I am a bike owner!

One of my instructors when I did my DAS was old school. He would blip the throttle all the time and ride the clutch when doing maneuvers. rev rev rev rev, not hard, just a little, as opposed to keeping constant low revs.

Personally I think I'm like pretty much every other bike in the world in that I've done maybe two feet-up u-turns since I passed my test :D
 
U turns were fun for me! Found the slow stuff really easy but I did have an instructor mate who took me for my CBT so I had lots of playground time.
I found that approx 50% more throttle over tickover, feathering the throttle to keep the speed constant and the rear brake used to slow up and pull the bike upright and round a bit more.
Imagine some one/thing holding onto the back of your bike and slowing you up on a corner - the bike will become more upright due to the retardation - okay, too much rear brake and your low siding and/or high siding at speed but slow corners and a bit of rear brake help adjust your line.
 
Throttle control is generally very sensitive in the region just off idle which is where you would need to be for most U turns; a tiny bit of movement of the throttle will cause a big difference when you are trickling along in 1st. Using the back brake to regulate speed you can keep a constant, small throttle opening so you get very progressive control. Front brake is no good as it will try to make the bike fall over.
 
Thanks for all the advice guys, it's much appreciated. I'm picking the bike up tomorrow and on Sunday I'll be riding it on some private land so I'll be able to try and put all this advice into practice. :)
 
Got the bike on Saturday and had my first run on it on Sunday!

My confidence is much higher now. Still need more work but I'm better than before. Even after just doing laps of the car park I found that I was turning in tighter and tighter circles without really having to think too much more about it. I was right about one thing though - as I suspected, if I felt the bike was leaning too much, I could apply more power and it would pull itself up.

One big thing I need to do is to loosen up a bit. If I'm slightly nervous then it's all too easy to hold on for dear life. It's alright when you're riding but you pay for it the morning after when your muscles hurt. The really stupid thing is that it's much easier to ride loose than tense. I'm hoping that this is something that comes with time and experience.
 
Time

You have to relax mate bikes just dont seem to handle all that well when you tense up trust the machine and you'll do fine look up the pshysics on how a bike works it puts your mind at ease mate

just be gentle no sudden powerful moves and you should be fine
 
dragging the back brake as others have said helped me, as did good clutch/throttle control. Also as has been said, looking at your target helps too. You'll get it, and likely never use it again!
 
Definately look at your target not your clocks, and try not to move the throttle when you get moving use the back brake instead ;)
 
Just to let you all know, I had another go on the bike today. I'm really pleased because I had a "eureka" moment where everything just came together!

It's all about the rear brake! It seems so natural when you get the hand of it. I can do all sorts of slow riding manoeuvres now. My confidence has rocketed and I'm loosening up on the bike as well. I'm absolutely thrilled to bits.

I'm going to have a few more days riding around the car park just to get more riding time and to fine tune any little niggles. Then it'll be CBT time again. :)

P.S. I haven't forgotten about a photo - I'll get one soon!
 
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Had another go yesterday and unfortunately a razor-sharp stone punctured the rear tyre. Repaired the puncture and carried on.

I'm certain that this can't be the correct technique, but I've found that with lower revs, clutch out and rear brake I can do a U-turn fairly easily now. I've tried it with higher revs and the clutch in a bit but it seems more difficult that way.

I'm making huge progress and I can't wait to get on the road now!
 
Meh , when I did my test the examiner was on foot with his clipboard and just used to know the right vantage points on the route to do his emergency stop routine and other stuff :p;)
 
bloodiedathame said:
Do whatever suits! In my test I u-turned the loaner CG in about half the road (I think it just rolled round). That thing was like a bicycle.
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At the first distance I marked out some cones with, it felt like two 90 degree turns rather than a u-turn. Loads of room to spare. These small bikes will turn on a sixpence!
 
It's good your getting the hang of it. When I practiced I found a car park and set myself the target of turning consistently within 2 bays. Half an hour later I was stringing them together and turning tighter and tighter. Doubt I could do the same now though. :D
 
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