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Author Topic: The Pace  (Read 35414 times)
Speeddog
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RIP Nicky


« on: February 08, 2008, 10:11:51 PM »

Street Riding-"The Pace"

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nick Ienatsch's article on The Pace

Racing involves speed, concentration and committment; the results of a mistake are usually catastrophic because there's little room for error riding at 100 percent. Performance street riding is less intense and further from the absolute limit, but because circumstances are less controlled, mistakes and overagressiveness can be equally catastrophic. Plenty of roadracers have sworn off street riding. "Too dangerous, too many variables and too easy to get carried away with too much speed," track specialists claim. Adrenaline-addled racers find themselves treating the street like the track, and not surprisingly, they get burned by the police, the laws of physics and the cold, harsh realities of an environment not groomed for ten tenths riding. But as many of us know, a swift ride down a favorite road may be the finest way to spend a few free hours with a bike we love. And these few hours are best enjoyed riding at The Pace.

A year after I joined the Motorcyclist staff in 1984, Mitch Boehm was hired. Six months later, The Pace came into being, and we perfected it during the next few months of road testing and weekend fun rides. Now The Pace is part of my life--and a part of the Sunday-morning riding group I frequent. The Pace is a street technique that not only keeps street riders alive, but thoroughly entertained as well.

THE PACE

The Pace focuses on bike control and de-emphasizes outright speed. Full-throttle acceleration and last minute braking aren't part of the program, effectively eliminating the two most common single-bike accident scenarios in sport riding. Cornering momentum is the name of the game, stressing strong, forceful inputs at the handlebar to place the bike correctly at the entrance of the turn and get it flicked in with little wasted time and distance. Since the throttle wasn't slammed open at the exit of the last corner, the next corner doesn't require much, if any, braking. It isn't uncommon to ride with our group and not see a brake light flash all morning.

If the brakes are required, the front lever gets squeezed smoothly, quickly and with a good deal of force to set entrance speed with minimum time. Running in on the brakes is tantamount to running off the road, a confession that you're pushing too hard and not getting your entrance speed set early enough because you stayed on the gas too long. Running The Pace decreases your reliance on the throttle and brakes, the two easiest controls to abuse, and hones your ability to judge cornering speed, which is the most thrilling aspect of performance street riding.

YOUR LANE IS YOUR LIMIT

Crossing the centerline at any time except during a passing maneuver is intolerable, another sign that you're pushing too hard to keep up. Even when you have a clean line of sight through a left-hand kink, stay to the right of the centerline. Staying on the right side of the centerline is much more challenging than simply straightening every slight corner, and when the whole group is committed to this intelligent practice, the temptation to cheat is eliminated through peer pressure and logic. Though street riding shouldn't be described in racing terms, you can think of your lane as the racetrack. Leaving your lane is tantamount to a crash.

Exact bike control has you using every inch of your lane if the circumstances permit it. In corners with a clear line of sight and no oncoming traffic, enter at the far outside of the corner, turn the bike relatively late in the corner to get a late apex at the far inside of your lane and accelerate out, just brushing the far outside of your lane as your bike stands up. Steer your bike forcefully but smoothly to minimize the transition time; don't hammer it down because the chassis will bobble slightly as it settles, possibly carrying you off line. Since you haven't charged in on the brakes, you can get the throttle on early, before the apex, which balances and settles your bike for the drive out.

More often than not, ciccumstances do not permit the full use of your lane from yellow line to white line and back again. Blind corners, oncoming traffic and gravel on the road are a few criteria that dictate a more conservative approach, so leave yourself a three- or four-foot margin for error, especially at the left side of the lane where errant oncoming traffic could prove fatal. Simply narrow your entrance on a blind right-hander and move your apex into your lane three feet on blind left turns in order to stay free of unseen oncoming traffic hogging the centerline. Because you're running at The Pace and not flat out, your controlled entrances offer additional time to deal with unexpected gravel or other debris in your lane; the outside wheel track is usually the cleanest through a dirty corner since a car weights its outside tires most, scrubbing more dirt off the pavement in the process, so aim for that line.

