We all have our own rituals and processes when it comes to preparing for a motorcycle ride. We play with bike setup, gear selection, maintenance duties, maybe glance at a road map or two. As a motor cop, I too have a process as I prepare for a tour out on the beat. But rather than pontificate on all the finer points of my program, I thought it might be fun if, in this Motor School installment, I walked you through some prep so that next weekend you could come on a ride-along with me. The good news? I already handled the heavy lifting by getting the motor unit to promise to keep wisecracks to a minimum, so now all we need to do is get you ready. Plus, you might find some of this stuff helpful when you plan your next big ride. You in? Great!

First, the nitty gritty. We’re going to be working a 3 p.m. to 3 a.m. special detail next Saturday and Sunday because it’s a fall-break weekend and command staff, in anticipation of things getting a little wild out there, has “voluntold” the motor unit to contribute a few bodies to bolster deployment, so that means us too. But before I go any further, I brought donuts to help keep us razor sharp, so grab a napkin.

Now, from a mental standpoint, next weekend will be different than a typical motorcycle outing in and around town that you normally experience. What I mean is that our regular outings usually find us hovering somewhere around a 4th-grade intellect but with far less focus and clarity. But today our role is that of public servant, sworn to protect and serve. In other words, the title of “police officer” comes first, and that of “motorcycle rider” falls a very distant second. That means we will be looking, watching, listening, and interacting with our environment in ways you were never asked or required to as a rider. Don’t get me wrong; it won’t be so hyper-intense that we’re anywhere close to graduating 4th grade. Maybe think of it as a mid-week math class with a pop quiz on the docket. You know, show up on time, sit down, and stop horsing around. What, the bear claw? Check the yellow bag with the little bears on it…

Okay, some logistics: Dress for the crash, but also be able to run, jump, fight, and swim. And make sure you have plenty of layers at the ready, because its gonna be hot mid-afternoon and cold by midnight. Pack a balaclava and rain gloves too, along with a clear shield. Also pack sunblock and water. Sometimes we have time to grab a bite but sometimes not, so bring food. I’ll have a trauma kit, but bring a first aid kit with you, along with your tools and battery jump-pack. Bring your emergency medical and contact info in your helmet and wallet too. In short, we are preparing for the apocalypse, but with minimal snacks or potty breaks.

We’ll be riding lots of unpredictable roadway: dirt, wet, old pavement, gravel, beach sand, steep hills. Since it’s all city stuff, I like a little more compliance and grip, so I air down just a smidge, maybe 3-5 psi below normal. Still, make sure to bring a tire plug kit, tire gauge, and inflator so we have options. And you’re an AMA member, right? They have great roadside assistance if we need it.

While motor cops typically ride next to each other, side-by-side when traveling from one place to another, you and me will be riding staggered at the back of the stack. I’ll stay in the forward position in the left wheel track of the lane, you stay in the right track a few bike lengths behind me. This just gives us more options if we need to take evasive measures, and that side-by-side stuff is really tricky unless you practice it a lot. And no matter what, do not put your left foot down in the middle portion of the lane at intersections when we come to a stop. That’s what we call “dirty foot,” because it’s the portion of the lane where all the grease and dirt accumulates. Trust me, the motors will give us a substantial verbal lashing if they see you do it.

Hmmm, what else. Let’s go over some safety stuff. If I initiate a traffic stop and pull a vehicle over, I’ll need you to lay back and wait somewhere safe. That said, if you see that I’m clearly in physical distress and you’re pretty sure I need help, feel free to mosey on over and lend a hand. I’m not saying you have to get involved, and I wouldn’t want you to get a cramp from all those donuts, but I think it’s safe to say most cops wouldn’t wave off life-saving assistance from a well-intentioned citizen.

Also, while we’re together I’ll be listening to all city communication through my helmet, so I’m not ignoring your awesome Bazooka Joe jokes, I’m just determining if I need to respond to an emergency request for help somewhere in the city. A few years back a call went out about a swimmer in distress off the east side of the Ventura pier, and because I was on my BMW RT-P, I was able to squirt around downtown traffic, get onto the pier, dodge some angry fishermen, and climb over the railing in time to make a successful water rescue. Of course, these situations are exceedingly rare, but because motor cops can get anywhere faster than any other first responder, we need to prepare our minds for that possibility when we roll around on the bikes.

Speaking of the pier, this is a beach city, so there are lots of pedestrians, surfers, bicyclists, motorcyclists, and random tourists everywhere. We will need to pay extra attention to the late afternoon sunlight, because the glare will be directly in our eyes as we head westbound and that, coupled with the ocean glare, will easily blind us. To help with this, I run a thin strip of electrical tape along the very bottom of the sunshield on my modular helmet so I can block out the sun – a poor man’s visor of sorts. Maybe set that up and try it out before next weekend. Speaking of glare, pack some anti-glare glasses if you have some because between new brighter headlights on the road and our pupils’ dilation at night, they really help with vision and overall safety while we ride.

