This idea just suddenly popped up in my head right now...... what if I were to completely f*ck up my suspension settings and make the bike handle like shit.

And then I find ways to overcome that shitty suspension with better riding. So when the suspension is dialed back in correctly I would be riding faster.

Yeaaa!!! :woot

I had some suspension problems and I feel it made learning slower early on but I think I learnt more about suspension playing with it (but still know fuck all)

Recently I got my bike back from my suspension guy as he valved it specifically for a track and on the road it was dangerous- like buck you off the seat type stuff.

You could put the clickers back to stock and keep your sags correct...

But even so I dont know how much one could learn as the performance threshold changes the faster you go. I.e do you want to go back to basic's? Is this goiing to teach you good habits or bad ones?

I had thoughts of going to a smaller bike and working on my corner speed more.

Personally, I am at the point now where I would rather upgrade parts before I need it then to crash trying to find the absolute limit of stock stuff. A crash puts you behind the 8 Ball in more ways then one. Financially, physically and it plays with your confidence.

My last set up worked well on the road to the point where I had confidence to hit bumps at full lean but on the tack I was running out of adjustments. The new set up is the opposite, everything is backed off and its still too hard for the street/canyons.

I came around a slightly rutted corner and the rear end was getting upset, no probs add a click of comp and its better but I hit a bump just after the apex on another corner, the rear gets air born, rev's go right up and lands before I even have a chance to react. Well I lie a bit, I just knew to hold the throttle and get ready to slide.

I cant ride it as hard in the twisties as before, but thats the price I have to pay, everythings a compromise and now im forced to slow down on the street.

sounds like a death wish!

I see it as running with weights strapped to your ankles..... you train with them and once you take them off you run that much faster.

The way I see it is if you ride a perfectly setup bike, it spoils you. Everything just falls into place so easily it doesn't require as much input from the rider. So I figured if I ride with a shitty setting and I find ways to go fast with the shitty settings... once I have the proper settings I can go that much faster.

I use to be into driving cars.... I had an STi and I hated it because its so easy to drive fast. I can go into a corner without braking at 60+ and just turn the steering wheel. Any idiot can do that. I'd rather drive a crunky old 240sx with blown shocks and all season tires.... it takes so much more from the driver to go around a turn quickly.

Bad idea, I think you'll get bad habits from the poor suspension and this is jsut unsafe. I say get it setup by a suspension tuner and hit up your local twisties and do track days to improve your skills.

how bout just weighting your bike? :lol a couple fifty pounders strapped on the back, and some weights on the bar ends!

I remember reading this Will. If you want to improve a good method is to pick just one part of your riding that needs improvement and just focus on that for that day. It is supposedly better than trying to do everything in one day. So let's say you ride next Saturday; just focus on braking or something to that nature. Supposedly this way you'll improve faster. I'm just throwing that idea out there and thought id share.

I remember reading this Will. If you want to improve a good method is to pick just one part of your riding that needs improvement and just focus on that for that day. It is supposedly better than trying to do everything in one day. So let's say you ride next Saturday; just focus on braking or something to that nature. Supposedly this way you'll improve faster. I'm just throwing that idea out there and thought id share.

That's a good idea..... picking out the weaknesses and work on them one by one.

And coming to think about it my suspension is not set up properly to begin with. My front end wobbles coming out of highspeed turns and the rear end bounces all over the place while I'm leaned over. :monkeyface

i dont think its a great thing to do but it will have the effect you said it would. i have run half of last year with the stock suspension on my bike, i upgraded and went instantly faster with much better feel from the bike. but riding it when it was not as well set up allowed me to feel the substantial change in grip i had when i upgraded and make use of my time riding it "wild" to translate that into speed as i am prepared to push until im in that zone.

basically what you are talking about is the same thing. run stock gear, buy ohlins and watch your times drop.

people adapt to what they have, their riding grows with what they know, thus different people like different settings.

dumbest idea i've heard all week...but it's only Tuesday

dumbest idea i've heard all week...but it's only Tuesday

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHHHAHHAHHAHAHA

:_lol::_lol::_lol:

how bout just weighting your bike? :lol a couple fifty pounders strapped on the back, and some weights on the bar ends!


This actually works, well to a certain extent.

I used to take the bike to the post office and had about 25kg in the back pack. Once you drop it off everything seems different, easier...

Maybe ask the course marshal if you can do a session with a back pack, then take it off for your 2nd session and see what happens.

HAHAHA WTF! there are very few people that can out ride a bike. If you want to get better just push yourself. I'm sure your bike can handle it. Just do it in the proper area (ie track.)
you don't take your front wheel of so you can get better at riding wheelies. why would you mess up your shocks so you can turn better?