To ride a motorcycle safely, it is essential that you know how to turn in traffic while maintaining balance. Appropriately tackling a right turn involves learning to stay aware of your surroundings, slowing down and downshifting properly and leaning appropriately towards the turn.
To better cope with the turn, it is also important to learn how to counter-steer with the motorcycle.
Steps
Step 1. Examine the intersection
As you approach the turn, make sure there are no road signs, natural or artificial bumps, pedestrians, parked cars, or other obstacles that may prevent you from making a careful and safe turn. What you need to do is look carefully ahead of you so that you learn all that is needed to make the turn correctly.
- Know the angle of the turn, to get an idea of how much you need to slow down and which gear you need to downshift.
- Carefully examine the quality and appearance of the road surface. It's wet? Is there any gravel or are there other conditions that could cause the bike to skid?
Step 2. Turn on the direction indicator (the "arrow")
About 30 meters before the turn, turn on the turn signal to warn people driving other vehicles that you are about to make a turn. If your bike does not have turn signals, make a signal with your arm.
- In the United States and most European countries, motorcyclists point their right hand to signal their intention to turn right.
- However, someone signals the right turn by raising their left arm at a right angle. The Italian highway code requires that the signaling be made by leaning the right arm sideways.
Step 3. Check your location
First check your rear view mirrors to see what the traffic situation is like behind you. Then take a look over your right shoulder to accurately check blind spots. If the road is clear, you may want to move towards the center of the carriageway to tackle the turn more efficiently. Beware, however, that the Italian highway code instead requires that you have to pull over to the right. Continue to carefully check the traffic behind you and in the adjacent lane, then get in position for the turn.
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The smaller the angle of the turn, the greater the speed at which you can turn.
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The greater the angle of the turn, the more you will have to slow down.
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Step 4. Check the traffic of vehicles coming from other directions and give way where necessary
Be sure to look left to check for traffic coming from that direction as well as to look ahead to check for cars coming from the opposite direction turning left.
- In Italy and in countries where you drive on the right, turning right means that you have to pay attention mainly to vehicles coming from the opposite direction turning to your left, to pedestrians who might cross the road and to bicycles that might be on your right.
- In the UK and other countries where you drive on the left, turning right on your motorcycle means that you have to give way to cars coming from the opposite direction and wait for a gap in traffic or, if there is a traffic light, that this turns green before facing the intersection. Sometimes you will have to stop completely in the turning lane.
Step 5. Slow down and downshift
Apply the brakes as needed to reach the appropriate speed to tackle the turn. Shift down before turning to keep the bike at a constant speed. Gently release the clutch as you gas. This allows you not to transmit too much power to the tires and thus avoid spinning the wheels.
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Generally, for city riding conditions, second or third gear is appropriate for tackling the turn at a moderate speed, although some V-engined bikes, such as Harley-Davidsons, will be comfortable with first. The higher torque at low revs of these engines increases the risk of spinning the rear wheel.
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Deceleration and braking should occur before starting the turn and not during. Each turn will require a different speed to turn safely, and a lot depends on your judgment and how you feel the bike as you turn.
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Step 6. Gently counter-steer to make the turn
Begin the turn by lightening the grip of the right handlebar grip slightly and push the right side, so that you turn the handlebar slightly to the left as you lean into the bend in the meantime.
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Turning mostly means bending smoothly and not not turning the handlebars. You don't even have to bend a lot to make the turn properly.
Turn Right on a Motorcycle Step 6Bullet1 - Make sure, if you have a passenger, that the same knows how to accompany the fold inwards and not outwards.
Step 7. Keep your head up
It is very important to direct your gaze to where you want to direct the bike and not down towards the wheel or straight in front of you. If you look directly at the obstacle you want to avoid it is likely that you will end up hitting it.
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Never put your foot down to assist a turn. This makes it very easy to lose control of the bike and get hurt.
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Step 8. Accelerate after the intersection
Open the throttle gradually as you exit the intersection. This serves to settle the suspension of the bike and stabilize it.