And like any fun beach town shortly after that delightful last call of 0200 hours, we will be sharing the road with sozzled drivers. In anticipation for this unfortunate eventuality, we’re going to slow down quite a bit more than usual when we visually clear intersections. But regardless of where we are in the city or what time of day it is, let’s just assume and plan that every car everywhere will try to hit us. And by “assume,” I mean if our wheels are in motion, we have our heads on a swivel looking for threats, we are ready to execute evasive maneuvers, we’re covering the front brake, and we’re cerebrally resetting repeatedly. Bottom line, we should be completely brain fried by the end of our shifts next weekend.

Now relax, were gonna have a great time. I’ll make sure nothing bad happens to you. After all, if my 4th-grade math is correct, it’s your turn to buy donuts next time we ride to Rolling Pin. 

For more information on Total Control Training and available clinics, go to the Total Control website. Quinn wears Lee Parks Design gloves exclusively. Find Quinn at Police Motor Training.

See all Motor School with Quinn Redeker articles here.

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Cruising down the freeway, I clicked into 6th gear and noted that the day was warming up nicely. It felt amazing. And not just because the salty breeze was creating another Southern California moment. It was also the final day of instructing an intensive four-week police motor academy in Ventura.

This final day’s training segment would be an unofficial “city survival” induction, where I go off-script and show my eager ducklings the real-world complexities of working enforcement on a motor. In other words, I expose them to as many things as I can dream up before buttoning up their raincoats, kissing them on the cheek, and sending them out into the storm. 

After a short briefing, with a Starbucks venti skinny iced caramel macchiato coursing through my bloodstream, I led them through slippery hiking paths, rain-rutted fire roads, steep off-cambers, stairs, beach sand, railroad tracks, rocky hill climbs, and anything else I could manage. After four hours of on-bike training, we successfully navigated the delicate but sublime incline of the In-N-Out Burger parking lot. In the end nobody got hurt, and the BMW crash bars worked aces.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t all rainbows and butterflies, especially when my flock tried to navigate steep incline U-turns. Observing from the sidelines, I noticed they were dealing with two primary issues: 1) Fear: the steep inclines promised that their motorcycles would skate to the bottom of the hill if they even lightly kissed the deck, so they mentally locked up, and 2) Technique: they believed that in order to avoid crashing, they had to slip the clutch, counterbalance, drop the bike over, lock the bars, keep their speed up, and get their head and eyes around. In other words, they made it way harder than it needed to be.

After witnessing a few underwear emergencies, I hit the pause button on the Hindenburg debacle and imparted a little hillside riding hack that made the process much easier. Since you weren’t on hand to watch the demonstration, I thought now would be a good time to walk you through it so you can learn how to perform effortless U-turns on steep inclines. Ready?

First, find a steep incline such as a wide public driveway, alleyway, service road, or similar – just make sure it’s free of vehicular traffic during our science lab. Park safely on the hill, dismount, and stand next to your bike. While standing in place, balanced and comfortable, slowly rotate 360 degrees, taking short pauses at each point on the compass. Notice that as you stand, you have no momentum, yet you remain perfectly balanced on the hill without needing to transfer your weight to regain any stability. Also notice that your body’s angle or center line in relation to the incline of the hill does not shift, regardless of the direction you face on the incline.

Next, walk in a 30-foot circle on the hill. Notice that as your position and orientation changes from walking uphill, downhill, and sideways, you never fall up, fall down, or lose your balance on the incline. In other words, your body’s balance point, or center line, remains consistent and intact regardless of momentum or direction of travel.

The important point here – which applies to riding your motorcycle – is that because your body’s equilibrium works to keep you vertical and balanced no matter which direction you are facing, you can go, stop, turn, and move freely and effortlessly on the incline without requiring massive lean angles and oodles of forward motion. Less lean angle means no scary bike drops due to miscalculating weight transfer, clutch control, momentum, and 10 other complicated but unnecessary things while attempting the U-turn. In the words of Greg Brady, pretty far out, right?

Now let me be clear: Nothing changes once we get on the motorcycle. Your motorcycle, like you, has an equilibrium of sorts, a balance point or center line that enables it to remain perfectly balanced on a hill when it’s straight up and down, regardless of the incline it encounters or the direction it faces. And in the same way you make subtle adjustments to remain perfectly balanced while standing on your feet, you will make those subtle adjustments on the bike. Now let’s pump some helium into this leviathan and get her airborne…but no smoking please.

Here’s your first drill: Ride your motorcycle relaxed and easy, in 1st gear, up the incline. When you feel comfortable, I want you to initiate a turning movement and stop at a 90-degree angle, or perpendicular, to the roadway – like you are starting to turn into the Frosty Queen but you stopped short of the driveway entrance.

The rules are as follows: 1) you must keep your body’s mass in line with the motorcycle’s mass (no shifting body weight to one side or the other in the cockpit), and 2) at no time during the turning movement are you allowed to introduce any lean angle to the motorcycle. Remember, just like when you walked around on the hill and remained straight up and down, you must do the same on the bike. After a calm and uneventful pause on the hill, remain perfectly upright and balanced, turn the bars downhill without leaning over, and take off down the hill. Hey, I love Frosty Queen too, but we’re training here…

Here are a few keys to your success. Keep in mind your feet will not be equal distance from the ground as you sit on the hill in the 90-degree position due to the incline, so use the high side of the roadway to plant your foot and rest the other on the peg. Also, resist the urge to lean your bike towards the downhill when you take off from the 90-degree position. This will only serve to make the bike fall over toward the downhill and require you to chase it by engaging the clutch and adding power. Always keep everything straight up and down. Rinse and repeat.

