Steering Scooters for Dummies - The Freelance Files MMCCXIX

Countersteering a motorcycle

We don't know how many times we've said it here (not to mention in real life), but this statement bears near-constant repeating: "If you want information, you ask the person who knows the facts." As we've suggested in the past, you don't ask a plumber for advice about medical problems, and you don't ask an MD how to cut a mortise  and tenon joint. Almost never, anyway... With that in mind, we hereby present Nida Rasheed and her half-witted attempt to explain "Turning Tips for Motor Scooters" for ItStillRuns.com. That Rasheed is unfamiliar with the physics of single-track vehicles is... well, obvious.

Nida made a huge mess of her "list" of tips, not least because she was clearly unaware of the physics of riding single-track vehicles – not just scooters, but also motorcycles and bicycles. At any speed, but especially at medium to high speed, turning a scooter is a function of a phenomenon known as countersteering, in which the operator first turns the front wheel in the opposite direction of the desired turn before leaning into the turn and torquing the handlebars in the desired direction. Very slightly, but definitely opposite. The heavier the vehicle and the greater the speed, the more pronounced the countersteer effects (see image above).

Countersteering is necessary because of two effects: first, the center of mass of the vehicle and rider is above the contact with the road; and second, the spinning wheels create a gyroscopic effect. As a result, the operator must lean in the direction of the desired turn. 

With that in mind, let's see what Rasheed had to say. Bear in mind that, in keeping with the Demands of eHow.com (where this post originated), Nida had to pad her post with useless information such as not grabbing the clutch to turn. Duh. Anyway, here's (some of) what she said:

"Turning a motor scooter is very different from turning a car or a jeep [sic] and you have to know the art of leaning a scooter in order to change its direction. You should apply slight pressure on the hand grip while you press it in direction of the turn you are taking with your motor scooter. If you want to turn right, press right and if you want to go left, then you should press the left hand grip of the motor scooter. If you are riding at more than 5 mph, then lean with the scooter when you are making the turn- [sic]do not sit at right angles to the road."

Presumably Rasheed meant "truck" instead of "jeep"; but that's not what caught our eye. No, what confused us this: "You should apply slight pressure on the hand grip while you press it in direction of the turn" juxtaposed against "to turn right, press right." Rather than babbling about "slight pressure" and "press right," Rasheed's focus should have been on the orientation of the handlebars, not this "press this or that" bullshit.

That's not to mention that, as experienced riders of two-wheeled conveyances will tell you, turning the handlebars/front wheel assembly is more "intuitive" than "instructive." The art of leaning on turns is far more important. And then there's "as you ride out of the corner, you can speed up the throttle in the direction of a straight line," Which makes even less sense. We guess that's her version of "brake into a curve, accelerate out"... we guess.

We also found Nida's grasp of reading a road somewhat... weak; given her exhortation to "keep track of the vanishing point of [a] corner so you can turn." WTF that even means is beyond us, given that watching for the vanishing point is a technique for judging how sharp a corner is, and the point doesn't move.

Since Nida's instructions are more likely to confuse would-be scooterists than to help them, we do hereby award Ms. Rasheed her fourth Dumbass of the Day award; her first that manages to appear in the subcategory of Dangerous Stupidity.

SE - PHYSICS