If you haven't mastered the basics of an easy corner then you'll probably
just reinforce bad technique by getting into berms too early.
And a proper pair of knee braces will go a long
way to reducing your risks of injury if it all goes wrong.
Take it away Ruben.
Ring a berm is a motocross skill.
But it gets used a lot in endurocross and just normal enduro and trail riding.
One thing we need to stress... don't jump head of yourself.
Too many guys for for that bike magazine cover photo.
They try to slide in, 'square off' then roost out.
Focus on good basic technique first.
A smooth entry.
A good line.
Carry momentum.
And a smooth exit using the full berm.
The entry.
Look ahead and pick the best line.
Where possible avoid bumps caused by other riders braking hard.
Brake early, and coast in so you can change gear if needed, and focus on your technique.
As you come into the berm, you want your body position right up
forward on the motorbike so your front wheel is getting traction.
Slide one of your butt cheeks off the corner of your seat.
having your bum half off the seat lets you lean the motorbike more.
This lets you follow the berm better.
I like to put my leg right up on top of the radiator shroud... down towards the front axle.
At first you can have your boot out near your front axle, but as you lean the motorbike more
and more, you can see Ruben needs his leg high to avoid hitting the ground.
Your leg acts like an 'outrigger' to keep you balanced, and you can put
your foot down if the bike does get out of shape.
Also keep your leg near the motorbike, as you can see Ruben doing.
If you have your leg away from the motorbike,
you can wind up in a world of pain if your leg is wrenched around by the terrain.
Lean the motorbike, but keep your body upright.
This lets you lift the motorbike up if needed... if the motorbike slides out.
Try and look out to where you're going.
Try and keep your head up.
If you're looking down you end up being a lot slower.
It sounds easy?
It's actually hard to look ahead instead of the ground right in front of you.
And if you think pro riders don't have problems,
Ruben said his exits from berms are slowed down because he keeps forgetting to look ahead.
As with normal cornering, remember to keep your elbows up and weight the outside footpeg,
especially as you exit to get more traction to the rear wheel.
It's also common to let the body slide back on the seat as you accelerate for the same reason.
You look up and out, to be able to roll around the corner.
Roll the power on and out of the berm.
Not all berms are perfect of course.
If part of the berm is 'blown out', you can turn more aggressively before or after the
bad section. You can ease the motorbike past without sliding out of the berm.
We can't stress enough the need to do berms smoothly at a moderate speed...
until you have mastered all these basics.
As you do get better, then try the following.
Try braking later into the berm.
Try a faster speed with more lean angle.
Remember to keep that leg high.
Don't change down a gear.
Instead keep one finger on the clutch lever and do
a controlled drop of the clutch on your exit to get more power to the ground.
Try sliding in more,
but only as you feel confident with all the other aspects of railing a berm.
A big thanks to Ruben for sharing these tips.
And hang around as we'll be looking at some more advanced techniques for berms soon.