Once you get comfortable riding into the 90-degree position, stopping, then completing the U-turn without any lean angle, start turning around without stopping at all. You may find yourself wanting to carry more speed now that we’re executing a full U-turn, but added momentum can force a lean angle that we don’t want. Instead, resist the urge, go slow and smooth, and concentrate on always keeping the bike upright. Yes, I’m beating a dead horse here, but by keeping the bike balanced and upright, we don’t need speed (or lean angle) in our turning process to remain comfortable and in control, which is why this works so well. 

And that’s it. If you can walk, you can execute this technique. For a visual example, go to Police Motor Training with Quinn Redeker on YouTube and find “Motorcycle U-Turns on Steep Hills – Easy as Walking.”   

For more information on Total Control Training and available clinics, go to the Total Control website. Quinn wears Lee Parks Design gloves exclusively. Find Quinn at Police Motor Training.

See all Motor School with Quinn Redeker articles here.

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Despite the fact that I’m getting up there in age, I still like to think of myself as a motorcycle racer. But if I’m honest, it’s more of a dream than reality. I’ve won zero purse money, never had sponsorship funding past dear old Mom and Dad, and not once has Broc Glover spooned a free set of Dunlops onto my race steed. Still, if ever our paths have crossed on track, you know I don’t like to follow, I won’t get out of the way, and I’m going to do everything in my power to lead to the checkers…

They say with age comes wisdom. No, I’m not talking about the increased bran uptake or the geriatric mobility stretching I’ve incorporated into my daily life. I mean that I’m growing to appreciate the benefits of pulling up the rear when I go on motorcycle rides. While I pass up the potential for champagne, roses, and adoration, I gain valuable insights that I can’t get if I’m trying to stay up front all the time. Give me a second to pop some vitamin I (ibuprofen) and I’ll explain.

At first glance, being the caboose doesn’t sound great. Your scenery gets cluttered with Big Tom on his three-wheeler, you lose influence on speed and direction within the pack, and if someone is going to miss the green light, odds are it’s going to be you. But let me make the case for some of the tangible benefits of removing ourselves from the lead group.

First, the obvious: Your riding group probably goes a tad over the speed limit from time to time. Now I’m not saying they ride like they’re evading Sheriff Buford T. Justice to win a bet with Big Enos, but I am suggesting that being at the back of the line when the speeds pick up improves your odds of making it home without a ticket. Just sayin’.

Second, while we’re playing backmarker, we have a fantastic vantage point for watching the lead riders manage traffic hazards, road imperfections, and camber changes, all with a bit of processing time before it’s our turn to move to the dance floor and show everybody what we’ve got. It’s like having a crystal ball, allowing you to see a bit into the future and increase your margin of safety.

Also, should you steer yourself to a local track, there is no better way to get acclimated than by following a skilled rider around the circuit. From behind, you learn proper corner entry, braking markers, line selection, and everything necessary to be safe and have fun. In fact, I regularly introduce myself to riders I’ve observed pounding laps to ask if they’d slow a bit and allow me to follow so I can figure things out, and usually they are happy to oblige. Think of it as getting a friendly “tow” around the track until you map out the terrain.

Here in Southern California, we do plenty of lane splitting on the highways, and while it’s a huge timesaver and safer than being stuck in traffic between bumpers, it can be tricky. Some cars give you a wide birth while others wander around blindly. Whenever possible, I hang back a bit and let other riders forge a path, as it tends to “sound the alarm,” making drivers aware there are motorcyclists coming through by the time I squirt past.

Here’s one for you motorcycle-riding content creators: Ever watch a POV motorcycle video shot by a lead rider? There are no motorcycles in the video, just scenery rolling by. You might as well have your friend hold a GoPro out the sunroof of your Datsun 280ZX. At least then you might pick up some righteous tunes with Foghat blaring out of the car’s speakers. Instead, shoot video from the back of the pack so your content shows motorcycles in action, leaning into corners, and doing all the things that made you want to saddle up in the first place.

At Total Control Training, we teach on-track Advanced Riding Clinics, where we instruct students using road-speed concepts within a track setting so they learn what to do, when to do it, and how to do it properly. In this setting, my role is that of instructor. And while melting a set of Metzeler supermoto tires in the front of the group undeniably contends with my childhood joys of Christmas morning, staying behind allows me to get a better sense of how students are interpreting and applying the instruction we provide. Yes, we lead students at times to show techniques by example, but by following, I am a far more impactful instructor. This same thinking applies to the street and pays big dividends with my riding buddies too.

Another aspect of the Advanced Riding Clinics is suspension theory and practical set-up. All those suspension dials and clickers you sometimes throw screwdrivers at? Well, they can make a huge impact on how a bike feels and performs, and following behind someone while riding is a great way to see if a bike is set up correctly. Trust me, your riding group could do itself some big favors by taking a little time and systematically rotating each member to the tail-gunner position to observe each other’s motorcycles in varying environments. At the minimum, it might catch that Steve did a lousy job of securing his camping gear to the pillion, and that alone is a win in my book.

