Low Speed Drills

[mzflorida]

It is important for me to continually develop my skills on a motorcycle.  Sometimes that means I need to go back and revisit whether or not I've developed bad habits related to a particular fundamental.  There is this guy on YouTube who delivers skill drills and I follow him every week.  He produced a video on low-speed skills.  Very fundamental but he includes a Goldwing DCT in the video for the drills.  I know it is mapped differently than the VFR.  Anyhow, here is the link to the video. 

Every once in a while I go to the airport parking lots and practice my low-speed control, throttle control, emergency braking and make sure that I am fundamentally operating the bike to give me the best chance to avoid an accident whether it is my fault or someone else's.  I always do this before taking long trips.  The older I get the more important this becomes to me.   

[spudpie]

That's great video.  Taking time to practice will really build up competence and proficiency.  Thanks for posting!

[mzflorida]

You bet.  He has produced some awesome videos on road strategy.  How your lane position makes you more visible to other drivers, etc.  Worth browsing in my opinion.  But we live in the land of 6 months of half-drunk, not a care in the world, no place to go, never seen a palm tree tourists. 

[Big Tex]

Awesome video. Thanks so much for posting.

[zphenyl]

Really enjoyed the video and have subscribed to the channel. It kind of reminds me of the advanced riding class I took last year (https://www.saddleupva.com)

[mzflorida]

Glad it is something you found useful.  The road strategy videoes are really good.  He explains how people miss you,  why we miss other hazards, and what you can do to prevent either from happening.  Lots of stories from riders who claim their hides were saved through this guy's advice. 

[Grabcon]

Thanks, this is great stuff to practice all the time. When my wife had her ST1100 she became the master of the slow race, as she was challenged to keep the bike up she her short legs, so stopping she didn't like very much. Too much bike for her stature. So in traffic her control before the stop light is amazing.

I have always said anyone can go fast on a motorcycle, doing the slow race is hard at first. Once mastered it becomes habit

[mzflorida]

Originally Posted by Grabcon

I have always said anyone can go fast on a motorcycle, doing the slow race is hard at first. Once mastered it becomes habit

I agree.  We can all ride without hands on the bars at speed; the bike just stays up.  Just the other day I was out for a ride and pulled inot a gas station to fill up.  There was gravel, sand, other cars, pedestrians, and some loose dogs.  I slowed too much to make the turn to the pumps because of the distraction (sounds like I was in a 3rd world country...just South Florida!).  It would have been far more embarrassing than anything else if I dumped it.  I just stopped and came back around.  But, the bike controlled me instead of the other way around at that moment.  I hope I am not sounding preachy.  I just think sometimes we forget fundamentals or create bad habits through repetition.  Training corrects both, in my opinion.