Do you put your foot on the floor to test grip levels?

[Mattberkshire]

It's something I've always done. Unsure of the road and conditions I'll put down my right foot just to feel what the road feels like. I didn't think anyone else did it until yesterday. I was riding through a village with a newly laid surface. They just put some kind of gravel on the road and let the traffic compress it to make the surface. It's horrid on a bike but has been getting better every day. Yesterday I saw a rider going the other way put his foot down, obviously checking on the grip levels. So, do you do it?

 

[flashgordon]

No i dont, not during warm weather but my mate does when the roads are a bit tricky in the winter or damp roads, i may check the road outside the house on frosty mornings to get a feel for the road but that because the only times i've crashed was on icy roads.
Rich:Flash:

 

[Wolfman]

Respectfully, i dont see the point, road conditions can change so so quickly, oil, dirt, rubble, etc, can be around any corner.

:thumbup:

 

[SovietRobot]

Are you sure they're not just putting their feet down because they feel like they're going to fall?

 

[KingY]

i do it! i also thoguht i was only one but if there has been light rain while i riding, i like to just see what i am dealing with so know how to ride for the condition, even with new road surfaces, or different temperatures, stange i know

 

[Mattberkshire]

i do it! i also thoguht i was only one but if there has been light rain while i riding, i like to just see what i am dealing with so know how to ride for the condition, even with new road surfaces, or different temperatures, stange i know

Wahay, I'm glad I'm not the only foot on the floor nutter!

 

[Wolfman]

Wahay, I'm glad I'm not the only foot on the floor nutter!

You dont need to do this to be a nutter!

 

[wrightme43]

I do it, usually with both feet though.

 

[mbramlett]

Alright what are you guys talking about, this does sound like a good idea, I do it at stoplights. Never thought about doing it at speed though. I could see some bad things happening that way though. So do you put your heel down first?

 

[sm00thpapa]

What's the point your already riding on it. Feel it when you stop.

 

[DefyInertia]

I put my knee-puck down to get a sense.


j/k

I'm with wolf on this one, road conditions can change and I can usually tell by looking at the road...or so I think.

 

[Mattberkshire]

It's looking good for us foot on the floor nutters, 9 votes so far. To the non-believers it goes like this:

Gravel - you can see
Sand - you can see
Rain - you can see
Load of crap from a farm vehicle on the road - you can see
Freshly laid tarmac that might or might not have 'cured' - hmm, might just put a foot down just to feeeel the grip
Dark tarmac that may or may not be wet after a shower - well, it could be dry but I might just drag the front of my boot along the ground to get a feeeeeel for it
etc etc

The point is motorcycling is all about feel and confidence. If you had to tell someone how to steer a bike through a bend how would you do it? "When you see a corner apply a bit of front brake, a bit of back then steer AWAY from the corner just a little bit then lay the thing on it's side". See, nothings black and white. It's all about feel and confidence and putting youre foot down for a swift drag every now and then helps me (and 8 others) build up knowledge of the road surface and therefore confidence

 

[Coopdman]

I don't do this at speed to test road grip, but every time i stop. Only time I've dropped a bike was thanks to an oily spot at a drive-thru window (embarrassing!) so I check that my foot has grip (front and back) before I put weight on it side to side. At speed I'll drop a foot to get fresh rubber on my soles... old boots and old hard rubber aren't friendly either.

 

[alanrim]

Done it for twenty odd years, especially in cold weather. You get a second sense that a road just don't look right. A quick drag of the foot can tell you straight away what you may be dealing with at the next corner.

In the car dragging the foot is a bit more difficult , so I have been known to move to the middle of a straight country lane and brake to test the surface. Black ice can be indicated by the road noise dropping in the car, bike is just too noisy for those sorts of cues.

 

[FizzySix]

How exactly do you do this - just the ball of your foot, just the heel, flat-foot it? Do you keep your knee bent/loose?

Something about this just seems instinctively unsafe. Like if you put your foot down with your leg in front of the peg, and your foot suddenly caught on something or found grip (ouch). Or your knee locked and your foot found grip and turned your leg into a pole and vaulted you off the bike.

Of course, now that you've planted the idea, I'll probably try it....

 

[alanrim]

How exactly do you do this - just the ball of your foot, just the heel, flat-foot it? Do you keep your knee bent/loose?

Something about this just seems instinctively unsafe. Like if you put your foot down with your leg in front of the peg, and your foot suddenly caught on something or found grip (ouch). Or your knee locked and your foot found grip and turned your leg into a pole and vaulted you off the bike.

Of course, now that you've planted the idea, I'll probably try it....

It is just like if someone described how you corner a bike it would just sound so wrong

Your leg is hanging lose, it ain't going to do anything bad, I generally just flat foot.

 

[adumb]

you guys are actually moving while you do this? i have never heard nor have i seen something like this done... if you really want to check the grip level i guess you could do a brake check and a bit of acceleration would give you a way better idea then dragging a foot. not to mention like others said conditions change every foot of road so it is kinda pointless

 

[xgrafcorex]

I've never done this. For one, the tire is going to grip the road differently than your foot, and two..if I'm concerned about it to that point..I just slow down. :thumbup:

 

[jtarkany]

Oh Yeah :thumbup:

This is me with my feet on the floor to test grip levels :

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WN1z3OHBVho]YouTube - Motorcycle Stunt - Skitching[/ame]

 

[Doorag]

I do it but only when the road is very lightly wet. In the UK we get a lot of very light rain that can cause the road to become very slick as the oils in the road come to the surface but don't get washed away by the rain. It's at those times that I will 'check the road' but then only below, say, 5 mph when I'm getting ready to stop. Usually, I'll leave my foot down as I stop. If it's been raining hard or for a long time (hours or days) then I usually don't bother as the oils have had a chance to wash away.

I hope that helps.