[RideApart] - Ken Hill Coaching: Top 5 Reasons Why We Crash and How to Overcome Them

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Ken Hill Coaching: Top 5 Reasons Why We Crash and How to Overcome Them

For most of us who ride, having a "get-off" at some point is all but an eventuality. So what can we do to mitigate the risks? *The causes of crashes can be distilled down into two basic categories: ones that are caused by our own actions on the bike and ones that are caused by something or someone else. The first is easier to control and second is less so. *But with practice, technique, and some training we can learn how to stack the odds in our favor. Honing these skills and technique on the relative safety of a race track is a great way to make you a better rider on the road.

Ken Hill – The Pro Moto Coach

Ken Hill is a professional motorcycle coach whose main mission is to help people be better, safer riders. In his own words, Ken states: “I don’t train ‘racers or ‘street riders,’ I simply teach people how to be better motorcycle riders.”

Ken has been plenty of experience: He has raced professionally for the AMA and currently works with top professional motorcycles racers, including MotoAmerica racers such as JD Beach and the M4 Suzuki race team.

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Ken Hill with MotoAmerica racer Josh Herrin. Photo by Joe Salas, 4theRiders.com.Ken has also instructed for great motorcycle riding programs such as Freddie Spencer Riding School and the Yamaha Champions Riding School. Currently, Ken works with the Rickdiculous Racing and the Rick Development Camp.

Ken primarily teaches people how to ride motorcycles at a track, which in my opinion is the best way to be a better rider: There’s more room to ride, so that means there’s literally more room for error. Therefore, it’s safer to try new things than on the streets.

I’ve personally worked with Ken in the past, and he’s helped my riding immensely.*I often wished there were times when I could hear him giving his reassuring, logical advice right before I went out to my races. Fortunately, I no longer have to wish for that.

Ken recently started doing podcasts that comprise of frequently asked questions he receives from riders. So far, he’s covered topics such as when and how to apply the brakes, or how to obtain better body positioning.


Photo courtesy of Ken Hill's Facebook page.Ken's latest podcast, How to Get Over a Crash, really intrigued me because I’ve crashed a handful of times, so I know what it’s like to go down on numerous occasions. This podcast contains good stuff, especially since he first covers whymotorcyclists crash before he gets into the “how to get over it”part.

I mean, really: Who the hell wants to crash? It hurts you, the bike, and your pocketbook. So, I feel it’s important to discuss the main reasons why you or I crash, as well as the ways to learn from the mistakes that caused the crash.


Photo by Joe Salas, 4theRiders.com.(Note: Ken discuses these points and how they are applied to track day riding and/or racing. However, most of these points are definitely useful for the street riders who tackle the twisties, too!)

Top 5 Reasons Why Motorcyclists Crash and Examples

1.*Lack of Focus/ Lack of a Plan

In this podcast, Ken mentions that you shouldn’t be distracted by something else other than riding. What helps with getting focused? Putting a plan in place in regards to what you’re going to work on, and how to accomplish the goals you set for yourself.


Photo by Joe Salas, 4theRiders.com.From My Own Crash #1

I did a track day right before I was to get my racing license, and remember being all over the place that day. I went out for the first session in the morning, so the track was cold. Even though track riders are always warned to take it easy for a lap or two for the first session, I didn’t listen. In a turn, my lack of focus caused a minor lowside at Turn 11 at Thunderhill raceway.

I clearly wasn’t focused. I needed to be aware of my tires and lean angle on the first lap out. I should have been more cognizant and told myself, “Make sure to get your rubbers up to temp before getting the bike to do what you want it to do.”

2.*Abrupt Inputs

“Grab, stab, flick, throw, toss, hack, does not get better as you add speed to it, it gets worse,” Ken says in this podcast. Your inputs can make or break you. Ken states that you have to be less aggressive with how you get on the throttle, how you apply the brakes, and how you lean off the bike.*


Photo by Joe Salas, 4theRiders.com.Your inputs need to always be smooth—especially on your initial inputs. By doing this, not only will you go faster, but your chances of hitting the pavement will also decrease.

From My Own Crash #2

Ah, false neutrals—they happen, and when they do, it’s imperative to be able to think fast.

If you've never experienced one, a false neutral is when you go to grab the next gear, but it doesn’t fully engage, leaving you coasting in no gear or a "false neutral." So that happened to me while full throttle into the next turn? I went to go down a gear, but realized the bike wasn’t slowing down. I stood the bike knowing I was about to go off track. I abruptly grabbed a handful of front brake right before I went off the track to slow myself down.