A GOOD LEADER, WILLING FOLLOWERS

The street is not a racing environment, and it takes humility, self assurance and self control to keep it that way. The leader sets the pace and monitors his mirrors for signs of raggedness in the ranks that follow, such as tucking in on straights, crossing over the yellow line and hanging off the motorcycle in corners. If the leader pulls away, he simply slows his straightaway speed slightly but continues to enjoy the corners, thus closing the ranks but missing none of the fun. The small group of three or four riders I ride with is so harmonious that the pace is identical no matter who's leading. The lead shifts occasionally with a quick hand sign, but there's never a pass for the lead with an ego on the sleeve. Make no mistake, the riding is spirited and quick--in the corners. Anyone with a right arm can hammer down the straights; it's the proficiency in the corners that makes The Pace come alive.

Following distances are relatively lengthy, with the straightaways---taken at more moderate speeds--the perfect opportunity to adjust the gaps. Keeping a good distance serves several purposes, besides being safer. Rock chips are minimized and the highway patrol won't suspect a race is in progress. The Pace's style of not hanging off in corners also reduces the appearance of pushing too hard and adds a degree of maturity and sensibility in the eyes of the public and the law. There's a definite challenge to cornering quickly while sitting sedately on your bike.

New rider indoctrination takes some time because The Pace develops very high cornering speeds and newcomers want to hammer the throttle on exits to make up for what they lose at the entrances. Our group slows drastically when a new rider joins the ranks because our technique of moderate straightaway speeds and no brakes can suck the unaware into a corner too fast, creating the most common single-bike accident. With a new rider learning The Pace behind you, tap your brake lightly well before the turn to alert him and make sure he understands there's no pressure to stay with the group.

There's plenty of ongoing communication during The Pace. A foot off the peg indicates debris on the road, and all slowing or turning intentions are signaled in advance with the left hand and arm. Turn signals are used for direction changes and passing, with a wave of the left hand to thank the cars that move right and make it easy for the motorcyclists to get past. Since you don't have a death grip on the handlebar, you left hand is also free to wave to oncoming riders, a fading courtesy that we'd like to see return. If you're getting the idea The Pace is a relaxing, noncompetitive way to ride with a group, you are right.

RELAX AND FLICK IT

I'd rather spend a Sunday in the mountains riding at The Pace than a Sunday at the racetrack, it is that enjoyable. Countersteering is the name of the game, a smooth forceful steering input at the handlebar relayed to the tires contact patches through a rigid sport-bike frame. Riding at The Pace is certainly what the bike manufacturers had in mind when sport bikes evolved to the street.

But the machine isn't the most important aspect of running The Pace because you can do it on anything capable of getting through a corner. Attitude is The Pace's most important aspect; realizing the friend ahead of you isn't a competotor, respecting his right to lead the group occasionally and giving him credit for his riding skills. You must have the maturity to limlt your straightaway speeds to allow the group to stay in touch and the sense to realize that racetrack tactics such as late braking and full throttle runs to redline will alienate the public and police and possibly introduce you to the unforgiving laws of gravity. When the group arrives at the destination after running The Pace, no one feels outgunned or is left with the feeling he must prove himself on the return run. If you've got something to prove, get on a racetrack.

The racetrack measures your speed with a stopwatch and direct competition, welcoming your agression and gritty resolve to be the best. Performance street riding's only yardstick is the amount of enjoyment gained, not lap times, finishing position or competitors beaten. The differences are huge but not always remembered by riders who haven't discovered The Pace's cornering pureness and group involvement. Hammer on the racetrack. Pace yourself on the street.

PACE YOURSELF

The street is not the track - It's a place to Pace

Two weeks go a rider died when he and his bike tumbled off a cliff paralleling our favorite road. No gravel in the lane, no oncoming car pushing him wide, no ice. The guy screwed up. Rider error. Too much enthusiasm with too little skill, and this fatality wasn't the first on this road this year. As with most single-bike accidents, the rider entered the corner at a speed his brain told him was too fast, stood the bike up and nailed the rear brake. Goodbye.

