Knee down or leg out

[Theo]

How are you used to riding?
I put the leg out except in fast corners.
IMO the point is that:
if you push down your body more than your bike, you use the knee:

like on sportbikes:

while, if you push down your bike more than your body, you put the leg out to prevent the foot from being sandwiched between the asphalt and the bike:

So, when should we push down more the bike and when the body?
Watch the video I made with my (scale model of a) Ducati MotoGP bike :

It seems that the more you lean, the less space you need to turn.
I have the same feeling while I'm riding, so here is why I use the knee only in fast, wide radius corners.

 

[huskylove]

Woah too much time on ones hands. In tight supermoto corners you can change direction faster and achieve the same lean angle by riding leg out and staying on the high side of the bike.

Remember that moto gp bikes carry far greater speed.

 

[Theo]

I have a feeling that you've got me wrong, maybe due to my bad English.
I do put the leg out except in fast corners (which I don't find in the tracks where I go). When I wrote

if you push down your bike more than your body, you put the leg out to prevent the foot from being sandwiched between the asphalt and the bike:

I meant that putting the leg out allow you to reach grater lean angles because you don't need room for your foot between the bike and the road.

Anyway, I'd like to add a poll; is it still possible or should I have done it while creating the thread?

 

[huskylove]

Oh, yes I miss interpreted.

I do not think you can add a poll after a thread is created, hopefully a moderator will correct me if I am wong.

 

[Super5onic88]

Leg out is good for adding weight on the front wheel. I was grinding the toes of my boots away (the part of my boot without slider) doing knee out.
Leg out is more exhausting though. After an 8 lap race can barely extend my leg out anymore :P

 

[Theo]

Leg out is more exhausting though. After an 8 lap race can barely extend my leg out anymore :P

It happened to me, too, so now I train my thighs and it doesn't happen anymore.

 

[robertaccio]

I think its best to watch videos of and copy what Thomas Chareyre (and the other top tier SM guys are doing) is doing on his 2013 FIM World Championship TM in the above foto. But that's just me. They ride dirt bike (MX) style all the time.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCj8lEs8vIbwoD-qiyAF6HCw

 

[Theo]

The only World Championship rider who uses the knee is Giovanni Bussei, the one in the first photo. However, as you can hear in this video:

He has ridden sportbikes for many years and apparently he hasn't managed to change his style.
(Look at his front number plate at 0:25-0:26: "outlaws knee" ahahah).

 

[Londin]

I'm have a roadracing background but use leg out 99% of the time. First i did RR style but just found it weird especially after being offroad. If you see videos then almost all the GP riders does RR style. Guess its all up to what you feel comfortable with.

 

[huskylove]

Now the real question is who has the balls to supermoto a sport bike/road racer....

(not me in the pic but any real slow corner that's how I tackle it on the hypermotard, in case of rear slide)

 

[Londin]

I had a Hyper(i miss it) with the lot. Slipper is a must but then you can do it. Ive jumpt mine as well, that was a a little pis in my pants moment haha

 

[huskylove]

I have had a blast on mine...only 3200 miles but I try so hard not to ride her....she is so beautiful

 

[Teambowles]

So here's my thought, trust your tires, keep feet on pegs, lean forward when going into a corner more weight over front of bike. If your turning left lean left but push right on left handlebar and the bike falls into the corner then use lean of your body to follow thru corner on bike. Keep eyes at exit of corner or farther down course at all times and open throttle after your thru corner and bikes begins to lean up again. The only reason the gp guys are taking their feet off the pegs is to slow down the bike, plus it looks cool. If you look at the pic of the gp guy above you'll notice he's farther over than any of us will be but he's leaning forward and about half off the bike with feet up. A wise coach once taught me feet up and eyes down the road.

 

[Super5onic88]

The height proportion of knee to foot is a lot different on a Sumo compared to a GP bike though. Everytime I go knee out my feet touch the ground before my knee. Knee for long sweeping high speed turns leg out for tight turns imo.

 

[jimmyc]

I take my SuMo to track days with Sport Bikes. Knee out , and I scrape the peg before my toes. I don't ride it like a sumo , if i backed it into a turn , i think leg out is better.

View: http://youtu.be/TYKOPFBO1O0?t=3m31s

 

[Holeshot]

What Ive learned from Thierry vd Bosch is that you your foot has to rest on the track, as far forward as possible, so you can correct the front Wheel if it loses his grip, ecspecially if the grip is minimal due to dust and sand. (sorry for my bad english

 

[huskylove]

Depends on the corners.....I actually have to pick my foot off the peg on most corners as it gets pinched when the peg slides. So I ride leg out alot.