And let’s not lose sight of the fact that every riding group needs a “mother hen” to keep a lookout from the back of the pack. No, it doesn’t have to be the same person on every ride, but it’s good sportsmanship to serve as the team’s sweeper from time to time. Not only will you be able to observe potential mechanical problems, but you will also see who might be struggling and could use some helpful feedback when you get to the coffee stop.

Now before you argue these are obvious and uninspiring ideas to add to your riding plan, let me push back and say that having information and putting it into practice aren’t the same thing. I’m suggesting here that you drop back more often than you do now and spend more time in the role of observer. Over time, you will see more, learn more, and ultimately improve the quality of both your own ride and that of your team. And who knows, maybe if you keep your eyes open, you might find the Coleman stove that liberated itself from Steve’s saddlebag.

For more information on Total Control Training and available clinics, go to the Total Control website. Quinn wears Lee Parks Design gloves exclusively. Find Quinn at Police Motor Training.

See all Motor School with Quinn Redeker articles here.

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A little while back, I took a ride up the coast. It was around 75 degrees outside, the sun was shining, and the ocean was waiting just nine miles from my driveway. I remember smiling, a bit embarrassed at myself for getting caught up in the coolness of my Vanson riding jacket and my retro Ray-Ban Wayfarer sunglasses. Maybe I even started feeling like Top Gun’s Maverick – if he wore a helmet. But there I was, effortlessly clicking through gears on my way to a much-needed reset button in the form of sun, sea, and wide-open air. God Bless America!

But as the ocean revealed itself, I knew I wasn’t the only one looking for coastal therapy. As I turned onto the Pacific Coast Highway, I was immediately wedged into heavy traffic in both directions. Sure, I could see the ocean, but I was stuck in 1st gear, engine fan humming, beads of sweat trickling down my back. It looked like I was going to have to skip the gratuitous beach volleyball session and practice my slow-speed balancing work.

Lucky for me, riding really slow was always part of my gig as a motor officer. Parades, escorts, crowd control, and just plain old everyday traffic. And like anything else, you get good at the things you practice. I learned key concepts and skills that eliminated duck-walking, in-lane weaving, grabby clutch and brake work, and the general sense of fear when stuck in stop-n-go.

What components of slow riding are involved in creating magical on-bike-balance bliss? Slow riding can be broken down into three parts: the rider, the motorcycle, and the rider’s inputs. Let’s look at each one, starting with the rider.

The first thing to appreciate is that slow riding is all about balance points: the bike’s balance point, the rider’s balance point, and the relationship between the two. This means we need a good sense of our own body’s center of balance to minimize any negative impact it might have on the motorcycle’s equilibrium. In other words, if you can’t control your own balance, things only get worse when you get on the bike.

Now let’s look at the motorcycle. No matter what you ride, big or small, long or short, your motorcycle was engineered to have a magical spot where it maintains vertical balance. In fact, the motorcycle is capable of slow-riding on its own, but then we come along and screw up the program by throwing our weight around like a mid-level manager at a big box store on Black Friday.

The last ingredient in our slow-riding skills concoction relates to the rider’s controls and how we exercise them. If we’re prone to on/off, light-switch clutch work and grip-it-and-rip-it throttle action, then we’ll struggle to keep the bike in balance each time we engage the controls. But when you get the proportions right, you’re in for a sublime slow cruise through the worst traffic imaginable. The key is to engage the controls sparingly and calmly, with the goal of having them support rather than upset our balance.

Below I’ve condensed my slow training into two simple (but not necessarily easy) parking lot drills. These, along with a few ideas to keep in mind, will help your slow-speed skills improve exponentially with minimal risk or effort.

Slow Weave Drill: This drill helps you understand how your bodyweight shifts as the motorcycle changes direction. Our goal here is to become sensitive to subtle weight shifts as we sit on the bike and how they impact our overall balance profile.

Find a traffic-free area and set up six cones in a line, approximately 9 to 18 feet apart depending on bike type and skill level (if you don’t have cones, use parking stall markings, which are usually 9 feet apart). With the bike in 1st gear and the clutch partially engaged, weave through the cone pattern. Do your best to control your speed to around 2-3 mph with minimal bike lean. To keep the speed down, you can gently drag the rear brake but avoid mashing it. We want to upset the bike as little as possible when using the controls.

Now position your body so it’s aligned with the motorcycle’s center line. Our objective is to take two parts – you and the bike – and make them move as one balanced mass. And once we arrive at this perfect balance spot on the bike, we want to live there as long as we can, deviating from it as minimally and as infrequently as possible. Easier said than done, but you get the idea.

A great way to help keep you and your bike working together is by using your windscreen as a “level.” Keep your eyes tracking the top edge of your windscreen, and you will spot even the slightest body movement in relation to the bike using this visual cue. With practice, you’ll make fewer big weight shifts and more micro adjustments to remain balanced. Rinse and repeat the drill until you and your bike feel like Maverick and Goose going inverted in the F-14 Tomcat. Feel the need…the need for (slow) speed!

Bar-to-Bar Drill: While parked, sit on your bike and slowly turn the bars lock-to-lock. Did you notice that the bike shifted a few inches in either direction? It did, and it’s this side-to-side movement that we’re going to exploit to help the bike balance beneath us when we come to a complete stop without putting our feet down. Welcome to hyper-slow mode.

