Best technique for taking corners fast on the spyder?

[Fire911]

I like to ride really fast and am still getting use too the spyder RS-S. What is the best technique for taking corners fast on the spyder? Body position, corner path etc....:yes:

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

FAST RIDING

There are way better riders than me out here....but this works for me.....grip the body ( of the spyder with you're knee's ) and keep you're upper body as low as is comfortable...the lower the center of gravity the better....I try to start my turns early and exit smooth....yes smooth is very good.....and practice practice practice......Good Luck.....and have FUN.....Mike....:thumbup:

 

[Camdenlake]

So far i have used the same technique as i do on ATV's. I lean forward and inside the turn even sliding right off the seat to keep the weight forward and inside. I really like that part of ryding the spyder. No expert either but someday.... oh someday..... .



josh

 

[docdoru]

Sway bar + Elka's. :doorag:

 

[Camdenlake]

Sway bar + Elka's. :doorag:

:roflblack:
:roflblack::roflblack: :roflblack::roflblack:Well done sir.

 

[bone crusher]

You can put a racer on a stock machine and a novice and a racing machine and you tell me who will win !

As parts will help , it's all in the rider !

True and false with that idea. If you gave Tiger Woods (at his best) crappy clubs, but ones that were a soft graphite, he would not win...he'd still need a stiff shaft club.

With the Spyder, the shocks make a big difference. I was going to get the sway bar, but some here told me the change wasn't as great as many thought it'd be. Plus, the company that made them went under for whatever reason. I did upgrade to the RT shocks on my RS and I can attest to the fact that they make a HUGE difference in the twisties.

The RS shocks (unless you have the Fox), are very soft and when hitting corners, you'll 'roll' out of them...swaying back and forth. Stiffer shocks allow you to hold the corner longer and recovery faster when you come out of it.

Most everyone has to hit the twisties in the same fashion or they'll be off their bike or going very slow. There really aren't too many ways to swing it when you're talking about centripetal (pulls you in) and centrifugal (pulls you out) forces...lean in and enjoy the ride!

 

[flamingobabe]

the shortest point through the turn .. get your azz and body on the side of the machine -- lean with the turn , jump from one side to the other in the twisties... pushing and pulling with your hands and feet really doesnt do much but old habits are hard to break.

Hey Dwanton...I would pretty much agree with you...enter the curve and make a straight line thru the curve....I just love leaning out over the bike...too much fun!!!!

 

[Paula(Butch2025)]

I like to ride really fast and am still getting use too the spyder RS-S. What is the best technique for taking corners fast on the spyder? Body position, corner path etc....:yes:

This is the advice I got at Spyderfest from SethO, Forest, & Scottie: chin over your knuckle. Boy does that make a difference!!! I can't believe how much better I can corner doing that11
--Paula

 

[bluestratos]

Since I got the Elka's I have been pushing harder in the corners. Shortest path, I drop a bit to the inside of the curve with my upper body as if I was riding a snow mobile and keep as low a possible. I lift a wheel a bit and at that point thats all she can do before the back wheel skips a bit and the Nanny takes over. It is an awsome feeling but I am too old to be doing this so I have knocked it off... a bit... lol.

By the way I have the RT, I know I could do better with a sportier version.

 

[smurfette]

I was forced onto an offramp at 65 mph, and by instinct I crouched low to the bike, holding it with my knees, and leaned into the turn. Smurfette held the turn and the road beautifully. Her big brother, the Tri-Glide would have been in trouble with its straight axle. The turn was so smooth, Nanny didn't even wake up!

 

[Yazz]

All the above is true! But, there's an old saying around here about 'ryde like a monkey.' Lots of body english.

Gotta get your nose sticking over the hand of which way the curve is going... hunker down and shift your weight to the inside of the of the curve... get that seat position with one cheek hanging off the seat heading into the curve... feel the Spyder going into the curve... hang on and throttle up... sweet bliss....

And yeah, there are others who do not move at all and confound the people behind them by out-cornering us all!:gaah:

 

[ABQ_Spyderman]

I've played with a lot of different techniques, and here's what works best for me. I'm 6' tall, about 200lbs, so I don't know how much that plays into it. But I set my front shocks to 5, and that's a good first step. But mainly, when I'm about to hit a big corner, I lean forward toward the inside of the turn and shift my weight so that my inside knee is pinned to the inside part of the bike. I can darn near take my left hand off the handgrip when turning right when I do this. Leaning helps, sure--but getting that weight shifted to the inside...getting your right butt-cheek over the edge of the seat on the inside of the turn--it's just incredibly stable. Also make sure you maintain speed and accelerate out of the turn.
Hope that helps. It's made a world of difference for me.

Best,
--ABQ

 

[ABQ_Spyderman]

get that seat position with one cheek hanging off the seat heading into the curve...