On the racetrack the rider would have tumbled into the hay bales, visited the ambulance for a strip of gauze and headed back to the pits to straighten his handlebars and think about his mistake. But let's get one thing perfectly clear: the street is not the racetrack. Using it as such will shorten your riding career and keep you from discovering the Pace. The Pace is far from street racing - and a lot more fun.

The Pace places the motorcycle in its proper role as the controlled vehicle, not the controlling vehicle. Too many riders of sport bikes become baggage when the throttle gets twisted - the ensuing speed is so overwhelming they are carried along in the rush. The Pace ignores outright speed and can be as much fun on a Ninja 250 as on a ZX-11, emphasizing rider skill over right-wrist bravado. A fool can twist the grip, but a fool has no idea how to stop or turn. Learning to stop will save your life; learning to turn will enrich it. What feels better than banking a motorcycle over into a corner?

The mechanics of turning a motorcycle involve pushing and/or pulling on the handlebars; while this isn't new information for most sport riders, realize that the force at the handlebar affects the motorcycle's rate of turn-in. Shove hard on the bars, and the bike snaps over; gently push the bars, and the bike lazily banks in. Different corners require different techniques, but as you begin to think about lines, late entrances and late apexes, turning your bike at the exact moment and reaching he precise lean angle will require firm, forceful inputs ant the handlebars. If you take less time to turn your motorcycle, you can use that time to brake more effectively or run deeper into the corner, affording yourself more time to judge the corner and a better look at any hidden surprises. It's important to look as far into the corner as possible and remember the adage, "You go where you look."
« Last Edit: February 10, 2008, 07:31:21 PM by Spidey » Logged

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« Reply #1 on: February 08, 2008, 10:13:16 PM »

DON'T RUSH

The number-one survival skill, after mastering emergency braking, is setting your corner-entrance speed early, or as Kenny Roberts says, "Slow in, fast out." Street riders may get away with rushing into 99 out of 100 corners, but that last one will have gravel, mud or a trespassing car. Setting entrance speed early will allow you to adjust your speed and cornering line, giving you every opportunity to handle the surprise.

We've all rushed into a corner too fast and experienced not just the terror but the lack of control when trying to herd the bike into the bend. If you're fighting the brakes and trying to turn the bike, any surprise will be impossible to deal with. Setting your entrance speed early and looking into the corner allows you to determine what type of corner you're facing. Does the radius decrease? Is the turn off-camber? Is there an embankment that may have contributed some dirt to the corner?

Racers talk constantly about late braking, yet that technique is used only to pass for position during a race, not to turn a quicker lap time. Hard braking blurs the ability to judge cornering speed accurately, and most racers who rely too heavily on the brakes find themselves passed at the corner exits because they scrubbed off too much cornering speed. Additionally, braking late often forces you to trail the brakes or turn the motorcycle while still braking. While light trail braking is an excellent and useful technique to master, understand that your front tire has only a certain amount of traction to give.

If you use a majority of the front tire's traction for braking and then ask it to provide maximum cornering traction as well, a typical low-side crash will result. Also consider that your motorcycle won't steer as well with the fork fully compressed under braking. If you're constantly fighting the motorcycle while turning, it may be because you're braking too far into the corner. All these problems can be eliminated by setting your entrance speed early, an important component of running the Pace.

Since you aren't hammering the brakes at every corner entrance, your enjoyment of pure cornering will increase tremendously. You'll relish the feeling of snapping your bike into the corner and opening the throttle as early as possible. Racers talk about getting the drive started, and that's just as important on the street. Notice how the motorcycle settles down and simply works better when the throttle is open? Use a smooth, light touch on the throttle and try to get the bike driving as soon as possible in the corner, even before the apex, the tightest point of the corner. If you find yourself on the throttle ridiculously early, it's an indication you can increase your entrance speed slightly be releasing the brakes earlier.

As you sweep past the apex, you can begin to stand the bike up out of the corner. This is best done by smoothly accelerating, which will help stand the bike up. As the rear tire comes off full lean, it puts more rubber on the road, and the forces previously used for cornering traction can be converted to acceleration traction. The throttle can be rolled open as the bike stands up.