Now that you understand my little handlebar trick, let’s go back and rework the Slow Weave Drill. Only this time I want you to go slower each time, eventually challenging yourself to come to a stop – with your feet up, steady clutch engagement, and light rear brake – at several points along the path.

The task here is to recognize and correct the subtle instabilities in balance by smoothly but assertively moving the handlebar in either direction to regain stability beneath you. If you need to roll forward to find balance and reset, that’s fine. Stay relaxed and keep at it. Your sense of balance will improve over time, and you will see huge gains.

For a live-action example of all this, go to Police Motor Training with Quinn Redeker on YouTube and watch the video “Quinn Redeker Riding Slow.” If it’s easier, you can swing by my house, and we’ll set up some cones over here. But it’s currently 5:30 p.m., so you might hit some traffic.

Quinn wears Lee Parks Design gloves exclusively. Find Quinn at Police Motor Training.

See all Motor School with Quinn Redeker articles here.

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Over the years, I’ve done plenty of things to stay ahead of the next guy during motorcycle competitions. Mondays and Wednesdays were my heavy days when I’d do four to five credit-card lifts to purchase titanium bolts, special suspension coatings, and maybe a dash of custom motor work. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I’d bulk up with some online shopping for protein supplements, rehydration drinks, and energy bars. If some guy with a cool haircut made performance promises and all I had to do was eat it, drink it, or bolt it on, then I was all in. Money well spent, right?

You know how this story goes. Over time I learned the uncomfortable truth that no amount of “stuff” was going to get me to the finish line ahead of the next guy unless it was matched with equal parts time and effort. Bottom line: No matter how trick your high-speed, sweat-wicking racer briefs are, they simply won’t do any of the work for you. Not even the ones with Grip Strips to stop them from riding up.

Alas, the inconvenient truth: If we want to see performance gains, we can’t cheat when it comes to climbing the mountain. In my case, the mountain was a combination of seat time on the bike, fitness training off the bike, and an academic journey to learn new and better ways to do things I’d already spent years doing. The climb was rarely joyous, but the view got better as the oxygen diminished, and I grew to appreciate all the hard-fought little battles that helped me improve as a result.

But I’m not here to give you the “hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard” spiel because you probably know all that. Nope, today I’m bringing you some next-gen stuff that yields gifts that money just can’t buy. I call it Brain Racing, and it means improving your reaction time, hand-eye coordination, peripheral vision, and more. Known in pro sports circles as neuro training, it’s about stimulating your brain’s neural networks through games and drills to improve your performance and safety on the bike.

But before we strap in, this is the part of the story where you can take the blue pill and stop reading, or you can take the red pill and take the ride with me. What’s it going to be, Neo? Do you want to see how deep the rabbit hole goes?

Since you’re still with me, you first need to understand that our reaction times are based on a few key factors: 

Perception: When we perceive something, we know, with high confidence, what we are seeing, hearing, and/or feeling. Perception can be negatively impacted by fatigue, lack of sleep, age, drugs, alcohol, and poor eyesight and/or hearing.

Processing: We need to process whatever we just saw, heard, or felt to know what to do with it. This means we must understand the information clearly. If we are not clear in our assessment of the stimuli, processing will be delayed and reaction times will suffer. More complex information takes longer to process.

Response: Once we perceive and process the information, we need good motor function to respond. This is where fitness and coordination work for us, and lack of physical conditioning or underlying motor problems work against us.

Make sense? Ready to order a 3-pack of Super Reflexes? Nice try, but you can’t call the 800 number on your screen or just wait for the Amazon delivery. No, we can’t just flip a switch, drink the magic elixir, and expect to see results. We need to invest some sweat equity in the form of coordination and reaction drills. So yes, I’m giving you work to do, but allow me to tidy up my hair and make you some outlandish promises: These drills will improve your coordination, processing, and reaction time. Remember, we don’t just want to grow older, we want to grow better. 

Tennis Ball Drill: Grab a tennis ball, stand 6 feet from a wall or garage door, and start by throwing underhand and catching overhand using the same hand. Simple. After a few minutes, do the same thing but catch in the opposite hand. Next, wick it up by closing your distance to 3 feet from the wall and using two balls, alternating between hands for both throw and catch. Watch your coordination blast off.

Ball Drop Drill: This exercise requires your riding buddy Jaco, but all we need are those two tennis balls you just threw over the fence. With Jaco holding a ball in each hand and his arms outstretched at chest height, you stand opposite, as if a mirrored reflection, and mimic his hand position and posture so that both your hands are touching each other’s at the knuckles. At some point, Jaco will drop one or both balls without warning, requiring you to snatch them from thin air as they fall. The lower you go, the harder it gets.

Crazy Cat Drill: Stand facing a wall from one foot away and hand Jaco a laser pointer. When he says “go,” Jaco will shoot little laser spots on the wall, and you must touch them as quickly as possible. The laser only hits for a millisecond, so you need to pay attention, tap where it hits, and get set for the next one. Once you get the hang of it, Jaco can ramp it up with more spots spaced farther apart.