Hey Yazz--no fair getting a butt-cheek reference in there 2 minutes before me! Well played. :cheers:

 

[daveinva]

True and false with that idea. If you gave Tiger Woods (at his best) crappy clubs, but ones that were a soft graphite, he would not win...he'd still need a stiff shaft club.

Off topic, I believe Tiger's problems began with his stiff shaft club, no?

:joke:

Back to our regularly scheduled programming...

 

[SethO]

i am learning this also -- 900 miles in the saddle and getting better.

i have figured out just like on a bike -- the shortest point through the turn .. get your azz and body on the side of the machine -- lean with the turn , jump from one side to the other in the twisties... pushing and pulling with your hands and feet really doesnt do much but old habits are hard to break.

of coarse , this is my opinion .. you could always just sit on the machine and enjoy the weather.

You can put a racer on a stock machine and a novice and a racing machine and you tell me who will win !

As parts will help , it's all in the rider !

you have 900 miles on your bike and you are giving advice like this to doc or has over 150,000 miles on a spyder? Really, maybe its just you have not seen in your 131 posts who the people on here that ride hard and don't (which is your personal choice, I am not going to ask you to keep up with me and I am not going to sit behind you) but talking **** to doc about riding hard is just about as silly as saying a regular trike is just as sable as a spyder.

Sway bar + Elka's. :doorag:

Truth, plain and simple, Jon from elka is sending me a set of fronts to replace my penskes

A spyder is more like a 4 wheeler that will not flip( I have seen one flip so bare with me on the "thats not true" crap) because of this cornering at 100mph is like doing open heart surgery with a chainsaw, you have to make it go into the corners, along with playing the Nanny so that it does not engage. Both of these things along with my requirement of a handbrake and balance of a toddler make it more physical of a ride.
I have found that I get better exit speed if I go for a wider turn entry, get it pointed in the right direction without being on the gas and then giving it as much gas as I can without having to turn into the corner so hard the nanny screws you.

Doc, Forest,jim from IA, Dan from MI, Len and Tom from cowtown are fast as they come on the spyder.

I didn't just think this up, read about on a forum or have a guy in the bar tell me its the best way to go. I actually did it, with a ton of risk to what is left of my body, you see most people really care about living or dying so when you don't several doors actually open up to you for testing things.

 

[dancogan]

If I wanted to learn how to corner fast (and safely) I doubt I would take the advice of an internet forum as my guiding light. Try some hands-on instruction, such as an experienced rider course or Lee Parks' Total Control course. Try reading some books by recognized experts on the topic, which might include David Hough (Proficient Motorcycling and Street Strategies), Lee Parks (Total Control), or Keith Code (Twist of the Wrist) to name a few. There is much more to going around a corner fast than body position - it includes when and how to brake, when to deccelerate and when to accelerate and how to correct for errors mid-corner, among other skills.

A day at a track under the watchful eye of multiple instructors was one of my best learning experiences. It not only taught me how to go fast, how to corner and brake, but it also took care of that urge to go 100+mph on the street, after I got to feel what 115+mph felt like on a track.

Unless you know someone really well, have ridden with them and feel their riding style fits your needs, I would avoid the advice of even the people on this forum.

 

[Mo Lee]

The fastest way through any corner is in as straight a line as possible, however I never speed!

 

[docdoru]

WOW ! :thumbup:

Why would your opinion matter and not mine ?

And talking sh** ? REALLY ? :banghead:

Don't worry; your opinion does matter now as in four years from now. :doorag:

 

[Bob Denman]

The fastest way thropugh a corner?? Try realizing that you were supposed to be on your way home a half-hour ago... :shocked: :roflblack:
But on the whole rider vs. equipment debate that's brewing; the rider will always get more out of his stuff than the stuff will get out of the rider..:thumbup:

 

[daveinva]

Well, there's only one way to settle this, gentlemen: DANCE OFF!

Oh, and this is signature-worthy, Seth:

cornering at 100mph is like doing open heart surgery with a chainsaw

In a hailstorm.

After a few drinks.

With a drill instructor yelling in your ear.



I ride like a madman, but I've never taken a corner at 100mph. I think the fastest I've taken a sleepy highway *curve* is ~95, but any angle I'd define as a proper "corner," maybe 60, 65 tops. And I've got to go full-on hang-off the inside, drunken-monkey style to do that.

I will vote for technology being more important than technique WRT the Spyder. A better anti-swaybar and shocks make a SERIOUS difference in cornering performance. I've pretty much always ridden with the swaybar (the first two weeks and, ummmm, 900 miles without it don't count ), but I just got upgraded (Fox) shocks after a solid year of riding experience and they immediately added 10++ mph to my cornering abilities. Could I have wrung that performance out via more "practice"? Perhaps, in time. Or I could just, you know, *buy* my way to a better ride.

I've got no problems standing on the shoulders of (mechanical) giants. I ain't riding a skateboard here. If Mother Technology wants to improve my ride, all hail Mama Tech! :bowdown: