MOXIE NIXX is the author of the paranormal murder mystery "Gold Wings are Murder." Our heroes, Django and Sorcha Rhyne retire young and set out on a Four Corners Tour of the USA. Strangely, every place they stay seems to be haunted. Book one, "The Crying Stone," is set on beautiful Lake Lure, NC. Book two will be "The Ghost Light" set in spooky Charleston, SC. The author Moxie Nixx, and his wife Leigh, ride their 2012 Gold Wing out of Cascade, North Carolina.
This morning, I finished the on-paper edits of "Gold Wings are Murder." I found grammar and spelling errors on almost every page. I found 36 items big enough that I couldn't fix them on the spot, so I wrote those all down on a To-Edit list. Plus, I have two and a half chapters that need major re-work.
So, it's the beginning of June now. I should certainly have the book done and published for Amazon Kindle July 4th. I hope to also a paperback version--for folks who don't want to risk dropping their fancy Kindle while riding and reading on the back of a Gold Wing.
Do you ever feel anxious entering a turn? I sure do. Until only a few years ago, it used to be much worse. When I got good and tired of that, I decided to learn more about riding. So, I studied a famous book on cornering, and the racing-based instructor said I should always get my turning down all at once, and to always turn as quickly as possible! Of course, I am naturally suspicious of anything always being the correct technique, but I tried it. And you know what?
My anxiety got worse!
What? How could that be? This guy was famous. He was a winning racer. A big shot author. So, I figured I was doing it wrong, and went and practiced some more. But when you want to turn as quickly as possible, you have to run into the corner deeper and deeper. That created even more fear. And my problems got worse instead of better.
"No. No," I told myself. "This must be the way. Go watch some real motorcycle racers ride, and you'll see they all do it this way." Well, that's what the author of that book said anyway.
He was wrong.
What I saw, over and over and over again when I watched videos of the top riders In The World, was that NONE of them rode that way. Not one. Zip. Zero. Nada. Zilch. What were they doing differently than me? What did they do differently than that book author recommended? The fastest motorcycle racers in the world would blast down the straight, slow down, tip in a little, get started into the curve, then finally actually turn in and scrape their knees on the ground.
Watch it for yourself below. You'll see it in the very first corner of this American Superbike race. The riders tip in, and turn in.
When I tried riding that same way, I found it worked great! Way better than it had any right to. By initiating my turn slowly and gently, instead of trying my darndest to slam the bike down to full lean angle, I was much more relaxed. The bike behaved better. My hands, arms, face and eyes were all much more relaxed. It felt like the bike was coasting effortlessly down and back up. I found I was often using more lean angle with less effort. Best of all, my rides become longer and more enjoyable.
So, go for a ride! Hey, any excuse for a ride, right? Keep your eyes up, watching the vanishing point and checking for road hazards well ahead of the bike. Setup early for the corners by moving to the outside lane position. Then when you are close to the entrance of the corner, somewhere before the place where you would usually start to feel apprehensive, and just tip in slightly.
Going left? Push gently forward on that left hand grip. Don't push hard enough to make the bike dart across the lane or cut in too early. Just break the bike off that 90-degree angle. Get the bike leaned, just a little, Get the bike just a smidgen off of perpendicular. Then, add more lean angle as necessary to safely make your corner.
You may find that your initial lean is about all the lean angle you need for certain corners.
You may find that once the bike is leaned a little, it is much easier to lean it a little more.
You may find that your fear of sliding out is not attached to how far you lean over, but the very act of leaning at all. Once you get the bike leaned, even a little, without falling down, you may suddenly feel like everything is going to be okay.
You might also find that once the bike is leaned over, even a little bit, you can relax and get your eyes up. Even that tiny change in your vision can make you suddenly feel much more comfortable on the bike.
Spring is here. Get out there and ride. Carefully and gently try new things. Report back here with your results.
If you find this tip useful, you can subscribe to this blog by finding the "Follow by Email" box and entering your email address. That way, never miss a post.
My son graduated from high school just a few short years ago. He got his diploma without ever learning cursive writing. This is a huge mistake for all the students. Here is why ...
