

mate, those shiny edges are your chicken strips, as Rob said, warm up the tyre and keep leaning till they start dissapearing

[robracer]

You forgot one Hoffy....... OIL on the road

[hoffy]

You forgot one Hoffy....... OIL on the road

no i covered that with road conditions !

[Razza]

chicken strips???