Going where you look

bigpoppa

bigpoppa

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I know one of the crucial things they will stress in the M1 exit course ill be taking next week is looking where you want to go....

my question is how does this work say your riding on the highway or a back country road and you see a GORGEOUS view....i do this all the time in the car but on a bike how does it work? when you see the beautiful valley along the countryside your riding straight but you also want to enjoy the scenery?

Also after a certain amount of experience are riders able to break this rule? Someone say has been riding for 10 years, can they look right while going straight? or turning right while looking left???


Thanks
 
I do it every day.

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I have always preferred to think of it as "don't look where you don't want to go".As an example.On the track a rider in front tucks the front and low sides in front of you.Many riders will be spooked and for no reason at all,follow the rider into the weeds.
As far as gazing at the scenery goes,moderation and timing is the key.
 
As Wingboy just put it moderation is the key. If you take several short looks at the scenery, you will be fine if you take your eyes off the road for 30 seconds trouble lies ahead..lol

When your in your car you can see things, including great scenery, pretty girls, Or guys depending on how you swing...lol Without crashing, but if you take your eyes off the road for too long your likely to rear end the car stopped in front of you. Normally, when looking at say the scenery your still focused on riding and your peripheral vision will judge the edge of the road etc. When your told to look where you want to go it is more to avoid, getting tunnel vision or focused solely on one area or object, like the telephone pole etc.

Because you already drive your mind has adapted to doing this it really is no different on a bike than a car, unless you focus solely on that scenery to your right for an extended period of time, you'll be fine.
 
They're trying to get you to look where you're going. When you're making a sharp low speed turn, you need to crank your head around pretty good to see where you're going to go.

If you've ever ridden a bike or driven a car and looked over your shoulder, you've noticed that the car wants to go in that direction too.

Paradoxically, they will later on have you do shoulder checks without turning, before doing things like a lane change or turn. By that time you should be aware enough of the process, to prevent yourself from automatically turning in that direction, and then lead with your eyes on the actual turn or lane change.

Later on, the short checks that hedo2002 is talking about shouldn't be an issue. Glance, then back. You don't want a nice view of yourself running into a tractor.
 
Baggsy said:
They're trying to get you to look where you're going. When you're making a sharp low speed turn, you need to crank your head around pretty good to see where you're going to go.
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ah, so at higher speeds, and curves that are not so sharp you dont have to turn your head so much? its more subtle then?
 
I do this all the time. I haven't crashed into a pretty girl yet
 
bigpoppa said:
ah, so at higher speeds, and curves that are not so sharp you dont have to turn your head so much? its more subtle then?
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Do it both ways in a parking lot (and really turn your head) to see the huge reduction in turning radius.

Watch videos featuring target fixation to see how an easy curve ends in disaster because the rider is looking where they're pointing.

Also remember that your speed in kmh is about how many feet you travel in a second. So that 1 second glance at 80kmh takes you 73 feet.

Having said that, of course you will get good at taking in the scenery. As the weather gets better it's hard not to be distracted.
 
I've tested it, and yes eventually with experience you can hold your direction for longer but regardless, eventually YOU WILL end up going towards where you're looking. Or if you overcompensate with the steering you'll go further in the opposite direction than you had originally calculated.
 
bigpoppa said:
ah, so at higher speeds, and curves that are not so sharp you dont have to turn your head so much? its more subtle then?
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At higher speeds you still have to turn your head and look where you're going to go.
On the course cones/lines and such, will then be in your peripheral vision.
You don't need to actually look at them, because you don't want to run over them.

Remember when you're learning and nervous you tend to stiffen up.

You don't look down, because you don't want to go there.

When you're on the road, your eyes are constantly moving.
Mirror checks, blind spot checks, looking far ahead, and for dangers in all directions.
But you still need to look where you want to go before you get there.
 
Yes, you look where you want to go, probably the most important thing I learned from the m1 course, I would probably have wrecked a half dozen times by now if I didnt remember that rule, but its not THAT sensitive as youre imagining.

Its not like if youre riding in a straight line and you look at a field beside you youre going to instantly end up in that field. Its more for turns.

When youre turning, look where you want to go
Think of it this way, if you come into a turn too fast, and you think youre going to go off the road, and you panic and look at that tree you think youre going to hit, youll hit that tree. But if you keep calm and keep looking down the road you will make the turn.

You can still look around when youre on a bike without immediately hitting whatever youre looking at.
 
You'll notice blind people don't ride anywhere. I think that just about sums it up about going where you're looking.
 
I put this sticker over my tach on my last bike:
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If it's nice enough to look at, then stop and take a photo. Riding is for riding. Stopping is for sight seeing.
 

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The rule when I took my training was "where your eyes go, the bike will go".
The motorcycle will follow your eyes.
IMO if the scenery is grand and there's a shoulder, pull over.
 
Owen said:
I put this sticker over my tach on my last bike:
attachment.php


If it's nice enough to look at, then stop and take a photo. Riding is for riding. Stopping is for sight seeing.
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I almost lost it when I saw the sign on BRP for the first time. Thought it was a sign of encouragement with the guy doing "wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee" as he went over.
 
The 'look where you want to go' is good up to a point but it's not magic. You have to (COUNTER)STEER the bike with your hands/arms, and not with your weight or wishes. Yes, you should look where you are heading for many reasons, I'm not arguing that, but I'd suggest that new riders should learn how the handlebars work.
 
FLSTNCSHKJ ^ solid interpretation. Looking where to go is a pretty subtle thing. Like when people look to0 closely in front they may convert a simple bend in the road into a quintuple apex corner. That always looks cheezy. If you fancy a cow in the field, have a look, it's not gonna be a problem.
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