It was abrupt and I knew what I did the second I hit the ground. I should have been smoother on my inputs, and I also should have went off track and ride it out by only using the rear brake. Lost focus and abrupt inputs caused this crash.

3.*Rushing corner entry

This one is pretty straightforward. Ken says that the problem is that when you rush exit corner entries, things can get hairy. Again, the goal with everything you do on the bike needs to be smooth, smooth, smooth — everything from inputs to how you go into a corner. Patience pays off at times.

READ MORE: 2016 Kawasaki Ninja 1000 ABS — Ride Review | RideApart


Photo by Joe Salas, 4theRiders.com.From My Own Crash #3

I crashed hard while rushing a corner. I wanted to give it over with (I’ll tell you why in the next section), so every time went through, I wasn’t focused on what I needed to do well to get through the corner safely. It sure bite me in the end: Not only did I take myself out, but someone who was following me close behind also went down because he couldn’t avoid me.

4. Repeating mistakes

Ken mentions having report cards for your riding – meaning, are you missing your apexes? Keep blowing corners over and over? If so, it means you’re getting pretty bad grades on your report card and you know you need to improve not only prevent crashing, but to also improve your riding.

Ken says that a great way to make sure you get good grades on your report card is by having a data-recording device. *You can either have a camera on your bike, which helps shows you your entry and exist speeds, as well as shows how consistent you are in hitting apexes. You can also have a friend follow you so you can also see your body positioning and how well you’re leaning off the bike.


Photo by Joe Salas, 4theRiders.com.Again, this helps show you what mistakes you’re making and plan (see #1 above) what to do the next time out in order to get better.

From My Own Crash #4

Remember how I told you I rushed the corner? The reason why was because it was turn 11 at Thunderhill Raceway. Yes, I crashed there twice in the same day! I literally repeated my mistake by crashing on the same day, the same corner, at the same damn spot.

Since I crashed there earlier, I had a bad taste in my mouth from that specific corner so I tried to get it done quickly. That wasn’t the only mistake either. While leaned over, I was abrupt on the throttle, and my body positioning was pretty terrible to boot.


I'm about to lose the front!
And I lost it...
I'd rather be on the bike, upright, than down here sliding on the ground...Don’t be me. If you crash at a specific corner, figure out why. I fortunately had the guy who went down behind me filming; however, if I didn’t see that footage, I wouldn’t have known why I went down. Let’s say after this incident I sought out help from Ken…

READ MORE: Give Up Control to Gain Control - What Riding Mini Bikes on Dirt Has Taught Me | RideApart

5.*Over Confidence

Ken says that it’s common to feel comfortable on your bike when you’re getting things right. But riders beware: comfort can easily lead to over confidence. In the podcast, Ken mentions that he recently went down due to over confidence. Clearly, it happens to the best of us.


Photo by Joe Salas, 4theRiders.com.From My Own Crash #5

Back when I was still a noob at riding, I did plenty of track days to get faster. While I has gaining the confidence to carry more speed, I wasn't necessarily building better skills. *Simply going faster without developing skills is a recipe for more crashes, trust me.

I started picking up the pace and was going into this fast turn (turn 2 this time, at Thunderhill). Naturally, I started feeling comfortable, confident, and having a good time! All of a sudden, the next thing I remember is waking up face down in the dirt. I clearly crashed, but again, had no idea as to why. Luckily, a track day instructor was right behind me and saw the whole thing. I had the bike way too leaned over while I was crossed up. This caused my foot peg to catch on the asphalt and fling me off. This is how high-sides happen on a Ninja 250 everyone…

Ken’s Final Words of Wisdom: Get Over It

“The motorcycle is only as good as the inputs you give into it,” says Ken in this podcast. *I learned that the hard way. *All of my crashes were caused yours truly, and were because of my mental state. How I exuded what was on my mind to my bike is everything when it comes to how the bike will react.

Towards the end of this podcast, Ken says that the key to moving on from a crash is to simply get over it. How so? Well, being stuck and dwelling on a crash involves bringing your emotions into the mix. Nuh uh, keep your feelings off the track! Ken says that by becoming a more technical rider, you will (obviously) work on technique. Therefore, every time you get off the track, make sure to review your personal report card.

As I said before (and as you can clearly see from these pictures), crashing flat out sucks. And if you can walk away from it (or at least limp away from it), just know that your riding may need a bit of work.


Photo by Joe Salas, 4theRiders.com.Ken has so many more words of wisdom! Check out many more of his podcasts on iTunes or on SoundCloud. You can also follow him on Twitter and Instagram.

Feature photo by Joe Salas, 4theRiders.com.


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