This magazine won't tell you how fast is safe; we will tell you how to go fast safely. How fast you go is your decision, but it's one that requires reflection and commitment. High speed on an empty four-lane freeway is against the law, but it's fairly safe. Fifty-five miles per hour in a canyon may be legal, but it may also be dangerous. Get together with your friends and talk about speed. Set a reasonable maximum and stick to it. Done right, the Pace is addicting without high straightaway speeds.

The group I ride with couldn't care less about outright speed between corners; any gomer can twist a throttle. If you routinely go 100 mph, we hope you routinely practice emergency stops from that speed. Keep in mind outright speed will earn a ticket that is tough to fight and painful to pay; cruising the easy straight stuff doesn't attract as much attention from the authorities and sets your speed perfectly for the next sweeper.

GROUP MENTALITY

Straights are the time to reset the ranks. The leader needs to set a pace that won't bunch up the followers, especially while leaving a stop sign or passing a car on a two-lane road. The leader must use the throttle hard to get around the car and give the rest of the group room to make the pass, yet he or she can't speed blindly along and earn a ticket for the whole group. With sane speeds on the straights, the gaps can be adjusted easily; the bikes should be spaced about two seconds apart for maximum visibility of surface hazards.

It's the group aspect of the Pace I enjoy most, watching the bikes in front of me click into a corner like a row of dominoes, or looking in my mirror as my friends slip through the same set of corners I just emerged from.

Because there's a leader and a set of rules to follow, the competitive aspect of sport riding is eliminated and that removes a tremendous amount of pressure from a young rider's ego - or even an old rider's ego. We've all felt the tug of racing while riding with friends or strangers, but the Pace takes that away and saves it for where it belongs: the racetrack. The racetrack is where you prove your speed and take chances to best your friends and rivals.

I've spend a considerable amount of time writing about the Pace (see Motorcyclist, Nov. '91) for several reasons, not the least of which being the fun I've had researching it (continuous and ongoing). But I have motivations that aren't so fun. I got scared a few years ago when Senator Danforth decided to save us from ourselves by trying to ban superbikes, soon followed by insurance companies blacklisting a variety of sport bikes. I've seen Mulholland Highway shut down because riders insisted on racing (and crashing) over a short section of it. I've seen heavy police patrols on roads that riders insist on throwing themselves off of. I've heard the term "murder-cycles" a dozen times too many. When we consider the abilities of a modern sport bike, it becomes clear that rider techniques is sorely lacking.

The Pace emphasizes intelligent, rational riding techniques that ignore racetrack heroics without sacrificing fun. The skills needed to excel on the racetrack make up the basic precepts of the Pace, excluding the mind-numbing speeds and leaving the substantially larger margin for error needed to allow for unknowns and immovable objects. Our sport faces unwanted legislation from outsiders, but a bit of throttle management from within will guarantee our future.

THE PACE PRINCIPLES

* Set cornering speed early.
* Blow the entrance and you'll never recover.
* Look down the road
* Maintaining a high visual horizon will reduce perceived speed and help you avoid panic situations.
* Steer the bike quickly.
* There's a reason Wayne Rainey works out - turning a fast-moving motorcycle takes muscle.
* Use your brakes smoothly but firmly
* Get on and then off the brakes; don't drag 'em.
* Get the throttle on early
* Starting the drive settles the chassis, especially through a bumpy corner.
* Never cross the centerline except to pass
* Crossing the centerline in a corner is an instant ticket and an admittance that you can't really steer your bike. In racing terms, your lane is your course; staying right of the line adds a significant challenge to most roads and is mandatory for sport riding's future.
* Don't crowd the centerline
* Always expect an oncoming car with two wheels in your lane.
* Don't hang off in the corners or tuck in on the straights
* Sitting sedately on the bike looks safer and reduces unwanted attention. It also provides a built-in safety margin.
* When leading, ride for the group
* Good verbal communication is augmented with hand signals and turn signals; change direction and speed smoothly.
* When following, ride with the group
* If you can't follow a leader, don't expect anyone to follow you when you're setting the pace.


