Anyone got an article or webpage on how to get your knee down

[xxdcmast]

Looking for a good article prefferably with pictures on the best way to get your knee down in the turns. I know rotate around the tank, shoulder leads the way, loose and relaxed, etc but I just cant seem to get mine down.

Looking for some help.

[TheIglu]

Don't rotate, move your hips from one side of the seat to the other. Rotating makes you unable to hold the tank with your inner theigh as effectively.

Just get out onto the track, make sure you have good body position and it will happen, especially in 1 and 9. I never put a knee down in my life until racing. (well, once by accident, didn't want to though)

[WebCrush]

Don't bother trying to get your knee down. It will just hurt your times if that is your goal.

Work on corner speed and in time it'll happen.

[OreoGaborio]

what they said... don't "rotate", move laterally.... and like Clayton, i've never put a knee down on the street (cept for the time i crashed )

and rule #1 in getting your knee down is don't try to get your knee down. Like Adam said, if you that's your objective it WILL slow you down and your riding will suffer.

I still remember the first time I got a knee down... it was at my first tony's trackday and I had been kinda trying to put it down all day... i stopped trying & the very next session i skuffed it in turn 2. Best feeling ever and it really drove home the fact that if you wanna go fast on a bike you can't try... the less you try the faster you go.

[TTD]

Personally... I still rotate.

That's probably why I don't drag my knee very much or hard.

Regardless.... worry about carrying corner speed... the knee should touch accidentally the first time.

[xxdcmast]

Ok so whats your reccomendations for carrying corner speed?

[McBiggity]

ummm, carry more speed into the corner.


seriously, you'll have to just get comfortable with higher corner speeds. Increase your speed a little each time. It comes with practice.

[OreoGaborio]

Originally posted by McBiggity
ummm, carry more speed into the corner.


seriously, you'll have to just get comfortable with higher corner speeds. Increase your speed a little each time. It comes with practice.

That's pretty much it... cornerspeed comes w/ practice and proper technique which stems from a willingness to learn. See my sig quote. Among other things, you need to have confidence, skill and knowledge to go fast. You go fast, you need more lean angle... you need more lean angle your knee gets closer to the pavement.

Get some good books, some pratice time (preferably on the track) & some one-on-one instruction.... and try to keep your knees off public roads for the most part

[JeffL]

Yeah, as the speeds increase, with a similar body position/turn in/line, it will just be natural that the bike will need to be leaned more. I actually got my knee down on the 2nd open lap of my first TTD in T6, and after that it was kind of like "ok, well thats out of the way" then it was just one less thing to worry about. It was pretty gimmicky to me the first day, I used up a good chunk of my left slider, but the second day I was using the knee down as more of a feeler, and actually touching down, and picking my knee back up.

[Awesome]

I can sell you used knee pucks?

[Ken C]

Good advice/ insight has already been said, so I'll just mention that we can show you proper body position at a tonystrackday. But, we'll also tell you to not try to get a knee down, rather to build a strong foundaiton of skill that will likely lead you to kee down speeds.

No better place to do this than on the track. Getting more skilled (and faster) is what track days is all about.

[xxdcmast]

Originally posted by hessogood
I can sell you used knee pucks?

Nah lol Id rather burn my own.

[JeffL]

Originally posted by Ken C
Good advice/ insight has already been said, so I'll just mention that we can show you proper body position at a tonystrackday. But, we'll also tell you to not try to get a knee down, rather to build a strong foundaiton of skill that will likely lead you to kee down speeds.

No better place to do this than on the track. Getting more skilled (and faster) is what track days is all about.

I changed my body position drastically the second day, and didnt touch my knee down nearly as much. I can only surmise that this was because I completely changed the center of gravity of the bike, thus using alot less lean angle in the corners, all while being able to go faster. Just because you have your knee down, doesnt really mean much. If you compared the speeds I was doing from my first to second days, I'd be willing to bet they werent even in the same ballpark (relatively speaking).

[TTD]

Correct...

Knee down does not equal fast.

I pass lots of people that are dragging their knees at Track Days and I'm still 3 or 4 inches away.

