Hey folks,

I was checkin' out TL1000's sweet paint job and his chicken strips got me thinking.... I noticed the left one was must narrower than the right... so I check mine out on the R6... yup.. about 1/4 inch on the left and 3/8 inch on the right.  anybody else notice that they lean better to one side than the other?  What is it about right turns?

Blow a left-hand turn, eat gravel and roadside

Blow a right-hand turn, eat mack-truck bumper.

I used to turn better right than left until I lost it in a decreasing radius left hander. After practicing left handers more I turn better left than right now. One problem I have turn right is that my right arm is put in an awkward position and makes operating the throttle difficult. I have broken both forearms and they are slightly bent inward now. But my rear tires on both bikes show the same lack of chicken strips. The only way to judge lean angle now is by the front tire.

Go to the race track for a track day.  There you'll find that most turns are right hand as tracks tend to be run clock-wise.  Summit Point is a good example.  I've never driven the track, but I've spectated a bunch of time and Turn 1 looks like an adventure, especially considering that faster bikes will hit 150 on the front straight.

QuoteSummit Point is a good example. I've never driven the track, but I've spectated a bunch of time and Turn 1 looks like an adventure, especially considering that faster bikes will hit 150 on the front straight.

turn one at brainerd the superbikes will hit 170after the one mile straight   . it is a mile long straight that the nhra dragsters use then its turn one. i couldnt imagine tipping into that corner or any for that matter goin 100.

I dont know, You shouldnt even have chicken stripes, I call them "kitty cat stripes" :lol:

i lean better right, cause its easier for me to push away from my right side, than it is for me to push away from my left side.  It may just be all me my head though. Here take this test sitting down.  Hold your arms out in front of your body like your going to push up against a wall.  No with both hands at same time push one hand away while pulling other one back, to me pushin right seems more natural to me than pushing left.

i find i can lean left better than right.. dont know why..

As for chicken strips.. i hope i can lean it all teh way so i wont run into those.. that's one of the issues with wider tires.. chicken strips.

Think it has something to do with the righthanded-lefthanded trait.  For instance, most boxers lead with the left while effective switchhitters in MLB are few and far between.

Usually, the difference or preference for one side over the other surfaces when a rider is pushing the envelope and finds himself running wide in right turns.  Good technique [looking through the corner] will minimize the difference, still, a man's gotta know his limitations at any given time.  

Definitely takes longer to wear down my own tires' wisdom strips on the right side.  I have no crash damage on the right side as a result.  Wish I could say that about the left side of the bike.

As for tracks I have been to: Jennings runs CCW, CMP runs CW, Roebling runs CW, and lil Tally runs CW & CCW. I do not have a problem with any of them. I do prefer Jennings over the others but then it flows better than the other.

I was born left handed but due to a hand injury at a very young age, I ended up being mostly right handed. So maybe that why I am screwed up.

What effect would the crown of the road have on tire wear?  I figure part of the difference in chicken strip width has to do with the angle of the road in turns.  So, on the RHS of the road where we ride, the road slopes down from left to right.  During a right hand turn, this helps make the turn easier... think of a banked curve on a racetrack (positive camber?).  On a left turn, the road is negatively cambered, you need to lean more for the same rate of turn.  This might factor into the difference in tire wear.

So, for our GS riders in the UK, do you have roads that slope downward to either edge for water drainage, and if you do, which edge of your tire has the wider chicken strip?  

There was a discussion on another board, SBR I think, about this it is due to two things. You are in a left hand turn longer and get more settled into the turn and lean more. And because the throttle grip is in your right hand. When you turn right the throttle comes closer to you and modulation becomes slightly more difficult.
I've crashed hard in rights and am a little more apprehensive of rights.

Ever since I was kid on a pedal bike, I've always been more confident going around left handers than I have on right handers.

I've always put it down the the psychology of being right handed - if I go down on my right hand side and damage my right arm, I'm useless for however long it takes to heal.  Go down on the left and things aren't so bad.

It's my theory anyway  :dunno:

My Theory-
On the street, you ride on the right hand side of the road, so the radius of the turn is going to be tighter for any given speed, so the bike leans further. So the right side tends to get shorter or longer chicken strips depending on the confidence of the rider.

It would be interesting if some of our UK folks could chime in if they notice the opposite phenomenon.

On the track I have no preference. If anything, I would prefer to crash on the right side (the exhaust takes rash better than bodywork/frame), so tend to be more brave in right handers, but its never reflected in my tires...

I lean better to the left as well - I was just thinking about this because as I've gotten faster and braver on the bike with the new tires and suspension I've found myself dragging the left peg a bit - one corner by my house tags the peg every time.

Which brings me to another question for the more experienced/braver/dumber/crazier riders. Ever wipe out because of a peg sliding? Day before yesterday I leaned the bike real low for a medium speed curve and got down on the peg enough to momentarily lift the rear tire off the pavement. Surprised the hell out of me. I've got the woodcraft pegs - they don't fold. Do I adjust my riding to hang off the bike in those instances...swap pegs....anything? I have CBR rearsets which raised the pegs about 1".

I was thinking about the same question the other day...
I lean better to my left too...but I blame it on the fact that I crashed on the right side and now i'm paranoid about leaning too far right....

oh...and also...i feel that my tires are slipping more when i turn right...sweeper...tight turns...S-turns..whatever...i feel that it slips a lot more than left... :dunno:

If you are dragging pegs, especally rearsets, on the street you need to slow down.


Or start hanging off.
:mrgreen:

Quote from: JamesGIf you are dragging pegs, especally rearsets, on the street you need to slow down.


Or start hanging off.
:mrgreen:

I don't feel like I'm going that fast - honestly!! The bike is just so much more comfortable to lean over with the new setup. I know I'm moving a little faster than I was, but it just rolls off the sides of the tires so smoothly and sticks so nice it doesn't feel fast.

I guess I'll figure out this hanging off thing at the track day this month - don't have much practical application of that on my resume. One thing I don't get - and maybe it's just because I don't have much experience with it, is how does hanging off the bike allow me to turn in as sharply but not drag the peg? Why would the peg not drag by hanging off? Please forgive my ignorance.

Quote from: octane

Quote from: JamesGIf you are dragging pegs, especally rearsets, on the street you need to slow down.


Or start hanging off.
:mrgreen:

I don't feel like I'm going that fast - honestly!! The bike is just so much more comfortable to lean over with the new setup. I know I'm moving a little faster than I was, but it just rolls off the sides of the tires so smoothly and sticks so nice it doesn't feel fast.

I guess I'll figure out this hanging off thing at the track day this month - don't have much practical application of that on my resume. One thing I don't get - and maybe it's just because I don't have much experience with it, is how does hanging off the bike allow me to turn in as sharply but not drag the peg? Why would the peg not drag by hanging off? Please forgive my ignorance.

You're moving the center of gravity (rider) away from the center of gravity (bike) . The shift i think puts you closer to the inside of the turn ergo the bike doesn't have to be leaned so far over.

There was a shorty about it in MClist in april.

The next time you are riding straight for a ways, scoot your butt to the left or right side of the seat and put most of your weight on that sides's footpeg. You will find that the bike will lean "away" from you in the opposite direction a few degrees, even while still tracking straight. Its the whole CoG and CoB thing and allows for that much more ground clearance for that much more corner speed.