For Motorcycle Riders

Risks

Don’t place yourself in danger of becoming a statistic by increasing your risk.

• Stayalertandattentivetowhat’shappeningonthe

road.

• Don’trideundertheinfluenceofdrinkordrugs.

• Keeptothespeedlimitsanddriveaccordingtothe

conditions.

• Takebreakstoavoidfatigue.

Setting up and braking

‘Settingup’isbrakinglightlyasyouapproachpotentialhazards,givingyoumoreopportunityandspacetoreacttoevents.

Theadvantagesofthisare:

• Itpreparestherider.Byrecognisingthehazard

andtakingpreparatoryactionyouwillhavemore

control.

• Itpreparesthemotorcycletostopifneeded

withoutlockingupthebrakesandlosingcontrol.

• Itpreparesthevehiclebehindyou,whosedriver

hasbeenalertedbythebrakelightthatyoumay

beabouttobrakehard.

Tips & Techniques

Safe cornering

Inruralandregionalareas,themajorityofmotorcyclecrashestendtobesinglevehicle.Manyoftheserelatetomisjudgingcornering.

Braking and gears

• Adjustyourspeedcominguptoacorner

• Allowfortrafficandweatherconditions

• Easeoffthebrakesgentlyonenteringthecorner

• Changedowntotheappropriategeartogetyou into and out of corners

Road position

• Startcornerswidetoimproveyourvisionof oncomingtraffic

• Plantofinishintight

• Moveawayfromthecentral‘head-on’zoneasyou roundthecorner

Tip:Lookatwhereyouwanttofinishupasyoucomeoutofthebend.Yourhandsandhandlebarswillcauseyoutofollowthatlineofsight.

Difficult surfaces

Anumberofsurfacescanprovideaslippinghazardformotorcycles,particularlyiftheroadsurfaceiswet,including painted lane markings and steel surfaces suchasmanholecovers.Toridesafelyonslipperysurfaces:

• Reduceyourspeed,sothatyourequirelessspace to stop

• Reducetheamountofleanonthemotorcycle whenridingcurves.Thisisdonebyslowingdown and/orleaningyourbodyintothebend.

Tip:Onwetroadsyoumaygainmoretractionfromridinginthetracksmadebythecarinfrontofyou.However,lookoutforoilthatoftencollectsdownthecentre of a lane.

Swerving

Ifsomethingunexpectedhappensandyouneedtoavoidacrash:

• Leanintotheswerveandthentryandcorrectthe motionasquicklyaspossible

• Checkwhereyou’regoingtomakesureyoudon’t endupinanothercrash.

Steering shakes or ‘wobbles’

Thiscanoccuratanyspeedduetoincorrecttyrepressureorweightdistributiononthebike.Ifithappens:

• Gripthehandlebarsfirmlybutdonottrytocorrect thesteering.Don’tfightthewobbling

• Graduallydeceleratewithoutbrakingsuddenly

• Oncethewobblingstops,pullovertoasafeplace.

Blowouts and punctures

Ifablowoutorrapidpunctureoccurswhilstyouareriding:

• Don’tbrake–justgraduallyclosethethrottledown andtrytosteerstraight.

• Moveyourweighttowardswhichevertyreisstill inflated.

Carrying a pillion passenger

Carryinganyadditionalweightyourbikewillaffectthehandlingofthemotorcycle:

• Donotcarryapillionpassengerorheavyloads unlessyouareanexperiencedrider

• Makesureyouhaveasuitableseatfittedonyour motorcycle

• Apassengerisyourresponsibility-makesurethey areaswellprotectedasyouare

• Adjusttherearsuspensionspringpreload,mirror, headlightandtyrepressuretoallowforthe additionalweight

• Rideatlowerspeed

• Slowdownearlier

• Adjustyourbufferzonetoallowextrastopping distance

• Keepconversationtoaminimumtoavoid distraction

• Donotmakesuddenmovesorshowoffasit willmakeyourpassengernervousandcould compromise safety.

Yourpassengershould:

• Getonthemotorcycleafteryouhavemountedthe motorcycleandstartedtheengine

• Sitasfarforwardaspossible

• Holdontothewaistoftheriderorasecurepartof themotorcycle

• Keepbothfeetonthefootpegsatalltimes,even whenthemotorcycleisstopped

• Staydirectlybehindyou,leaningasyouleanand avoidinganyunnecessarymovement.

TheaboveinformationhasbeensourcedfromtheRTA(NSW)motorcyclehandbook.