Hanging off v GYKD

As I understand it, or not, the idea of hanging off is to shift your
centre of gravity enabling the bike to be cornered with less lean and
greater grip. Also, as I understand it, the centre of gravity of a
person is somewhere around the small of the back. So what is the point
of sticking one's knee out?

Being true to your posting name I see. You have no real concept of the
purpose of a titanium knee slider do you?

It helps you get yer ar$e out which is, as you say, where your centre of
gravity is.

You understand wrongly.
Having the bike a bit more upright helps stop things touching down and
stops you riding off the edge of the tread but doesn't give more grip,
except that tread grips better than sidewall or silencer.

I believe this makes it clear:

If the knee wasn't out, it would make for a very awkward position, &
tend to make your upper body face away from the corner rather than
towards it. If you're not hanging off that far, your knee doesn't need
to be sticking out as far (unless you're trying to get it down, natch).

As you didn't ask what the point of getting your knee *down* is, I'll
assume you know.

As a kid I used to instinctively stick my knee out cornering on a push
bike. That still happens at times on my ZR-7, it's an unconscious
action. Yet, when I make a conscious effort to hang off, my knee seems
to stay in, I just don't seem to hang off and stick my knee out at the
same time.

It's a girl thing.

That'd be quite impressive if the bike was leaning over.

I know but it does demonstrate that you don't really have to be on the pegs.

If my feet weren't on the pegs and I was in that position, it'd be a matter
of microseconds before I was ALL on the floor let alone my knee.

And it's time to get a new pic for this type of thread Miss Molly.

MUCH better :-)

So, in terms of cornering - as opposed to looking cool - am I missing
anything by leaving the knee alone?

Too tired to explain, but briefly:

- moving your body weight helps initiate the turn
- hanging off is not just about 'sticking your knee out' - your bum
will be half off the seat, so a significant portion of your weight has
moved

All I know is that I go faster in slower corners if I try to get my knee
down.

I think it's got more to do with how you approach the corner than it has
what you're aiming for though.

Probably. You see a lot of people that are so focussed on the knee
down bit that the bike itself remains almost upright. I eventually
got my KD when I gave up trying to do it and concentrated on going
faster.

Quite so.

Mind you, the faster I go, the less I get my knee down nowadays.

Oooh!

Yes, I suspect that's why I've never done it.

That's a fiver, orright, and we'll say no more about it

Sure.

While you're here: what's the going rate for pre-scuffed kneesliders?

Tenner each, 15 quid a pair to you.

Well I need to do summat different. As said earlier, I fair kak m'sen
when I ground the footpegs and it really throws me of my stride. As my
weight is on the seat the pegs can just pivot up and it's not
disastrous. However, when I have tried to hang right off,
concentrating on getting my front over as well as my backend, I've
still grounded the pegs - so I must be doing something horribly wrong.
With all my weight on the peg the effect was very pronounced and

Keith Code teaches putting your weight on the peg opposite to the
direction of the turn....

I thought that was more of an off-road technique. Having said that I

Code mentions it in Twist of the Wrist...

remember Stoppie Windys saying he was doing it to good effect up
Hartland Quay. He was taught to ride by Arthur Browning though.

I've never understood this peg weighting thing.

It'll encourage the bike to slide, rather than fall, if the tyres lose
grip, at the expense of the rider tending to fall off on the inside.
It'll mean hanging off is less tiring because the outside leg is less
folded than the inside leg. It leaves the inside leg more free to move
the knee, and on left handers, change gear.

I love it when you talk dirty.

IIRC the theory behind that is that, if the back lets go, the bike gets
thrown upright, rather than further over.

Not sure I believe it, mind. And although I've tried it in practice, I

I've not found it to make any difference, I must say. But in relation
to the putting the weight on the inner peg as the OP was mentioning it
does indicate that that is probably not the right way to go either.

didn't find it all that useful, on the road at least. Maybe Champ can
comment from a track perspective.

scared the life out of me. All through this process I was
concentrating on the hanging off and really have little concept of
what my knee was doing. Well, I prolly had little concept of owt
really.

And to demonstrate the point:

Note:
a) angle of motorcycle
b) lack of knee down.

Obviously, you've just rolled up to the stop line, but have been distracted
by something on the road in front, just out of shot, and have forgotten to
put your feet down. The photographer managed to get this shot of you just
as you fell over.

"When sheltered housing estates go bad" :)

See? Not hanging off enough. Just like me.