Feature: paul pitchfork - advanced training
Level One is all about cornering. The exercises -
taught over five sessions of theory followed by track
time - took us through throttle control, identifying
turn points, quick turning, rider input and what the
school calls ‘two step’ - identifying your turn point
then switching your focus to the apex before
entering the turn. But what the day is really all
about can be boiled down to one thing - achieving a
stable bike throughout the turn. Each track session
left me feeling that my riding skills were improving
exponentially, but it was the theory covered in the
classroom that absorbed me most. It made so much
sense, and I wished I’d known it all at the very start
of my riding career.
The first ‘Golden Rule’ we were taught was the need
to roll on the throttle smoothly, evenly and
constantly throughout the turn. A simple instruction,
but there is so much science behind it. We were
shown that the bike’s suspension, both front and
rear, extends when you accelerate (we all assumed
the shock compresses). Constantly rolling on the
throttle counteracts the forces which would
otherwise slow the bike in a turn and applies
acceleration, thus ensuring the suspension remains
at its mid stroke where it is must be to operate
optimally. This also maintains good ground
clearance to allow the bike to lean in further.
Applying acceleration also shifts the weight back on
to the rear tyre, which has a greater contact area
In the pit lane, starting a session
with the ground and thus more grip.
We were also taught the importance of rolling the
throttle on only after you’ve steered the bike into
the corner. This ensures that the bike is decelerating
at the point of turning and the forks are compressed,
thus changing the geometry of the bike and
shortening the wheelbase. This assists the front end
to tuck into the turn and bite.
All this was explained to us in the first twenty-
minute classroom session. As we waited our turn to
get on to the track and start applying the theory, I
continued to think through what we had learnt and
saw its application to adventure bikes. With a longer
wheelbase, greater rake in the forks and often a
twenty-one inch front wheel, an adventure bike
needs more help turning than a sports bike or street
bike. Furthermore, the suspension on an adventure
bikes has more travel and is usually softer, so the
effects of acceleration and deceleration would be
accentuated. Perhaps, I wondered, there would be
benefit approaching a corner a little faster and
braking a little harder, to compress the forks more
and amplify this geometric shift, thus sharpening the
steering? I wouldn’t know until I tried it, but already
this newly-acquired knowledge had got me thinking
so much more about my riding - and the science
behind it - than ever before.