Do you have a prefered cornering side???

[chemicalsmile]

Left handed - more comfortable in right turns.

 

[abacall]

Odd so many people favor the left....

 

[Dunno]

I used to be a lot more comfortable going left cos I could touch the rear brake & tighten up the corner if I had to.
That said, on the track I find im faster through the right handers. Probably cos im NOT using the rear brake.

My theory is, ive always used the rear brake as a security blanket into lefts & now do it out of habit even though I dont need it. Something to practice at my next track day. NO BRAKING.

 

[Ravenfz09]

Odd so many people favor the left....

because i guess most people are right handed? im comfortable either way, but like i said offroad im slightly less comfortable turning right because of the throttle being so close

 

[Debaser]

I'm left handed, ride on the right but learnt on the left . I think I used to prefer righties when I started out riding but these days there is no difference.

 

[ozzieboy]

I am pretty comfy in either direction. (go both ways?)

The only thing stopping me from going over further on either side is the stuff scraping the ground.

Having said that I do have a preferred side for squirming the back end. Feels way more controllable through a right hander, but that may just be a holdover from my BMX riding days and powerslideing those beasties:rockon:....lol.

Cheers
Mike

 

[necrotimus]

most people find left hand turns easier because the throttle is on the other side

push with your left hand to go left and twist with your right hand through the turn
push with your right hand to go right and twist with your right hand through the turn

not only is a righty more tasks for one hand but bad body positioning only complicates the task... being tense, over extending the arms etc

i used to prefer rights but now as my speed through turns has gotten faster i prefer lefts

 

[Ravenfz09]

most people find left hand turns easier because the throttle is on the other side

push with your left hand to go left and twist with your right hand through the turn
push with your right hand to go right and twist with your right hand through the turn

not only is a righty more tasks for one hand but bad body positioning only complicates the task... being tense, over extending the arms etc

i used to prefer rights but now as my speed through turns has gotten faster i prefer lefts

been trying to say that, i dont understand how people dont realize that thats the reason for most, but i dont notice it very much on a street bike because u hardly have to turn the bars

 

[Davey]

So it seems like the lefties have it! However, of course we should all be aiming to shred both sides as best as possible!

Thanks to everyone for the suggestions of reasons why some may prefer one side to the other. Some interesting things came out of this thread!

Cheers, Davey

 

[reiobard]

i used to be a hard core right hand turner and could not get the hang of left hand turns. so i did a track day and it made me a lot more comfortable on the bike and now i can turn both directions.

 

[Kazza]

1. I'm a lefty
2. I'm a righty
3. I shred both ways!

Hi All,

Had a great ride yesterday after 2 weeks off the bike (I keep it at my girlfriend's parent's place and haven't been back there at weekends for a while). There are some great twisties here in France and the roads are almost always empty :thumbup:

There was a really nice section of smooth, long lefts and rights (about 15 in a row I'd guess) of various degrees and on a slope also. They were so good I turned round and did them again about 6 times in an aim to reduce my chicken strips to nothing and just practice my cornering techniques. Didn't have the camera with me unfortunately so no video :spank: (will do so next time!).

When getting home to inspect the progress on the chicken strips I find that I have about 5mm on the left side but maybe 8 or 9mm on the right. When I got to thinking about it I do seem to be more comfortable cornering to the left but really don't know why! We drive on the right and I am left handed but don't rationally see how this could affect it.

So do you have a favourite side?

Definately a leftie. Don't know why, but always feels more natural (I'm a right hander....)

 

[lonesoldier84]

I prefer to corner in the direction of the oncoming turn.

 

[Davey]

I prefer to corner in the direction of the oncoming turn.

Lol! I always found the useful advice of 'look where you're going' applies well to many situations as well....

 

[damnpoor]

I like turning left for two reasons;

1) If I fly off the edge of the road because I screwed up I'm slide out and off the road, not across the road into cars that wanna run my ass over. You can also see further ahead if there's a hill or trees lining the road.

2) Left turns are on the outside of the road, which means they're usually not as sharp and if you misjudge the apex you can cross the centerline and usually get away with it.

When I do something faster than usual or on an unfamiliar road I'm always plagued by the thought, "what happens if I **** up?" If I know there is a little more wiggle room I'm more relaxed and able to concentrate on riding the bike. I think lefties (for those of us who drive on the right side of the road) are simply easier to navigate with less risk of death.

 

[abacall]

1) If I fly off the edge of the road because I screwed up I'm slide out and off the road, not across the road into cars that wanna run my ass over.

Unless there are guardrails (which there usually is) then you get cut to pieces instead.....

2) if you misjudge the apex you can cross the centerline and usually get away with it.

Then you may just get your head taken off by an oncoming car....

I saw a head-on collision two weeks ago with a motorcycle and a car when a guy crossed the line. I will never get that image out of my head. There was just soooo much blood... There was also a boot with a foot in it....

When I do something faster than usual or on an unfamiliar road I'm always plagued by the thought, "what happens if I **** up?"

That's the best question to ask. Ride at 70% or lower and you won't have to find out.

Sorry I sound like I'm preaching. Do what you like. But after that accident, I follow the board's Mantra, "Treat the centerline like a brick wall. If you hit it, game over."

 

[edski]

USA right-hand side travel lanes lefty here. I'm just more confident banking left because I can usually see further around a left-hand curve.

And then there's the argument where my right hand says 'what, I gotta work the brake, the throttle AND initiate the countersteer while HE (left hand) maybe touches the clutch occasionally?

Even on a closed course my less busy left hand finds it easier to initiate the countersteer dip at the right moment, giving maybe a slight edge to the left turns.

 

[GSBandit6]

I was just discussing this subject with another rider at work and the results seem to partially agree with our hypothesis that comfort in a turn is partially determined by handedness. I am a lefty and have almost no strips on the right, but still have some on the left. He is a righty and has just the opposite results. We've ridden for about the same amount of time and have similar backgrounds.

It seems from reading this thread that most of the people who prefer a right-handed curve are left-handed. I would be curious if you took this to a controlled environment with no oncoming traffic or laws (other than physics of course) if the results would stay the same. Take a half-mile circular track with plenty of run-off room and run it in both directions and see what the results are. Wonder if I could get a grant from the government to study that?

Thanks for this very interesting thread.

 

[moopie]

The MSF instructor said that riders tend to feel better turning left if they are right handed. I'm right handed and found it harder to master the right hand turn of the figure 8. I do feel more comfortable taking left corners but my tire seems to show no real proof of that.:don'tknow:

 

[codeblue]

lefty here, but started scrubbing more rubber off the right. i don't want to discriminate

 

[Wh0M3]

I'm right hand dominate, and unsure which eye... I see better out of my left but I am more comfortable using my right eye as aiming (both eyes being open).

I tend to agree with everyone that says they feel more comfortable turning left because of the road way design in the states. I have a theory about why some feel more comfortable turning one way but have more of a chicken strip on that side.

When you turn a corner you have to either lean your body or your bike. If you feel comfortable turning you will be willing to lean your body more than if you don't, and that would cause you to lean your bike more keeping you further from the ground.

I actually noticed this one day riding how that right hand turns made me feel more uncomfortable and I had no problem leaning into a left hand turn. I try to work though that feeling and make it so that I 'force' myself to become more comfortable with the right hand turn. I believe part of that is the mindset behind it. If you constently remind yourself how much you dislike something it's harder to get over.