Motorcycle Safety & Driveability: turns, cbr600 f4, lean angles

Question
Hey Pat,

I just starting riding about 4-5 months ago and I have fallen 3 times. They were all small mistakes that I made and have learned from expect my third accident. I made a right turn at about 25 miles an hour and i leaned far enough to touch my peg and then the bike slid from underneight me (falling on the right side).. One of my friends said I had cold tires which is likely and another friend said leaning that far is only for racing tires.. Now I just go really slow on most sharp turn (slower than cars).. What are my limitations on standard street tires? I got a 2000 cbr600 f4. Thanks Pat.

Reagan  

Answer
Unfortunately sometimes we have to learn our limitations the hard way. The crash could have been caused by anything, but it's likely a combination of many factors: tires, surface, inputs, knowledge, and attitude.

As far as street tires go, most, if not all, can handle _reasonable_ street riding if they have decent tread and are not old and hardened by time, properly inflated, etc. By reasonable I mean that street riding requires that you always keep something "in reserve," you're never at the limits of your self, your bike, or your environment. If you are touching a peg down on the street, you have reached the limit of what your bike is capable of, let alone what you might be capable of or what the environment can tolerate.

A modern 600cc sport bike can outperform most street-oriented tires. That's why racers use sticky track compounds. However, it's not advisable (reserve, remember?) to ride at race speeds or lean angles (the bike's limits) on the street, nor is it advisable to run race tires on the street, as they need to be heated up properly to stick properly. It is an either or situation: either you ride with reserve on your street tires on the street, or you ride at the limit on race tires at the track. Mixing the two is not a good idea.

My advice is to take your bike to a track day when you want to start getting those peg feelers on the ground. You can learn a lot about your street tires that way, too.

Hope that answers your question,

Pat