I think there's a lot of great advice in this thread. For relatively new riders, I think it's hard to know where the edge is. I'm sort of in that same group, having always ridden easy enough to never actually run into a questionable traction situation. If you've never pushed it toward the limits, you don't really know what to expect when you get to the edge. Misti points out some tips that people can look for, as being inexperienced inherently means you don't necessarily recognize the signs. If you're afraid of the consequences of crossing the edge (damaging your bike and/or hurting yourself), it's easy to just stay as far as possible from the limits so as to avoid anything bad.
As with learning/perfecting anything, I think a lot of it comes down to practice and spending time exploring the limits. You can read up on how different signs indicate different things that your bike is doing, but I personally find a lot of this stuff to be hard to grasp without actually feeling it myself. Obviously you don't want to just go full WOT your first time on the track, but if you're not pushing yourself a little bit (like Chris's example of moving your brake marker up a bikelength at a time), you're not improving. It's simply a matter of pushing yourself a little bit, getting comfortable at that level, then doing it again. You take baby steps so you don't get in over your head, but you're still moving toward the goal.
Quote:
Originally Posted by csmith12
Suspension is 100% without a doubt the best hard part mod that can be done to a bike. Tires come damn close, but for the average rider it's suspension. Amazing riders can do amazing things on crappy suspension and great tires but for the budding speed freak, the whole bike feels sh*tty when the suspension sucks.
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It seems the OP's experiences described in this thread are on his Ducati rather than a Ninjette. My advice doesn't necessarily apply to other bikes, but these little Ninjas come with some pretty crazy spring rates. Using RaceTech's calculator, the
NewGen's fork springs are ideal for a <100lb rider while
the rear is good for a >200lb rider. The
PreGen's fork springs are ideal for <30lb and the rear (assuming the same suspension geometry as the NewGen) is good for ~140lb. Even if one of those happens to match your weight perfectly, the other end will be way off.
My EX500 is similar, with <30lb springs in the front and ~120lb in the rear. As a bigger guy, simply getting springs to match my weight (without any other fancy stuff like emulators/
Intiminators or an adjustable shock) made a night & day difference in how the bike felt. On the stock springs, the lack of support meant a rough ride and mushiness in corners. With the proper spring rates, the suspension moved in a controlled manner like it's supposed to. Bumps were absorbed and it didn't squish all the way down from the slightest bit of force in the corners.
For most people, one or more of the stock spring rates are drastically mismatched to their weight. This isn't a case of trying to upgrade the bike to avoid improving your skills, it's a matter of correcting a really bad stock setup to actually match the rider's size. With the stock springs, my bike simply didn't perform as intended with me on it. I think it would be hard for anyone to learn to ride well on a bike that doesn't behave at least somewhat close to what it's "supposed" to do. Compare it to riding with a flat tire or only firing on one cylinder. Sure, riding a bike in less-than-perfect condition can help you develop your skills (in the same way that a Ninjette in general teaches you not to rely on the sheer power of a bike to mask poor riding). But if it's so bad that the bike doesn't act "normal" then you may not actually be developing skills that apply to a "normal" bike. You don't have to spend thousands of dollars to get a top-of-the-line suspension setup customized to your exact dimensions, but spending ~$150 on new springs could make your experience much more enjoyable and productive.