SM sticking leg out while turning. | GTAMotorcycle.com

SM sticking leg out while turning.

KarGo

Well-known member
Is it better to use your legs or just ride the SM like a sports bike.
I've been trying to get the leg out, but I'm so use to the sports bike style.
Any tips?

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I always figured that was a habit from off-road that guys carried to the supermoto track. However, typical sportbike form has you move your body toward the inside of the turn—lean the bike less and the body more. Supermoto riders do the opposite—lean the bike more and the body is more upright. It does make a bit of sense considering the sumos are narrower and have a higher centre of gravity.
 
Sticking it out like in motocross is plain weird and uncomfortable if you ask me. This is the proper way and how the fast European guys do it:

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For all turns.
Leg stay on the peg until just before the apex or right when the peg is about to scrape the pavement.
 
Correct me if I'm wrong but seeing as how these bikes are MX bikes originally does the chassis not react better when you sit on top of the bike like you would in the dirt as opposed to getting your body off to the inside of the corner?
 
Not 100% sure if the photo will load properly but the one of the reasons for the knee/foot out is to pick yourself up from a low side. I haven't studied riding positions, I just do what is somewhat comfortable and what works. I am on the KTM here and my foot is not as far forward as most riders ride. This position has saved my ***** at least half a dozen times. If the front is pushing and is about to tuck you can sometimes save it because your foot is in a position to help keep the bike from tipping sideways because you lost front traction. Roadracers ofter save a lowside with their knee. Here Colin Edwards saves a crash with his knee/elbow. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37sl4YI-aYE

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As georgy showed, that is the "proper" way to ride supermoto.

However, some roadracers are thick and still ride knee out style.

Aaron Yates running AMA Supermoto:
yates1.jpg

Aaron Yates is "thick" cuz he rides knee style? He may be thick but he'll be faster than anyone here on his slowest day...........
 
I mix it up

Sometimes I go leg out like georgy in some turns (usually tight corners) and knee down in others (mostly longer sweeping corners).
 
Aaron Yates is "thick" cuz he rides knee style? He may be thick but he'll be faster than anyone here on his slowest day...........

anyone worth their salt racing SM will ride leg out style.

As mentioned above, the chassis of this type of bike works when you sit on top o f the bike and up closer to the tank.

with the long suspension travel and soft forks as soon as you get on the gas, the bike will squat and want to run wide, especially when riding roadrace style, you just cant get over top of the front end properly.

These bike work best when you're on the ragged edge of traction, sliding corner entry and tire spinning corner exits, you don't have the same control using roadrace style
 
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Not 100% sure if the photo will load properly but the one of the reasons for the knee/foot out is to pick yourself up from a low side. I haven't studied riding positions, I just do what is somewhat comfortable and what works. I am on the KTM here and my foot is not as far forward as most riders ride. This position has saved my ***** at least half a dozen times. If the front is pushing and is about to tuck you can sometimes save it because your foot is in a position to help keep the bike from tipping sideways because you lost front traction. Roadracers ofter save a lowside with their knee. Here Colin Edwards saves a crash with his knee/elbow.

The way I've been trained to ride offroad is sticking my leg out of course. However the way it was explained to me was that it forces you to get your foot off the inside peg, so that all your weight is on the outside peg. When it's on the outside peg it is in line with the tires giving you maximum down force. Also, just as important is to get your ass off the seat and onto the side and as far forward as possible, reason being the same as before.

With respect to saving a low side. It's not the reason to do it, but merely a byproduct of it.
 
Hey

So I am riding a SM (DRZ) for the street. I have fund that sticking a leg out has allowed me to corner faster and more precisely. Also it is has saved my *** when I have had a brain fart and go wide in a corner also to dump into a quick right because someone has pulled out of a street right in front of me and going around on the left was not an option. I got to play around with the sticking the leg out thing at an SMO practice this summer and it is pretty cool how low you can get your bike while doing this and also how it can save you from a lowslide.
 

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