can't seem to get knee on pavement...

IRDEATH

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i have a 2008 busa and have been riding it for about 2 years now. i never really rode it at stock height lowered it as soon as i got it. A year ago I went to deals gap and scraped the crap outta my fairings and exhaust due to it being lowered. Well around a month ago I raised it back up to stock height because I hated hitting speed bumps and what not. Big question is I can't seem to get my knee down no matter how much I try, just curious i keep the rear shock really stiff, could it be hindering progress at all? I'm 230lbs at 6', i know i have seen plenty of people show pics dragging knees on these monsters. I feel that I have proper body positioning and lean, and I know that i'm not to short to put my knee puck on the pavement but it never happens. I usually attack the same off ramps trying to get a knee down, could the bike be to "high" ?? I can't figure it out and its getting frustrating. I have read the few post on here about body position and the one video explaining it. I think I'm doing everything right and at times i swear my bike is parallel to the ground and no knee contact with the pavement. I can't seem to talk my wife into following me to record my progress so i can see what i'm not doing right. So I have a cam i'm going to attach and critique myself..any thoughts... think suspension is to stiff keeping me to high up. I'm no track pro but i do have 14K plus miles on it, and it has been a goal of mine to get my knee down, I would be extremely excited to scuff up my pucks. any advice??:please:
 
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Track days, trying on the street can lead to a bad time. If you insist you probably are not getting off the bike far enough. Many have posted pics of dragging knees. Some pics........ the bike is not leaning but, they hang far enough off to touch a knee down. Not the proper technique but they are happy.
 
i have never dragged a knee..... on my ducati i dragged a muffler once...2 up...and they were high mounts... was a life or death situation...(unmarked curve on back side of slight hill..total surprise)
 
Your body position, line, and/or speed isn't correct. Having someone follow you through the corners with a camera would help a lot. Like UncleSteve said, better to do it on the track.

The top 3 and the bottom 2 pics are the same corner, different laps. One time I hit it right, and one time I didn't.

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YEA I'D LOVE TO MAKE IT TO A TRACK BUT RIGHT NOW I HARDLY HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO GET OUT FOR A FEW HOURS, MY WIFE WORKS AND I WATCH OUR 3 MONTH OLD DAUGHTER AND 2 1/2 YEAR OLD SON. IT'S ALL I CAN DO TO MAKE IT THE 5-6 MILES DOWN THE INTERSTATE TO THE OFF RAMPS. WE HAVE EVERY OTHER WEEKEND KID FREE BUT LIVING IN NORTH CAROLINA I'VE NEVER HEARD OF A TRACK HERE, I MEAN THERE COULD BE BUT HAVEN'T HEARD OF ONE. EVERY SO OFTEN I MAKE IT TO THE MOUNTAINS LOCALLY SORTA LIKE DEALS GAP, I'VE TRIED THERE TO AND SOMETHING JUST ISN'T HAPPENING RIGHT. THANKS FOR THE ADVICE:thumbsup:
 
YEA I'D LOVE TO MAKE IT TO A TRACK BUT RIGHT NOW I HARDLY HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO GET OUT FOR A FEW HOURS, MY WIFE WORKS AND I WATCH OUR 3 MONTH OLD DAUGHTER AND 2 1/2 YEAR OLD SON. IT'S ALL I CAN DO TO MAKE IT THE 5-6 MILES DOWN THE INTERSTATE TO THE OFF RAMPS. WE HAVE EVERY OTHER WEEKEND KID FREE BUT LIVING IN NORTH CAROLINA I'VE NEVER HEARD OF A TRACK HERE, I MEAN THERE COULD BE BUT HAVEN'T HEARD OF ONE. EVERY SO OFTEN I MAKE IT TO THE MOUNTAINS LOCALLY SORTA LIKE DEALS GAP, I'VE TRIED THERE TO AND SOMETHING JUST ISN'T HAPPENING RIGHT. THANKS FOR THE ADVICE:thumbsup:

VIR is less than 2 hrs NE of you, just across the VA border near Danville.
 
Might want to look into VIR. Virginia International Raceway. A lot of races there of all types and a massive track that can be split up into smaller ones. Its near the NC border too......:thumbsup:
 
It can be done. These pics were taken at my 3rd track day ever at New Jersey Motorsports Park. I had previously ridden the Lighthing track with TPM's art Basic school and an open track day at Beaver Motorsports park in Pittsburgh. What worked for me was not even thinking about it. If you are constantly aware of it your trying to force the issue and it won't happen. Corner speed is a huge factor as well. if your not going in fast enough it can't happen smoothly either. Smooth throttle, braking and exit out of the apex are key. My form is no where near where it needs to be, still learning that. I also agree with others, the street is no place to learn how to drag a knee.

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Don't drag knee on the street man...that is a recipe for disaster. Keep that stuff on the track. Dragging knee is more about body position than anything else. Having your body that far over on the street is not very smart---you can also hit an uneven part of the road and end up having your knee kicked like a mule by the road---which means your gonna crash. Practice with it in a big parking lot or on the track---the AMA racers I ride with on Sundays never never never put their knee down on the public road.

