2022/5/2 “2nd Sporty Ride Challenge”
I came to STEC today with a shuttle service.
I had my nerves loosened up the day before at a chiropractor, so my muscles are loose.
Today, I feel like I can move my upper body.
The current challenge is also slalom.
I want to be a little more rhythmic, but
I found a cheat to slalom in third gear.
Is it going to be less crowded since it’s a weekday during the holidays?
This lesson was on a weekday during the holidays, so I expected there wouldn’t be many participants, but it was full. (I suppose so^^;)
The instructor this time was the same one who taught me at STEC for the first and second time, so it was about a year since his last lesson.
The bike this time was the usual CB400SF, but they had the No. 23, which was easy to ride last time, so I got it without hesitation!
“I don’t know how to choose…”
While taking the bike out of the garage, a person who was undecided muttered, “I don’t know how to choose.”
The instructor, who was contracted to do the job, said with a smug look on his face, “It’s a good idea to check the curvature of the edge of the tire.”
“If it’s curved…” “Touch here…” “Also…”
“Thank you.”
I took the bike out of the garage, checked the air pressure, and handed it to the next person, who asked, “What should I set it to?”
I froze for a moment, but then replied, “I chose 220.”
As I pushed it to the meeting place, I wondered,
what does this person do about the air pressure on his bike that he normally rides?
Warming up
The warm-up starts with going around the outside of the course,
and gradually working your way up to bending,
and at this stage you can check your physical condition for the day (how stiff your muscles are).
In the second half of the warm-up, you idle in third gear around the cranks and narrowly placed pylons on the city course,
but if your muscles are stiff you won’t be able to turn the bike quickly,
and you’ll end up knocking over the pylons.
On this day, I felt good, probably because the chiropractic treatment the day before had worked.
If your muscles are stiff…
I’ll stop here. I think I could write a lot about this alone,
so if I get the chance, I’ll blog about it.
Practice turning
The first thing we’ll practice is braking, but I couldn’t think of anything in particular, so I’ll start with the article on practicing turns.
Constant speed turns are super scary
When practicing turns, I always do J-turns,
but this time I was able to practice turns at a constant speed from the entrance to the exit.
This was really good timing, and it’s something I’ve been thinking about recently.
I felt from watching onboard videos online and on YouTube that the ideal turn would be to quickly bank in the direction you want,
and then turn at a constant bank angle and speed.
Apparently you can go at 28km/h without crossing the line,
but I can’t start a turn at 28km/h (T_T).
I get scared.
I was advised to go in a straight line at about 30km/h,
and turn without using the brakes,
but I just can’t do it (T_T).
I went a few times and decided it wasn’t right. I can’t do it.
No falls in this lesson!
At this point, I hear the instructor’s voice.
“You won’t fall over in this constant speed turning lesson.”
So,
without my fingers on the brake lever,
with my right foot on the toe, and without being able to step on the rear brake,
I lean over and turn my eyes back to the starting point!
I’m surprised at the banking angle, which is greater than I expected, but I make a complete turn.
It reminded me of the steady circle turn from the previous lesson.
Isn’t this what it feels like when you’re using your grip force almost exclusively for turning?
When I slow down at the entrance to the corner, lean the bike over, and then immediately accelerate,
I realize that I haven’t used up all of my tires yet.
This new sensation is what I gained from this lesson.
Even though I experienced it in the steady circle turn last time, it didn’t really come to me…^^;
I was not good at slalom, but…
In the last lesson, when I was told that I was “using the brake and accelerator too much,”
the instructor who was driving ahead of me was in third gear.
But even so, I was still getting ahead of him (T_T).
I also wrote that my goal this time was to get better at slalom.
Will writing that three times in a row make it stand out in the chart?
I don’t think it’s related, but before the slalom lesson,
there was an explanation on the whiteboard.
3rd gear idling
What I felt there was that when using a high gear, the speed is high, so I can’t turn unless I actively use my lower body to lean the bike. The engine brake is weak, so I don’t slow down when I take my foot off the gas.
Today, I told myself not to be greedy and just do the slalom in third gear.
Even if it gets packed behind, I’ll start by slaloming in third gear idling.
Unlike the stop-and-go I’ve done up until now using second gear, I use my lower body firmly to lean the bike and be conscious of turning.
This is where my poor use of my lower body becomes apparent.
I can’t lean the bike properly, so I’m hitting the rear brake from a straight line toward the pylon^^;. It’s a repeated cycle.
Is my knee grip weak?
Should I step on the instep?
Should I press my thighs against the tank?
The suspension is moving!
After a while, I was able to pass 6m and 5m intervals.
I got greedy and tried using the accelerator and rear brake a little while in third gear.
I was advised to “open the throttle with the slack removed. Think of it as a two-stage operation,” so I passed the pylons while keeping that in mind, and I began to feel the movement of the suspension.
I had heard somewhere that in a pylon slalom, it is almost impossible to fall over by leaning too much, so I increased the bank angle, brake, and accelerator while keeping the rhythm of “more” in line with the movement of the suspension. I felt each turn and the fat on my sides being squeezed, which I had never felt before.
The grip end passed under the pylon, and I could feel the bike leaning over and turning properly.
It’s exactly the same feeling as when you make a short turn on skis!
It’s easy. It doesn’t tire you out.
For the first time, I found pylon slalom to be fun.
The long-awaited course slalom
This time’s course slalom has a gentle layout.
A difficult course is good for testing your skills, but it makes the difference in skill very clear,
and as a result, the front and back end open up, and you can’t ride very far.
There is one corner where I don’t know the correct way to do it,
but other than that, I can ride comfortably.
I ride behind the instructor, using the cornering speed as a guide.
My entry speed is fast!
The instructor who helped me a year ago, who was watching from the outside,
gave me the advice, “Your turns are good, and your body is moving in sync with the acceleration and deceleration.
However, when braking, hold the bike firmly,
and imagine pressing down on the rear tire.”
The effects of slalom may have come into play in my turns.
Last time, I was told that my turns were slow, so maybe I’ve made some progress?
That’s it for my STEC lesson notes.