Other versions of the article here:

http://www.pashnittours.com/thepace.html

http://www.micapeak.com/info/thepace.html
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« Reply #2 on: May 09, 2008, 07:19:18 PM »

Great write up wt:
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« Reply #3 on: May 15, 2008, 11:29:21 AM »

i had never read this before...very good read and i agree 100%   waytogo
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« Reply #4 on: June 17, 2008, 04:02:00 PM »

Great article.  It's been in print before, and the message is spot on.  Thanks very much for posting that bit of professional advice.
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« Reply #5 on: July 07, 2008, 11:57:19 AM »

This just gives me one more example of why I love this forum and the type of people who are part of the Monster community.  Everyone else that I know who rides is too caught up with hp and riding fast.  I've had multiple people scoff at me when I tell them I want the new 696 because they say that it's not fast enough.  Years ago my mother forbid me to get a motorcycle, and now she's married and is always a passenger on my step-dad's bike.  Neither of them wear much gear when they go riding.   bang head

I find it exhausting when I try to explain to people my age (22) that speed and horsepower aren't really priority's of mine.  I love the Monster because: A. It's the sexiest bike I've ever seen... and B. Because it fills all of the prerequisites for the type of riding that I want to do.  A few years ago, this article would have saved my first monster, but I was young(er) and stupid.  I appreciate the maturity that the members of this board offer, and the advice and support that you all willingly supply. applause

I look forward to getting back up on two wheels and riding The Pace.  [moto]
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« Reply #6 on: July 28, 2009, 06:44:20 AM »

I always feel that this article goes well with "The Pace". I don't remember the name of this article, but I believe it was printed in Sport Rider Magazine some time ago...

Quote
You slide in behind him or her and maybe they glide smoothly around in
front of you-and within a handful of corners you know there's
something special here. It's not their hardware, which might be
anything from Japanese Standard to the latest race-replica tackle. Nor
is it their clothing, which, if anything, probably carries a patina of
age-the leather or nylon faded from long miles in the sun and spotted
from uncounted bug-cleanings. Nor is it just that they're fast, though
they probably carry a pretty crisp pace. No, what instantly gets your
attention is the utter casualness-the sheer effortlessness-with which
they ride along the road, dispatching the curves like so many pieces
of candy. There's a relaxed assurance in their demeanor, a perfect
confidence in their swift cadence, which gives rise to a certainty of
what the next miles will bring. Their speed is just-so. We watch for a
while-assuming we're able to stay with him or her and in our heart of
hearts, where our desires stir and our egos live, we couch what we're
seeing in the same way we always do. We know some rider, maybe we know
lots of riders, buddies who are surely faster than Mr. Smooth and
Effortless. Hell, maybe we're faster. But even as we think these
things, salve for the ego, we can't escape the growing suspicion that
this rider in front of us is just playing. Not with us, but with the
road-probably the merest touch of a smile tugging at his lips as they
glide through the corners-even as our own heart hammers a staccato
beat as we're carried along in the rush behind them. Maybe it dawns on
us, in a moment of honesty, that they could just walk away if they
wanted. One of those things you just know. So why don't they? Why is
it that they seem content to just roll along, playing those curves in
the road like so many riffs drifting easily from a well-worn guitar?
We all talk about being good, about being smooth. Well, there they
are, right in front of you. The poster child.

In a sport whose very appeal is built around the merits of speed-a
sport where our greatest heroes are those who go the fastest, a sport
where even the most mundane machinery comes dripping with performance,
where even the clothes we wear are based upon the need to attenuate
the risk we perceive attendant to that speed-it's hard not to get
caught up in the notion that speed is the thing. It's both the
yardstick by which we measure ourselves and the mantle in which we
wish to be draped. Hell, who doesn't want to be fast?

The corollary, an article of faith repeated so often that it seems to
beg any argument, is that speed-too much of it at least is a bad
thing. It's the bogeyman waiting to catch us out any time we cross the
imaginary line of too much. Most of us nod our heads when we hear
that.

The thing is, that doesn't always jive with our experience. We see
riders all the time who manage to crash at quite modest speeds. And we
know some-admittedly a much smaller number-who ride really fast, and
have for a long time, but who never seem to crash. Not as in they
don't crash very often. As in they never crash.

