Uncomfortable with right-hand cornering...Common issue?

JB2112

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Nov 3, 2011
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I started riding motorbikes last July. Lately I have been analyzing my abilities and this one was an issue that stood out:
I am a lot more comfortable in left-hand corners than right-hand corners. Do other riders have this issue?

Here are some thoughts as to why I have this problem in and approaching corners:

1) Rotating grip (throttle) on the right side as opposed to fixed grip on the left (clutch). I am a little more tentative using counter-steering techniques on right-side grip as opposed to left, i.e. I grip the throttle a little more than I would the clutch-side grip.
2) History from riding bicycles. Yeah, bicycles! As a kid I remember practicing braking/skids when I had one of those coaster-type brake bikes where you pedal backwards and I can say I nearly always used the right pedal to slide out to the left, almost never to the right. Just thinking about the action of using the left pedal and skidding to the right makes me uneasy.
3) History from driving cars. Yeah, cars! I would guess learning to drive in the States, i.e. driver on the left side of car, would give the driver a certain ease looking left and, over time, a slight unease for things right-hand sided as compared to the left? I would love to know how lifetime right-side drivers (UK, Thailand, etc) feel about cornering.
4) Lack of proper training or practice.

I think I could have summarized all that in one word:

HELP!
 

KenYam

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Nov 2, 2007
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Hi JB2112

I am the last person to offer advice and can only offer my style to cornering.

1) Right hand corner enter corner on the very LHS of corner to make more room for yourself, also allowing if oncoming cars cut the corner.
2) Relax your body, place body weight to the right and pull the LHS handlebar a bit rather than push the RHS handlebar.
3) Look with your eyes where you want the bike to go, so look ahead and your body actions and bike will follow, yeah it works.
4) Clear the mind of crap and relax and enjoy, practice, good tyres helps and correct prressure.

I live in SanKamphaeng if you want to go for a run one day.

Cheers Ken F
 
Sep 4, 2007
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Good idea to keep to the left side of the road as long as not covered in mud or gravel, but as far as normal theory goes, pulling on RH handlebar will turn the bike to the left, that's why it is called counter steering. Hence not a good idea on a RH bend
 

JB2112

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Nov 3, 2011
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Thanks everyone for the tips, but I am looking for help with the reason for my right-side issue.
 
Dec 27, 2007
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Is that little track still open in Hang Dong? If it is that's where you should go to practice your right hand turns, as it's a clockwise track so mostly rights. Perhaps a more experienced rider could go with you and give you some tips and advice as well. Best of luck!
 

DavidFL

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JB2112;278855 wrote: Thanks everyone for the tips, but I am looking for help with the reason for my right-side issue.
JB
I'm a lot more comfortable in right handers than I am in left handers.
I find that on left handers I cant see around the corners as much as I can in right handers, & tend to take it a bot easier.
Also I'm aware of how I sit on the bike cornering & it's not quite the same as I do in right handers - what do you do different from right to left handers? Just an idea to think about, because you're probably doing something a little different between the left & right handers.
 

Deano747

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David has hit on it. Disregarding previous muscle memory from previous experiences, being happy in a corner is all to do with your own comfort level. That level is different for every person, and for each person at his /her level of experience (and sometimes on a day to day basis).

The more open a corner, whether left or right, determines your sight distance and hence your corner entry speed. Open can mean both radius of the corner, and how far you can see around it. The more closed a corner whether it be due to a tight radius or visual obstructions, the slower your entry speed. A right hand corner for those driving on the left side of the road will always be more open than a left corner given the same radius and visual obstructions.

So we have a set of curves, left right, left right, and assume the same radius of turn, and as they are close together, the same visual obstructions.

You go into the left corner set up in the right spot and at a moderate pace. As the corner open up in front of you, you accelerate out of it. Nice, didn't need to be that slow you think. You go into the next corner, a right hander at this slightly faster pace as you can see further around it, and again, quite comfortable. Slow down a little for the left hander, but faster than the 1st left as this one looks the same and it was fine last time, and accelerate out of it again, but at the edge of your comfort level. You feel good though, 'Nailed It'. You now hit the last right hander at a much faster pace than the last one. It looks fine just until you tip the bike over and a little panic sets in. You realise that that you are faster than you wanted to be, but the extra sight distance has sucked you in and you hadn't realised the entry speed till the very end. Way out of your comfort zone.

Experience (and some advanced riding courses) teaches us these truths. You will hear people say that they are far more comfortable on right handers than left handers (driving on the left) and this is true if they have the same entry speed for both the corners (given identical mirror image corners if you get my drift).

Go into those right handers slower and I suspect that you will be a lot happier. (or go into the lefts quicker until you are as unhappy with them)
 
Oct 30, 2010
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Consider road camber too as a parameter. Since in LOS one drives/ride on the LHS where on a level road the road camber is sloping from the median towards the road edge. Also notice how ones tires tend to wear more on the right side too (as a result of this camber). Maybe this could contribute to your confidence level in corners (though road cambers on twisties are different). Just my 2cents!