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cornering for smaller/lighter ppl

dhkid

Turbo Monkey
Mar 10, 2005
3,358
0
Malaysia
is it just me or is cornering for smaller/lighter ppl harder? coz i seem to have much more trouble going through corners with out washing out while following heavier riders who are not even pushing hard.
i know using the laws of physics, given the coefission(sp?) of friction (assumed constant) it would be slightly easier for lighter ppl to corner coz of less inertia to move around. but what i think is that since most tires are designed by average weighted ppl, they dont dig in well for lighter ppl and hence dont give enought traction. making it harder for lighter ppl?
i would really like some input from light ppl instead of trying to get an answer for using science and e-speculating.
but then again i could just suck i corners, which i think i do. :nuts: :nopity: :help:
 

dhkid

Turbo Monkey
Mar 10, 2005
3,358
0
Malaysia
shut up ian!!! :blah: i try but i gain weight really slowly. :angry: and i know you are good at frekking cutties and i cant do them!!! :angry: :blah:
 

ÆX

Turbo Monkey
Sep 8, 2001
4,920
17
NM
i am staying @ 145. light riders have advantages
too! we can hop and finesse a whole lot easier then those big guys.
i didn't weigh over 100 till i was 18.
i have a light 5'11 frame and do yes sometimes
have a hard time. mainly with powering rough ruff stuff.
get your bike light and run your setups soft.

as for cornering i see no problem. just slam the ruts
like everyone else.!
 

dhmtbj

Monkey
Jan 30, 2002
467
1
Boston
Ya it shouldn't have any effect on traction. My suggestion is to practice a lot, maybe doing some of it on an open grass slope so if you fall it won't hurt too bad. Use you brakes as little as possible(especially the front). A rolling wheel grips far better than a skidding one. And finally, maybe try a longer stem than you currently use. I changed from a 50mm to a 75 mm stem and I found it much easier to weight the front end in corners. And the longer stem helped with fatigue as it put my arms at a better angle to handle bumps when I had my weight farther forward.
 

dhkid

Turbo Monkey
Mar 10, 2005
3,358
0
Malaysia
i am 5'4 and 110 pounds, i am not really skinny,( i am at the ideal weight for my height) and NO ian, i am not staying skilly for the girls! i am alright with cornering technique, ( i got the fundamentals ). i have problems with flat corners. corners with ruts are a brease.
 

Bicyclist

Turbo Monkey
Apr 4, 2004
10,152
2
SB
^What he said...

I've noticed that tire pressure makes a huge difference for my in corners. Plus, a lower pressure would help you through the rough stuff as long as it's not too low as to where you're pinch flatting.
 

sanjuro

Tube Smuggler
Sep 13, 2004
17,373
0
SF
Weight is a huge factor for tire pressure. If you are running 40 psi, you won't be cornering as well as if you run 35psi, easily done if you are 120lbs. If you use Stan's you can run as low as sub-20's without pinch flats...
 

PatBranch

Turbo Monkey
Sep 24, 2004
10,451
9
wine country
I just tilt the bike over and push it into the ground. Keep the tires flat against the ground. If it is banked, you need to be over more tilting your bike. If it is a flat turn, you keep your bike up as much as you can, to get the most traction while titling it enough to make the turn. Weighting the downhill pedal side will help alot with this.

Brake and slow down, then coast through the turn - it will almost slingshot you out and gain speed if it is banked or a berm. This is what eric carter does.
 

thaflyinfatman

Turbo Monkey
Jul 20, 2002
1,577
0
Victoria
As far as tyres go, try some relatively narrow tyres if you're currently on 2.7s/2.8s. Maxxis 2.5s or similar might go a bit better. Also in regard to tyre pressure, you should never be running them below about 18psi (IMO) because they end up rolling/squirming too much.

Also make sure you're getting correct sag - you want ~1/3rd in the rear and usually about 1/5th in the front.
 

dhkid

Turbo Monkey
Mar 10, 2005
3,358
0
Malaysia
i just got a full day of riding on new tires (maxxis minnion f 60a tires, couldn't find any softer compounds :( ) and they are on stans, the front held up ok but the rear burped out all its air from cornering on tarmac. but i think its coz my rear rims isn't really round anymore so the bead isn't tight enough to hold air. trying out the minion Fs on dirt i found that they drift much easier that my 50a high rollers, but they dont totally loose all traction when pushed. i was in full body amour today and pushed hard in the corners and found that the tire really dig in. braking on these tires is really bad not as good as the high rollers. right now i think the tire change has helped alot. and on my old 2.5 tires i used to run as low as 7psi. and i also learned how to do cutties today!!! thanks for all the help, i will be practicing drifting more now that i am slightly more confident doing it on these tires.
 
May 5, 2005
21
0
Penang,Malaysia
ey dhkid...
U shud do wat my dad said on the ride this morning..add weight 2 ur bike..(e.g. dont use the Fox 40..hehe)
u shud eat more ahha...i way like twice ur weight hahah
 

konahucker43

Monkey
Jul 18, 2004
437
0
central NY
higher pressure you run the faster you go! first soften your suspension. that should make riding easier. i run about 45% sag on my sgs and it feels sooo buttery smooth through every thing. and with the progressive nob its really hard to bottom. so theres no worries at all