Can someone clearly explain countersteering for me?

Question

I just started riding a motorcycle and what I read on countersteering confuses me. Do you just push left to go left and right to right on the bar, or do you have to first go the opposite direction of the turn?

By push I mean push down on the handle bar.

I am taking the safety course in September, but every thing I read is slightly different. I am riding a Suzuki 2004 Volusio 800CC.

I am probably overthinking it too much, but I'd like to venture off my local road and get more experience.

Answer 1

It's a bit of a difficult thing to completely grasp, but in slow-speed turns, less than probably 10-15 mph or so, you pull towards yourself on the right bar & you turn right. But at higher speeds, you pull on the right bar and you will turn left. Once you start riding, you don't even notice it. In fact, I'd been riding ~1 year before I even realized.

It doesn't have to do with turning the front wheel so much, as the wheel will turn very little, if at all at high speeds, but pulling on the bar causes the bike to lean. It's tough to imagine, but the tire in contact with the road while moving will tend to resist twisting because of rotational inertia and the rubber is soft and bites into the road surface. So instead of the wheel turning, the bike is pushed sideways in the "opposite" direction, effectively leaning the bike, which ultimately turns it.

In fact, it is easy to steer a bike only while leaning, I've ridden more than 20 miles without touching the handlebars (w/cruise control), steering only by shifting my body weight.

Answer 2

because the wheels are big gyroscopes, motorcycles want to lean to the outside of a turn (read up on gyroscopes if you want to know why). bump the steering the direction opposite the turn (left to turn right) to start leaning in, then the other direction to point the front wheel into the turn. it doesn't take much. just a bump, and it doesn't take long to start doing by instinct

Answer 3

At speeds above 5-10 mph, you push forward on the right-hand bar to initiate a right-hand turn.  That initial push starts the lean of the motorcycle.  After that push, the motorcycle starts to lean to the right, and you "catch" the motorcycle by steering the front end under the "falling" motorcycle.

The initial push is quite short compared to the longer turn.

Why does it work?  Imagine that a motorcycle's in motion.  The center of mass wants to keep going forward, in a straight line.  When you turn the wheel one way or the other, the motorcycle will want to tip over in the opposite direction (when you turn the wheel left, the motorcycle will lean to the right) because the front end is essentially going out from under the center of mass.  After you've initiated the lean, you use the front wheel to track through the corner.  You turn the wheel back to the right.  

If you were to cover both wheels in paint, then go back and look at the tracks both wheels made through a corner, you'd see that the front wheel scribes out a fairly smooth circle, to the outside of the fairly smooth circle scribed by the rear.  Think of countersteering as the way for the front wheel to get outside the orbit of the rear wheel.

Bicycles countersteer, too.

Another good explanation appears in the book, Proficient Motorcycling, by David Hough.  It's certainly worth checking out.

Good Luck!

Answer 4

Introducing countersteering has caused many a beginning rider to  lay it over.

To turn a bike, it has to lean into the turn... like a skateboard, airplane, bicycle....

However, going straight, then turning the bars the direction you want to go actually causes the bike to lean in the opposite direction, because inertia is trying to keep the bike going straight.

Slight pressure on the bars to the right will bring the bike into a lean to the left and your body and physics will do the rest.

Get on a bicycle and get a feel. for it.

Turn the handlebars but dont lean you body.  You will feel the bike go the opposite direction of where you turned the handlebars.

Riding will become natural to you soon enough.

Answer 5

The way I see it is that if you are riding through the turns on the rode without falling, you have the knack of counter steering. If it works, don't fix it. It is a part of riding that you never really think about because it really isn't a conscious part of it. You do it without realizing it.

Answer 6

(back tire)-----------------------------------... tire) normal straight riding pattern

(back tire)___________----------------(front tire) counter steering turning *right turn*

if you notice in first line: tires in direct line behind front tire. once you brake the trail of rear tire bike gyro effect leans bike into rear tire side.

to get a feel for it find a remote straight road, head down it and gently push on the end of each handle bar end. as you are moving. with each GENTLE push, you will notice how the bike responds. Very good knowledge to have. By pushing on left then right will give you a sense of how much force is needed.

hope it helps ya

again people tend to over think this concept. its very natural and developes over time the MSF course should teach you alot more on the topic.

Answer 7

Don't think too much,you're most likely doing it without realising already.

Answer 8

You're overthinking it. Counter steer is a suprisingly complicated-to-explain-simple-to-do type thing, basically you are pushing to the left and LEANING THE BIKE to go right. You shouldn't move the handlebars to physically much.

If you want a good book to read, go to a large bookstore and find A Twist of the Wrist. Best motorcycling book ever.

Answer 9

when your moving at road speeds (Not like putting through a parking lot) you do not steer the motorcycle by turning the handles like you would in a parking lot. instead you turn by leaning the bike into the turn. If you lean left thebike will go left.

It was found that if you push your right hangle bar away from you, the front tire goes towards the left, however the top of the bike will stay where its at or move to the right. This causes a right lean and the bike goes to the right.

They call it counter steering because it seems to be backwards or counter to what you would think. remember its leaning to where you want to go, not the steeing that makes the bike turn at speeds. In a parking lot at slow speeds you are upright (Else youd fall over) so you actually steer the tire to where you want to go. At highway speeds you lean the bike to where you want to go. ou could actually drive without a handlebar if you wanted to.

Answer 10

if you're turning, you're countersteering whether you realize it or not.  the best way i've heard it explained is like this..  stand a book on end, which way would you push the bottom of the book to make it fall to the right?  you push the bottom of the book to the left.  find a book and try it, its easier to see that way.  wikipedia has a great article on it as well.

Answer 11

after reading so many conflicting answers, and taking into account that YOU asked the question...

I suspect that counter steering is NOT for you.

Answer 12

Way too much is said about it.  If you are getting the motorcycle to go where you want, you're doing it right.

Think about riding a motorcycle.  You're leaning forward, putting some of your weight on the handlebars (I know you don't do this on a cruiser, but think about a standard or sport bike).  You're all balanced and the bike is going straight.  Okay so now you want to turn, let's say to the right.  You lean to the right, putting a little more weight on the right handlebar, and the bike turns to the right.

But think about it, you are pushing harder on the right handlebar, you are pushing the handlebars to the -left- but you are turning right!  THAT's countersteering.

Answer 13

understanding isnt a requirement..   but if you read the posts you probably have more of an idea now...

The reason for knowing this is how it works is really important..

lets say a car starts to pull out on your left hand side..

& in a panic you grab the brakes & turn away from the car by (most obviouse) turning the bars away from it (to the right)....counter steering causes the bike to lean to the left & plows you into the side of the car......

so basic understanding is fine...   but having that planted in your brain that you must turn towards what you do not want to hit..   may just save your life...