Seriously---don't drag knee on the streets. If you are entering corners so hard that you need to drag knee to get through them then you might want to be real careful of highsiding or lowsiding the bike---I've seen it happen many times. If you are just doing it for the "cool factor" then be really careful of where and when you do it.
 
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I understand the street can be very unsafe but to me its no different then going to deals gap and doing it. I always wear all my gear and i sure as heck don't want to hurt my busa. I don't just go down some random road that i've never been down and hope for the best. I might just have to check out a parking lot to be on the safe side. Heck if i can do it in a parking lot ill prob keep doing it till my pucks are gone that day, won't have to worry about me getting back on the road. I just want to get to know my bike better and know what i can do with it in the twisties. And thanks again for the concern, and safety tips
 
I used to feel the same way my man.

Once I touched a knee down, the thrill was gone and I still did not know how to ride.

Today, I am still not sure that I do!

Suffice it say that if you go fast enough around a corner and your even close to sitting the right way, you'll touch down!
 
7 Easy steps to becoming a better rider.


Come to Eureka with the Org.

Follow Macon454

Copy cat his moves

Go back to Motel and change shorts

Find him and follow some more and try and keep up

Go back to Motel and change shorts again.

One last time find him and follow.

You should have learned 2 things by now

1 A little better Riding Posture

2 You can never being enough shorts
 
King Kenny Roberts never dragged a knee...:whistle:
He would use his knee to gauge how far over he was but never dragged it thru the corner.
As soon as it touched he would lift it knowing he was far enough over.
They were doing lap times just as fast on these bikes as they do now.
If you look closely their knees touch for only a second if they do at all.


Nowadays the racers use their knee almost as a support cuz they are sliding rear tire around.
Kennys style has given way to this new form of riding but it is all about getting around the corner not how far or how long your knee is on the ground.
Just me and I def dont have as much exp in the twisties as others do here but it never really bothered me.

But def no matter what your doing keep it on the track.
 
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YEA I'D LOVE TO MAKE IT TO A TRACK BUT RIGHT NOW I HARDLY HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO GET OUT FOR A FEW HOURS, MY WIFE WORKS AND I WATCH OUR 3 MONTH OLD DAUGHTER AND 2 1/2 YEAR OLD SON. IT'S ALL I CAN DO TO MAKE IT THE 5-6 MILES DOWN THE INTERSTATE TO THE OFF RAMPS. WE HAVE EVERY OTHER WEEKEND KID FREE BUT LIVING IN NORTH CAROLINA I'VE NEVER HEARD OF A TRACK HERE, I MEAN THERE COULD BE BUT HAVEN'T HEARD OF ONE. EVERY SO OFTEN I MAKE IT TO THE MOUNTAINS LOCALLY SORTA LIKE DEALS GAP, I'VE TRIED THERE TO AND SOMETHING JUST ISN'T HAPPENING RIGHT. THANKS FOR THE ADVICE:thumbsup:

And there in lies part of the problem...you just aren't getting enough seat time. (Not that your situation w/ kids is a problem, but you know what I mean) The more you ride, the more comfortable you will become on the bike. And it will become easier to properly execute advanced manuvers .

Rather then concentrating so hard on getting a knee down....focus on proper street riding techniques like correct lines, corner entry speed, looking up ahead into the turn, and good braking technique. While body position is important, touching a knee down doesn't automatically = an experienced, good rider.


Just sayin'
 
Remember this, though...all the advice in the world is great...but if you crash while doing that, it's all you brother.

There is no substitute for real-time training and practice.

And FGS, please find yourself a controlled environment where, should something go wrong, no one else gets hurt.

Good luck, have fun. Let us know how it all turns out!
 
I think I have been close enough to drag a knee many times and I really think I could but untill I get some riding pants with pads, and a couple of track days I think I will keep my knees tucked safely in. It sounds freaking when the pegs scrape though :whistle:
 
No your not too short to drag a knee. I am 5'5", have the suspension 1" higher than stock and running a 55 series. Two items that make my bike in the pic taller than yours and I was still dragging a knee.

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Whatever you do don't rush it, don't go dip into a corner just so you can say that you finally scraped the puck. It really doesn't count till you smoothly drag the knee around a corner. Don't just touch down so you can say you did it, do it in a controlled effort. Remember if your dragging a knee the seat is not for your rear end, half of your azz at a minimum needs to be hanging off it.:laugh:
 
Lot of people get their bum off the seat and think that's the key, but they don't point their head and upper body into the turn so they end up twisting away from the turn. This makes it almost impossible to get a knee down because your pelvis is gonna point the same way, away from the turn. The student in this video displays this common mistake. Even toward the end as he's touched-down you'll see he's a bit twisted away, but he's just learned and realized what it takes.
 
Definitely try at a track-day if you have a chance. Lower risk of your learning experence becoming a really expensive painful one. I learned the idea on a pit bike and moved that over. 99% of dragging knee is your body position, busa, 750 or pitbike. You might not have the lean angle you think you have, I am way shorter on a taller bike and I work to get mine over enough.
 
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