We all undertake a modicum of risk every time we thumb the starter
it's just inherent to the sport. But those of us who choose to adopt a
faster pace deliberately assume more of that danger. We knowingly
engage the laws of probability in a game of chicken. You play it long
enough and you lose. That's what we've always been told, right?

Why is it, then, that such a select group of riders manages to ride at
an elevated pace over many miles, weekend after weekend, trip after
trip, year after year, with little in the way of mishap? Why are these
riders seemingly held apart, aloof, from the carnage which too-often
otherwise afflicts our sport? And how is it that so many other riders,
traveling at much lesser speeds, still manage to toss away their bikes
with such depressing frequency?

Well, maybe we've been looking in the wrong place all along. Maybe,
just maybe, it's not about speed after all-at least not in the way we
usually think of it. Maybe it's about something else, something as
simple as the degree of control we exercise over a span of road.

It might happen on any ride, on any Sunday. We head out with some
buddies, or maybe we hook up with that group of riders we were talking
to down at the gas station, or maybe that devil on our shoulder is
simply a little more vigorous in his exhortations this day. However it
happens, we soon get to the road. The good one. The one that brought
us out here in the first place. And there, in that mix of camaraderie
and good tarmac and adrenaline-laced delight, we find ourselves giving
away that which we had sworn to hold tight to-our judgment. It doesn't
happen all at once. We give it away a little click here, a little
click there, like a ratcheting cord. Soon, rolling through the curves
faster and faster and laughing under our helmets all the while, we
enter a new realm.

We've all been there. We instantly know we're in a new place because
it's suddenly different. Our lines are no longer quite so clean. We're
on the brakes more, and we're making little mistakes in our timing.
And instead of that Zen-like rush through the corners we enjoyed just
moments ago-the state of grace that is the prize of this sport-we're
now caught up in the brief slivers of time between corners trying to
fix those mistakes. They seem to be coming faster now-both the corners
and the mistakes-and there doesn't seem to be quite enough time to do
what we need to do, the errors piling up in an increasingly dissonant
heap. Our normally smooth riding is suddenly ragged, with an edgy and
anxious quality. Inside our helmets the laughter mutes and then is
gone altogether, replaced by a grim determination to stay on pace. We
start to mutter little self-reproaches with each newborn error.

Soon enough we'll blow it. We'll get into one particular corner too
hot-realization and regret crystallizing in a single hot moment-and
from that instant until whatever's going to happen does, we're just
along for the ride. It will be what it will be. With a touch of luck
we'll come away with nothing more than a nervous laugh and a promise
to ourselves not to do that again. That and maybe one more little debt
to pay. You know, the one we just made to God-if he would please just
get us out of this mess we'd gotten ourselves into. Just this one last
time, promise.

Just one of those moments, huh?

It has to do with choices. When we ride a challenging road-at whatever
speed-there is an observable, knowable degree of control that we
exhibit. Not just over one corner. Not even over just one section. But
over the entire road. On some days our mastery is complete-we've
chosen to stay well within our own personal skill envelope. On other
days-well, on other days maybe we choose to push toward the edge of
that envelope. To a place where our mastery begins to diminish. To a
place where the degree of control we exhibit gradually decreases.
Ultimately, to the tipping point-where all our skills seem to go to
hell and gone in one big hurry.

There's a predictability to it. A good rider, riding within his proper
envelope, will have none of those moments. There will be no spikes in
their heart rate. No sudden bursts of adrenaline. Nothing but a
smooth, flowing movement across the road. They will be this side of
the tipping point-the tipping point for them. It'll be different for
each of us. And it'll vary from day to day, maybe even hour to hour,
depending upon how we feel. Sometimes we're in the groove and
sometimes we're not. But I think the key is that as long as the rider
stays this side of the tipping point, they can probably ride a
surprisingly long time without ill effect.

And that's the message. The predictor of bad stuff, the closest thing
we have to a crystal ball, are those moments. They are part of the
landscape, part of the sport. And they happen to all of us. But for
any given rider, they need to be very rare. If they happen with any
frequency at all, I'd say the tipping point is at hand. And if that's
a place you choose to hang around much, there's probably something
very ugly waiting for you not too far down the road.

