Riding in the wet

[Grahamm]

[quote author=Jamieg285 link=topic=3827.msg31573#msg31573 date=1342440000]
Once issue I do have, with dry and wet riding is the throttle response. I find myself cruising into the tipping point, with the throttle closed, as I hit the apex I start to thottle, but find it a bit snatchy.  I'm getting used to it, trying a higher gear, but it's taking me a lot longer than I'd hoped to get used to it.

Hope you don't mind me saying but I think you're not setting yourself up for your corners properly.

The powerband on the Fazer is around 6k, so heading into a corner you should probably have around 7k and maintain a steady speed with that - whichever gears that ends up being.

Your bike will be in a state of 'readiness' and under a slight load.

Any advanced riders on here care to put that into English?
[/quote]

I agree with Chillum, you should probably be in a lower gear, rather than a higher one and I'd say you're getting on the throttle much too late.

I had similar problems when I started to ride, ie cornering in too high a gear and trying to use power instead of revs to give me the drive through the bend.

When you approach a bend there are three main things to consider: Right position, right speed and right gear.

1) Right position. The simple version is that when you're coming into a left-hand bend you should position to the right and for a right-hand bend position to the left (presuming there's no junctions, driveway exits, crud on the outside of the bend etc that could compromise your safety or stability).

When you are going through the bend, stay positioned as you were on the entry, you're not on a race track and clipping the apex isn't necessary or necessarily safe as it can put you in a dangerous position and/ or will reduce your view ahead.

2) Right speed: Use the Limit Point to judge your approach speed, ie look at where the left and right hand sides appear to meet. If that point is coming towards you, slow down, if it's staying constant you can maintain your speed.

3) Right gear. You want to be in a gear that will give you the best power response and have a "balanced throttle" ie if you open it you will accelerate, if you close it then engine braking will decelerate you. If you're in too high a gear, the engine can bog down if you try to accelerate and you won't get any engine braking if you roll off the throttle. As Chillum mentions, this means you need the revs around the 7000rpm mark.

As you get to the point where you start to turn into the bend, you should slightly open the throttle to compensate for the reduced rolling radius and drive the bike around the bend, that way you shouldn't get the "snatchy" response you mention.

I'd strongly recommend reading "Full Control" which is a comprehensive and concise guide to biking with some excellent advice on cornering.