Countersteering: What is it and What is it Used for?

The technique of countersteering is a way to drive that the motorcycle driver constantly uses. However, it is a technique that is done consciously or unconsciously which also makes it unknown, and not only for new motorcyclists.

To start talking about countersteering, it must first be known that it is based on the gyroscopic effect, an essential component when driving a motorcycle, a vehicle without more support than its two wheels. Precisely, the wheels keep the unit on the vertical axis with their turning movement. When they turn faster and the speed of the motorcycle is, therefore, at the maximum, greater force will be needed to change the direction of the unit.

Ountersteering comes into play in this force. In itself, countersteering is a maneuver that we do when starting to enter a curve by turning the handlebars toward the side opposite the one we want to turn when driving from a certain speed.

It may seem like a contradiction or that it is impossible but… that’s how it is. When turning on a left curve, we turn the handlebars to the right. Due to the gyroscopic effect and centrifugal force that tends to make us go toward the outside the curve, we need to lean, along with the motorcycle, toward its interior.

To recover verticality, the centrifugal force must increase. How? By accelerating. In turn, the gyroscopic force makes the front wheel retrieve the straight line.

Is it Hard to Understand? Put it Into Practice

It is evident that wee are not in a physics class but it is a phenomenon that occurs constantly when driving a motorcycle. It is not necessary to understand or study it. It is enough for you to test it and you will realize that it will help you drive your motorcycle with significantly more safety.

It is usually said that countersteering starts to function when you exceed 40 km/h. Try it when you are driving and have clear safety conditions. When approaching a left curve, slightly push or turn the handlebars to the right. Suddenly, you will notice that your motorcycle starts to lean toward the left astonishingly, easily and directly.

From here, you only have to slightly correct the pressure on the handlebars to correctly go around the curve without having to exert yourself in vain.

Put this technique into practice since it will help you go around curves faster and more precisely and, in terms of safety, you may react faster if there is an unexpected event that you come into contact with on the road.