From the comfort of your Lazy Boy, these might seem a bit silly. I get it, you became an adult and put away childish things. But these drills work. It’s no coincidence that pro athletes who live and die based on their ability to see, react, and respond in high-intensity situations practice these very drills. I’ll make you a bet: If you do these drills every day for one week and don’t have better focus, dexterity, and reaction time on the bike when Day 8 rolls around, I’ll buy you some racing stickers for your motorcycle. Placed correctly, those alone should be good for five to seven extra horsepower.

Quinn wears Lee Parks Design gloves exclusively. Find Quinn at Police Motor Training.

See all Motor School with Quinn Redeker articles here.

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Hey, a smidge of Dr. Seuss-inspired thinking never hurt anybody. Moreover, while this article is dropping in May, I’m writing it during the holiday season, and I’m full steam ahead on a speed-train of hot cider and gingerbread treats, so loosen up. Now, where was I about the feet thing? The sugar coma is real.

Oh yes, your feet. Let’s kick it off with a question: When you ride your streetbike, do you ever give much thought to your feet? I don’t mean if they are cold, if they are comfortable, or if you think they look small when people, um, size you up. No, I mean do you use them to gain better control and comfort in slow-speed riding situations? Anyone?

No worries, have a gingerbread cookie and I’ll walk us through some footwork concepts while we initiate maximum carb-load protocol.

Now, if I’m known for one thing in police motorcycle competitions, it’s my extreme lean angles when I counterbalance. A close second is my ability to rapidly transition the motorcycle from one direction to the other. And while there are several techniques at play to make those things happen, a major contributing factor is how I use my feet.

No, I don’t expect you to sign up for any police motor competitions, but developing your footwork will provide you with a higher level of ability and control in street situations.

As discussed in last month’s column (“Which Way Do You Lean?”), when executing slow-speed turns, we benefit from counterbalancing, which “counters” the motorcycle’s weight as it leans over by simultaneously shifting our weight in the opposite direction of the motorcycle. But there are two fundamental challenges riders have with this technique: 1) they don’t counterbalance nearly enough, causing the motorcycle to fall in faster than they wanted yet not as far as would allow for a tight turning radius, and 2) they struggle getting the motorcycle out of the lean once they accomplish the turn they initiated. Not great. But dammit, these cookies sure are, right?

Here’s where my feet come in to save the day. When it’s time to initiate a tight turn and lean my motorcycle over, I use my inside foot to push down on the peg. This not only helps push the motorcycle over, but simultaneously generates a stable platform from which I can push myself into a greater counterbalance position. Imagine we are turning a tight right-hand U-turn. We start to lean the motorcycle over, and the inside peg, along with the seat and bars, are all falling over, causing us to feel as if we are going down with the ship. In other words, everything we are connected to is falling over all at once. But if we use our inside foot to press against the peg as it falls over, we generate force that stabilizes us in the counterbalance position and more easily leans the bike over.

One final benefit to employing our feet is for the exact opposite reason I’ve mentioned already, namely to pick up the bike once we complete the turn. How? By adding force to the outside peg at the right moment. Three more cookies and I’ll land the plane, I promise.

Weighting the outside peg is useful in two important ways. First, by generating force in the opposite direction of the lean via shifting pressure onto the outside peg, I’m helping the motorcycle stand back up. And second, I’m taking my bodyweight away from the overall mass that needs to be picked back up, which further helps get my heavy bike upright and moving in a new direction.

Here’s what this looks like. Say I’m dropped over in a slow, tight U-turn and I am now turned around and want to pull out of the lean. At that moment, I keep my body counterbalanced but concentrate my mass so that when I add pressure to the outside peg, I help lift the bike back up yet avoid “pushing” my bodyweight to the inside of the bike. Think of this technique in the same way as getting out of a car: You step one leg out, but before you add pressure, you ensure your weight is over the foot so you don’t simply fall back inside the car when you add force, then you press yourself up and out.

With your motorcycle leaned over, you place your weight over the outside peg and then press, causing both your leg force and lack of body mass to work together to upright the bike. And just like the car example, if you press without getting your weight over the peg first, you will push your body in the direction the motorcycle is already leaned over (causing you to “fall back into the car”), which will only make it harder to stand the bike back up. Do you need another cookie, or are we clear up to this point?

To get a feel for this, we’ll work some figure-8s to practice both the drop-in and pick-up components of the technique. With your bike in 1st gear, start riding a moderate-sized figure-8 pattern. You don’t need to slip the clutch here, just execute the pattern while staying smooth and relaxed. What you are looking for is awareness of what your feet are doing (or not doing) as you turn within the pattern. Let’s focus on your inside foot first, adding pressure on the peg to gain stability, help the bike lean over, and increase counterbalance range of motion.

Once you can employ the inside foot efficiently and confidently, isolate the outside foot. Concentrate on a stable, balanced push on the peg, making sure that the push doesn’t shift your weight toward the direction of the lean. Remember, you are helping the bike pick itself up here, so shifting your weight to the inside with a bad push only hinders this goal. Once you master it, put it all together.

This technique works just fine whether you have footpegs or footboards. Yes, footboards are farther forward, and you will need to rework your foot placement, but where there’s a will there’s a way. To see this lesson in action, go to Police Motor Training with Quinn Redeker on YouTube and look for “Foot Technique For Better Riding.”

