[Misti Hurst]

As I sit here thinking about my cornering, which I am comfortable with my ability at the moment...I think about my mental barricade that keeps me from getting lower.

You know...that feeling you get when you think that you are over as far as you can go, yet you are still 6" from dragging...of course lots of things come into play (i.e. speed, body position, throttle control etc)...let's just focus on the lean angle for the sake of this thread.

The biggest thing that holds me back I guess in a question is,

"May/can you add lean angle at ANY point throughout turn?"

I ask this in order for the placebo effect to play a role for one of you to tell me yes and my confidence is pushed further.

I am sure a lot of you have felt this feeling...I do all the time...you feel that once you have that line and your lean set in, you need to stay right where you are throughout the turn.

This is a really great question and while I didn't have time to read every single response I did glance through them and saw some good information, but there are a few things I think may be missing.

First of all, the ideal situation is that you that you don't NEED to adjust your lean angle once you have committed to the turn. One steering input is the goal for most corners with the exception being decreasing radius turns and double apex turns. However, we all know that things happen, and we may need to make adjustments to the amount of lean angle we are carrying depending on the situation. Maybe the corner tightens and we risk running wide or we need to avoid something so we have to adjust and maybe lean more. If that is the case then a few things need to be considered.

1. If you are already at max lean angle and you attempt to lean the bike more then you risk running out of traction and lowsiding. In this case, dropping your upper body over to the inside and down can help tighten your line WITHOUT adding any extra lean angle.

2. One of the most common causes of crashes we see at the California Superbike School (I'm a coach with them) is riders ADDING LEAN ANGLE AND THROTTLE at the same time. So IF a rider has misjudged the corner and needs to make an adjustment in the amount of lean angle they need then what do they need to make sure they stop doing?