Street Sense
Street Sense is written by David L. Hough, author of the book 'Proficient Motorcycing' and two-time winner of the MSF's 'Excellence in Motorcycle Journalism' award. His unique insight into the hows and whys of riding make him a valuable asset to the motorcycling community, and Friction Zone is honored to publish his articles. This section describes the Street Sense articles from previous issues. If you would like to order the magazine in which an article appeared, please fill out the subscription form by checking the "Back Issue" box and indicating the appropriate month.
August 2010 Angles on Leaning
When going around the same curve, with the same motorcycle, at the same speed, can the bike assume different lean angles depending on how it is ridden? That is, by using more or less body lean, more or less countersteering, or whatever, will the bike lean more or less?…
June 2010 The Nanny State
A few months ago I heard some whining about laws in my state (of Washington) from a rider who had recently moved here. He snidely referred to this state as a "nanny state" because in his view there are more restrictive motorcycle laws here than "back home." Where he came from, there was much less attention to personal protection, licensing, etc., and he somehow expected his "back home" attitudes to be transferable to other states. I'm not sure what laws pulled his chain, but I found his attitude offensive. Listen, Mr. New Guy, you're here now, not "back home."…
April 2010 Steering Control
These days, about half of all motorcycle crashes are collisions with automobiles or light trucks. A common crash scenario is with an oncoming driver turning left in front of the motorcycle at a busy intersection. Back in the good old days, we used to be able to blame the blankety-blank 'cage' driver for running into the motorcyclist. But today, the finger of blame for crashes is more and more pointed at the motorcyclist in the mirror. Out on country roads, motorcyclists are more often contributors to the crashes. Too often, riders are making bad decisions and aren't skillful enough to control their motorcycles…
February 2010 Cornering Lines
One of the big advantages of riding a bike on twisty roads is that you can follow a path of travel (or 'line') that's different from the pavement. If you watch roadracers on TV, you can appreciate that a good cornering line is essential for higher speeds. If you ride a big touring bike or cruiser, you may think that this doesn't apply to you, but the reason for the racing line is to conserve traction. And, regardless of the bike you are riding, wouldn't conserving traction be a good idea? Following a 'bike' line (as opposed to a 'car' line) on public roads helps keep any bike upright when crossing patches of slick or contaminated pavement. The bike line not only conserves traction and lean-over clearance, but also gives you a better view of the road ahead, and increases separation from wandering drivers…
December 2009 Can You Hear Me Now? Part 2
In Part 1 (Street Sense, October 2009), we explained why wind noise is louder than most motorcyclists realize—loud enough to damage hearing even at typical highway speeds. Fortunately, there is an easy, economical way to protect your hearing during those fast, all-day transits: ear plugs. This month we'll describe some of the various types of earplugs available, take a pair of foam earplugs for a ride, provide some helpful suggestions about earplug comfort, address some common earplug questions, and offer some advice about where to buy them…
October 2009 Can You Hear Me Now? Part 1
My motorcycling career has spanned 44 years, and for the first 30 I didn't wear any hearing protection. When I first heard about hearing protection I wasn't interested. "Real motorcyclists don't need earplugs." "Earplugs make it harder to hear important sounds such as fire engine sirens and horns." "The windscreen will deflect the wind." "My helmet will reduce wind noise." "Earplugs are only needed for going fast or riding in gusting crosswinds." It turns out that I was wrong on all counts. These days I wear earplugs on every ride…
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