Find Quinn at Police Motor Training.

See all Motor School with Quinn Redeker articles here.

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I think it’s fair to say there are a few subjects we should all steer clear of if we want to foster a harmonious relationship with other humans. Politics and religion are obvious land mines. And my wife knows that recommending a culling of the herd in the garage isn’t a party‑starter. But it appears I’ve discovered a ripe one you might also have some feelings about. And knowing how domineering and strong‑willed you are, when the dust settles, I really hope we can still be friends. Okay, here goes nothing.

There exists a feverish debate amongst motorcyclists regarding two uniquely different approaches to riding. Of course, there are more than two, but these revolve around the rider’s center of balance (center line) in relation to the motorcycle’s center of balance while navigating turns. Yep, a global hot button, this one. But please don’t ask for the Gold Codes just yet.

When a motorcycle starts to lean over and fall into a turn, its center of gravity shifts inward, causing it to head toward the ground (just go with me here; it’s science). When this happens, we have a couple options. One, we can counterbalance, a technique that shifts our center of gravity to the outside of the bike’s center of gravity, effectively countering the effects of the motorcycle’s weight transfer as it falls in. Two, we can lean our body into the curve, shifting our center of gravity to the inside of the motorcycle’s center of gravity as it falls in, effectivelytrading the motorcycle’s weight with our own as the bike leans over. This on‑road technique applies to paved corners with a good surface.

Hmmm, what to do. Flip a coin? Call a friend? Ask “what would Fonzie do?” Solid options, no doubt.

But before we rush over to Arnold’s and pull Fonzie away from the Polaski twins, I’ll kick off the group share and give you my two cents on the topic. When I do police motor competitions on my BMW R 1250 RT‑P, I employ as many tricks as my tiny brain can remember to execute tight maneuvers in confined spaces. These events are 1st‑gear scenarios, and the speeds drop as low as 5 mph, triggering the bike’s mass to fall like a 650‑lb paperweight. In other words, the bike’s weight is compounded by the fact that the gyroscopic forces and inertia are greatly reduced at slower speeds, while nature’s gravity amp is cranked up to 11. Deep science, yes, but an important thing to keep in mind because it’s a major contributing factor for why we throw our feet down, break into a cold sweat, or abandon ship altogether when speed slows down and our bike leans over. 

These days I do my best to mitigate unplanned and unsettling weight shifts, so I rely on counterbalancing when I slow to walking speeds. By offsetting the bike’s lean‑in mass with counterbalancing, my big Beemer falls over slower, falls over farther, and turns a much tighter radius. All big wins. Yes, clutch control and throttle input are players in my process, but counterbalancing does most of the heavy lifting.

Sounds like we solved the riddle then, and we should counterbalance the bike whenever it leans over? Absolutely, yes. Well, unless your motorcycle has more gears in the transmission than 1st. Let me explain why and how my strategy changes when I click through the gears. 

As an Advanced Riding Clinic instructor for Total Control, I co‑teach clinics where we take students on‑track and put them through advanced concepts and techniques to help manage speed situations on the street. A major challenge we face as riders (and help mitigate as instructors) are speed situations in corners. You know that as speed increases, your motorcycle requires a greater lean angle for whatever radius you are navigating. This can be problematic if you don’t have techniques and a plan to deal with it.

Let’s imagine Future You: It’s a magical Monday, and you’re having a “personal medical issue,” so work is a no‑go. Precisely 27 minutes later, you are fully kitted up, and that pesky walking pneumonia has miraculously vanished as you drop into a long right‑hander. At that precise moment, ABBA’s “Dancing Queen” pours into your helmet speakers, and because this is your jam, mid‑corner speeds unwittingly climb. Suddenly, and without warning, your bike begins shedding unwanted poundage by grinding hard parts along the pavement as your line widens and pushes you toward the double yellows. Not great.

Future You will do one of three things here: 1) Panic and grab the brakes mid‑corner, causing abrupt weight transfer that will stand your bike up and aim it toward the portion of the roadway you are trying to avoid; 2) Eventually drag parts so much that you lever the tires off the ground and initiate a low‑side crash; or 3) Move your body’s center line to the inside of the motorcycle’s center line (leaning in), effectively trading the bike’s mass for your mass, causing the bike to reduce its lean angle, tighten its line, and maintain its speed. Leaning in doesn’t necessitate high speeds or excessive hanging off, but rather positioning oneself toward the inside of the curve for cornering. Let’s go with option 3 on this one.

Let me land the plane here. When you find yourself in 1st‑gear situations, it’s all about counterbalancing, but as soon as the speeds pick up and you click 2nd gear and beyond, shift your body’s center line to the inside of the motorcycle’s center line. If you want a live‑action example, go to my YouTube channel (Police Motor Training with Quinn Redeker) and find the video titled: “Motorcycle Technique: Counterbalance vs Lean (Road Race Style).” It provides a clear visual demonstration and explanation as to why and where I use one style over the other.

Fantastic. You’ve said nothing this whole time, so either we are in total agreement on this or I’ve offended you somewhere along the way. In either case, maybe this will build a bridge of sorts:

“We seldom learn much from someone with whom we agree.” – Mokokoma Mokhonoana

Find Quinn at Police Motor Training.