Some of this is because people try to get their knee down... and some is because people are taking a tighter line than they should.

If you're not ready to do a track day... come up and watch on Sept 20.

It's the last of the season. So come up and watch and then you have all winter to kick yourself for not signing up.

[legalspeed]

Don't worry about your knee, worry about the clock.


Then your knee will touch on it's own.

Don't concentrate on looking good, concentrate on being, safe, confident, and in control;
Once your control allows you to become more confident in your skills through riding safer, your brain's survival reflex will release your throttle wrist and you will get faster quick.

You could also talk to people like Eric Wood, Jeff Wood, or Peter Kates.
Do what they tell you.

[a13x]

I can touch my knee while riding down the straight. Beat that.

[JeffL]

I can put my entire body down in T2, beat that hot shot.

[a13x]

I did that in June you Rookie

[SVRACER01]

i think i have video somewhere from superbike magazine about how to get your knee down... ill find and you can have it

[13]

I hate putting my knee down. Kneesliders are expensive. I hardly ever do it. Seriously. I don't think it's necessary at my level and I know for a fact it slows me down whenever I think about it. Don't try. It'll happen.

[ultraTwist]

Originally posted by xxdcmast
Ok so whats your reccomendations for carrying corner speed?

Go faster. No really, what happens if you have really short legs can you still get you knee down?

[Ken C]

Knee dragging is OPTIONAL. You don't need to drag knee to go fast. Right Graham?

[Paul_E_D]

I'm a knee down addict. It's one of the sensations that makes me love roadracing.

That said, be patient. THe guys who drag their knees before it's necessary tend to be all over the track not looking good.

[LiononaLeash]

For me, I was draggin knee before even my first trackday. I actually went out to a nice CLEAN parking lot without alot of painted lines on it, and learned in about an hour. This was right after I got my new leathers and sliders, and was also in prep for the coming of my first trackday.

Basically I resolved to trust that my tires would hold(Michelin Pilot Power), and that I had a very high chance of crashing that evening. In other words, I was going to get comfortable with lean angle that evening and how far I could lean the bike over, and was prepared to pay my dues with rashing my bike if necessary.

it ended up that about 18-22 mph was a perfect speed to cruise around the big lot and do figure-8's. I made sure to stay off of any painted lines too.

I held the speed constant in 2nd gear, and make the 8 smaller and smaller until my knees touched. Did that for a littel while, then continued to tighten the figure-8 until I scraped hard parts(which ended up being my side stand) and scared the crap outa me. I loosend the figure 8 a littel bit and just kept going and going trying to use good body positioning as these guys explained.

I went to that parking lot several times to keep practicing and to keep getting exposure to lean thes higher angles, so I could feel relaxed while pitched over. The whole purpose of this excercise was to just become accustomed to the bike way over, nothing more.

However, when I did my first trackday, the method I used above did not account for the suspension compressing at the corners due to the higher speed. I reduced cornering clearance, so on my first day I dragged hard parts ALOT. I was WAY off to the inside of the bike trying to use as little lean angle as possible on the bike itself.

I got some help from Graham, put as much preload as I could on the springs and chatted with Peter Kates that day and he told me there was nothing more I could do with the stock suspension of my TLR since it was way undersprung for my weight.

I decided to spend some suspension money so my TLR could better carry me around the track and not compress as much in the turns on the next rackday.

My second trackday, a only scraped lightly a couple times at the apex of turn 6 due to the suspension still compressing. I felt like I was making good progress as my body positioning was getting better.

I added a little bit of ride height for the 3rd trackday and ended up not touching any hard parts at all. Ofcourse, I was also getting great instruction from Tony's guys all the while with my body positioning. Those guys know how to ride, and just as importantly, they know how to teach. Thanks guys.

Wow, that was longer than I intended it to be, sorry guys.

[JeffL]

Originally posted by ultraTwist
Go faster. No really, what happens if you have really short legs can you still get you knee down?

I'm 5'8" with a 30" inseam.

Those MotoGP guys seem to do just fine getting a knee down, and theres quite a few of them that are pretty damn tiny.