Quote:
Originally Posted by Firehorse
Yup, you read that right. Sometimes all I needed to turn was to 'push' on the peg or tank. I ignored the explanation because I found it so confusing in the books, I didn't want to have to think every time I turned the bike. Not saying it doesn't work (it obviously does) but I am not an instinctive rider at all and I dream about twisties and a newbie track so I wanted this one thing to be learned by feel.
And it worked.  |
I remember this very clearly from my first time on a bike and running through the MSF course as well. At parking lot speeds, the countersteering lessons seemed superfluous. I intellectually captured what they were trying to teach, but I found the bikes to be easy to turn almost by feel, just as you describe. I'm sure I was countersteering a small bit, but certainly not forcefully, and things just worked as I'd expect on a bicycle that we've ridden all of our lives.
But....
Then you take the motorcycle from < 20 mph, up to 50+ mph for the first time, and you try to turn the bike even gently where you want to go, and suddenly it doesn't respond nearly as easily as it did on the range. And you push the left bar, and bing! The light goes on upstairs and the bike turns left. Controlling a motorcycle at speed requires countersteering, it's not an option. People are either doing it consciously or unconsciously, but without it a bike can't make even the most gentle turns while at speed. All of the other steering inputs one can make to a motorcycle (weighting pegs, body positioning, brakes, throttle, etc.) can all make noticeable differences, but none of them will ever provide enough steering input to make up for a rider who isn't actively countersteering.
Anyway - no need to further debate this or even worry about this terribly until you need to, as I'm confident that once you get up to speed, it will kick in with you just like it does with the rest of us.