See all Motor School with Quinn Redeker articles here.

The post Motor School with Quinn Redeker: Which Way Do You Lean? appeared first on Rider Magazine.

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People ask me if I miss being a motor cop. Let’s unpack that. Do I miss washing off petrol and sunscreen at the end of every shift? Do I miss roadside debates about how “everybody was speeding”? Do I miss the tragedy of consoling parents at a fatal accident in the middle of the night? A hard “no” to all of those.

But what I do find myself missing these days is the incessant verbal abuse our motor unit dished out to each other at every opportunity. It didn’t matter how serious or important the moment; if you screwed up, however slight, you were doomed to receive ongoing mistreatment until the next guy came up short.

And there was no better place to experience the hazing than on the grinder where we trained slow‑­speed skills every month on our motors. What should have been a place of learning, exploring, and honing of one’s skills was instead a schoolyard of insults, jabs, and finger‑­pointing. Simply put, if your bike hit the ground, standby to standby, buddy, your ticket got punched.

Luckily, my bike rarely hit the deck on training days, because I was skilled with my clutch. Don’t get me wrong, my colleagues found ample opportunities to pound me into submission, but sloppy clutch work never made it on the menu.

Now I can’t speak for your sewing circle, but I’d venture to guess you all give each other a pretty rough time on the regular. And just imagine how cool it would be if you had the tools to pull a proverbial rabbit out of your hat every time the speeds slowed down, like for U‑­turns, heavy traffic, and parking lots. Well, I have a few simple training tools that will have you laughing, jabbing, and finger‑­pointing far more than you typically get to do when riding with your crew.

Before we jump into the actual exercises, we need to rewire our brains a bit and start seeing the clutch (not the throttle) as the control that makes the bike go. In other words, when we’re in slow‑­speed environments, we want to have a “set it and forget it” mindset with the throttle and think of the clutch as the primary “gatekeeper” that supplies power to the rear wheel. There are two reasons for this: First, this consolidates two physical tasks of manipulating the controls into one: modulating the clutch. Second, we will have far better mental focus on that singular task, which will improve our sensitivity, dexterity, and control.

Motor School Clutch Control Exercise 1: Driveway Drill

With your engine running at around 1,500‑­2,000 rpm, your bike in 1st gear, and both feet on the ground, position your front wheel at the base of a gently sloped incline on a driveway entrance (or similar). You want a short incline that allows the bike to roll back down on its own when you pull in the clutch at the top. (see photo at the top of the article) Next, smoothly, slowly, and calmly begin to meter the clutch out, adding just enough power to the rear wheel to allow you to slowly “walk” the bike up the incline. Remember, leave the throttle alone here and only work the clutch. Once you are at the top, gently pull the clutch in (don’t fully disengage it) just enough to pull power from the driveline so the bike starts to roll back down to our starting point. Rinse and repeat until you can hold a casual conversation with your neighbor as you roll up and back down the incline without thinking about it. And no wise cracks just yet, Nancy, you’re only just getting started.

Motor School Clutch Control Exercise 2: 2×4 Drill

Place a length of 2×4 lumber down on the ground perpendicular to and touching your front tire. Now apply all the same instructions you learned above, and smoothly and slowly “walk” the bike over the board from a complete stop. Continue until the bike is resting with the 2×4 directly in front of the back tire and do it all again. It sounds easy, but there are a couple of rules here: First, you start from a complete stop, so once you “set and forget” your throttle, you can’t manipulate it to prevent stalling or to change the amount of power transferred to the driveline to help get you over the board. Second, when you ride over the 2×4, you don’t pass go if you “shoot” it out from under the rear tire. That’s to say that the 2×4 must stay in place as you ride over. People often struggle to keep the 2×4 in place because they tend to let the clutch out too quickly, sending too much power to the rear tire as it rolls onto and over the board.

The good news? You got it right on your first try. The bad? I’m only referring to you successfully buckling that helmet. Set it up and do it again while I make some calls to confirm you have a real motorcycle license.

Motor School Clutch Control Exercise 3: Incline Drill

Find an incline, such as a hill, a long driveway, or an abandoned loading ramp. Nothing too steep but something that generates decent rolling resistance. Next, stage yourself for lift off by facing up the incline. Once you’ve set your engine speed, smoothly, slowly take off and put your feet on the pegs. Go as slow as possible, using only your clutch to control your momentum. Once you’ve made it 15 feet or so, pull in the clutch and put your feet down. Here’s the rule: Don’t use your brakes to rest on the incline, instead engage only the clutch, and in the amount necessary to hold you in place on the incline as you reset. When you’re ready, do it again, moving slowly toward the top. A word of caution: Don’t fry your clutch with high revs. If the clutch is getting warm or the engine is getting hot, take an easy lap around the block before getting back to work on these drills.

Well, color me amazed. Just wait till your friends see how much better you control your bike when the speeds ratchet down. Now don’t quote me, but if you get your mind right and really work these drills, I’m confident we can finally hack those training wheels off, slap some Girl Scout patches on your leathers, and have you going freeway speeds in no time!

Find Quinn at Police Motor Training. Send feedback to [email protected].

See all Motor School with Quinn Redeker articles here.

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