Think about all those riders who've ever impressed us, like our rider
at the beginning of this story. They all seem to have a smooth, fluid,
easy quality about them, an assurance which belies any stress or fear.
They're always balanced, always in control. I suspect somewhere along
the line they've acquired a germ of wisdom, hard-won over many miles,
which has given them an appreciation of their own limits. They know
where that tipping point is-where their mastery of their bike, the
road and the environment begins to slip away-and they long ago made
the decision to stay this side of it.

When you do find them testing their limits-surely there's an argument
to be made for exploring the edges of one's ability-it's likely to be
at a time and place of very careful choosing, and it probably involves
a racetrack. Much of wisdom involves simply knowing when and where to
lose those impulses that we all carry.

So maybe it's never been about speed after all. Maybe that's why such
a small, select group of people are able to ride for years and years
without crashing-the fact that they ride fast is secondary to the fact
that they're always in control. They know their own limits.

And that's the lesson for the rest of us-at least for those of us who
wish to enjoy this sport for a long, long time. There's a choice to be
made, every time we thumb the starter.

Not that it's easy. If it were, we wouldn't see the carnage among our
ranks that we do every weekend. But for those who manage it, for those
who bring restraint and discipline to mix with their skill and daring,
there's an upside, even beyond the satisfaction of bringing one's bike
and body back unscathed after an afternoon's ride. There's something
to be said for gathering up one's powers, like the magician that
motorcycle makes us feel like, and wielding them well along a good
road. There's art to be found there.
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« Reply #7 on: July 29, 2009, 04:14:42 AM »

I always feel that this article goes well with "The Pace". I don't remember the name of this article, but I believe it was printed in Sport Rider Magazine some time ago...


Excellent read.
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« Reply #8 on: July 30, 2009, 12:15:03 PM »

The number-one survival skill, after mastering emergency braking, is setting your corner-entrance speed early, or as Kenny Roberts says, "Slow in, fast out."

Slow in, fast out is about the line, not about caution. A late apex should be slow when the radius is tight (entrance) and fast as it opens up (on exit). It's always a good policy on the street but for a different (but related) reason as it is on the track. On the track, you should always be striving to get 100 points of traction. Since you will primarily be doing late apex corners when the lap time is at stake, SIFO is the way to get your 100 points. One exception is at the end of a long straight into a sacrifice corner. Here, you'd be giving up points if you went in SIFO so trail braking is required. On the street, it's just about making sure you have the corner under control before upping the wick and coming out on power.
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« Reply #9 on: January 01, 2010, 05:21:01 PM »

Excellent article!  applause No doubt, this article has saved countless lives, hospital visits, and motorcycles. Go quickly, but live to ride another day.  [moto]
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« Reply #10 on: September 18, 2010, 11:49:18 AM »

Yes, awesome article, as new street rider, I'm reading lots and trying to not make mistakes and learn from others. Thanks for posting it! [moto]
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« Reply #11 on: September 28, 2011, 01:56:53 PM »

Speeddog: Thanks for a well written and informative article.  Really great stuff.  True testimony to the intelligence of this forum.  Thanks!
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« Reply #12 on: October 26, 2011, 03:19:20 PM »

Very very good.

Thank you! chug

You are King! Can you write something about beginners and what they should do?
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« Reply #13 on: February 03, 2012, 02:41:42 AM »

Thanks for the article!  His book 'Sport Riding Techniques', is excellent as well.
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« Reply #14 on: February 23, 2013, 03:03:29 PM »

I accredit Nick with my surviving sport bikes.  Unlike many that have read his book, I got to ride with Nick, Lance Holst and Chuck Graves quite a few times back in "the day".  Angeles Crest will forever be in my heart.  A lot of what I know about riding and the life I am living today, I have in part, due to Nick personally showing me the proper way to ride in the mountains. 

There is a also a lot of credit due to a CHP officer I found myself riding with a couple of times a week for a couple of years.  I had a Buell at the time and had the damnedest time staying behind him on his R-1.  Only in the right place and only at the right times. 

Great book, few things can compare to truly being able to ride "The Pace"
At 47 years old and over 400k ridden I will only ride with others that know what "The Pace" is and how to run it.


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