Are You Coasting?

I have been working technique, then throttle application and amount of throttle. I feel the better technique makes it safer for me and more comfortable to get on the gas harder and smoother in turns.

Jett coasts into turns constantly.   

 The "all gas or all brake" thing is an old wives tale...

Yeah I'm not sure how that would even work on a dirt bike.  When I roadraced it was much closer to that but you had so much more grip that it could work.  Not so much on the dirt.  

https://motocrossactionmag.com/secrets-of-braking/

Jett is also going Mach 2 into the turns while the rest of us are about to tip over if we go any slower

Reach my age and you can coast all you want...when you want.

It helps to Video every ride.  Without it you can tell yourself how fast or slow you're riding, how smooth you are through the corners, etc..., but the GoPro footage will tell you the truth.

When I first started recording every lap of every practice, then watch most of it the same evening, I thought a few things:

Why am I going so slow?

Why the heck did I get off the gas so far before the corner?

Why didn't I go for that jump? It's tiny.

This would be a better line through that.

It was a really satisfying moment when I actually started to enjoy watching myself ride, liking the line choices, keeping momentum and flow, riding through ruts, on the gas when I should be.

If you want to get faster, I 100% recommend recording and studying your own riding.

Besides, when you do something cool, you'll have proof!

Meanwhile I’m over here thinking the biggest thing I ever had to teach myself about riding was that coasting was actually faster. 
Trying to consciously change that habit of a lifetime: charging into a corner as fast as you could, braking as late as possible, out of control, cross rutted and locked up, trying to pivot and get back on the gas flat mickey with a handful of clutch, and wondering why the bike handles so badly? Hang on, next corner! 
Ah youthful exuberance at its best 😆

Then eventually when your youth has bid you farewell, you hear about coasting. Sounds like something someone old n slow would say, surely that doesn’t apply to me. Then you try it, brake early, set yourself up for the corner, roll through part throttle, a gear higher and steadily winding up your right wrist  

Damn momentum is a thing! If only I’d listened in physics, I may have got to B grade ten years earlier…..

Corners are the funnest thing on a bike to do. 

“Roll speed”

It definitely was the way it was taught years ago to either be on the gas or on the brakes but to really carry speed you should be coasting at certain points. It will obviously be a huge time waster though if you’re coasting too much or too early. 

I think the general thought process for all racing should be: "What can I do to get on the gas sooner exiting a corner?".

They were teaching this technique back when men were racing 350 pound 4 strokes with 5 inches of travel while wearing pudding bowl helmets....

The thing is, it's not meant to be taken literally. (No coasting ever, on the gas or on the brakes).

The idea ANYONE could ride laps on a motocross track and NEVER coast anywhere is silly. 

It's a "concept" to practice, not a goal to achieve. 

Just like these: 

*Ride laps never sitting down, standing the whole time, everywhere.

* Remove rear brake lever, go ride laps and try to go fast

* Spin laps never using the clutch, anywhere, ever 

One thing I think a lot of riders overlook is the fact that very few riders actually turn the throttle all the way open.

I agree with this 100%….even better to have someone video you so yiu can see your body positioning… We used to do this all the time years ago when camcorders became common….I cringe when I see myself on video😂

Good advice. As I approach 50, I spend much more time in the coasting zone 😣  the anti gravity gene kicks in at some point for everyone, it hit me a little earlier than I was hoping! 

^^ This is accurate. Apparently a few took it wrong in this thread. The idea is to make the rider aware that he/she can get around the track quicker with “less” coasting. Of course it’s impossible to NOT coast. 

Oh yeah… there’s no doubt that seeing yourself riding can bring out the cringe. When I was riding/racing moto, I definitely felt like I was going a lot faster than I was actually going. 

Going down a square edge down hill into a steep ramp table top . I turn the bike in the air to shoot left.  Get on the left edge on track . And curve a angle to go inside the rt turn ruts into a hill with a floater.  I don’t let off at all just keep it pulling good in the mid range.  Standing & letting both tires slide .  Everyone else rides into 1 of the ruts & has to slow down then fight to gain speed to clear the hill. Only possible on a 04 cr125 tho.  

I ride mostly in sand, so most of the time, coasting isn't really an option. If I go to a dirt track, wow does it feel easy - you can actually let off the throttle without just coming to a stop!

This.  

This was one of the tenants of DHMA back in the 90's and I used to try to live by it, but things evolve and this isn't it anymore.  Fluidity from on the gas before a corner and everything in between to getting back on the gas on the exit is key and coasting in certain areas (with emphasis on roll) is better than braking.  However, it's much easier said than done!

I pretty sure the OP means you can find easy areas on the track to fuckin bark it and not get sketchy and eat shit.

I keep telling myself I'm carrying my speed like Jett and hitting lines like Pourcel, so the coasting is fine. But in reality, I just have arm pump. 

Trying to not coast and be on the brakes or the gas all the time isn't going to help you get faster. If you need to coast a bit at times to facilitate a smooth corner entry and nice smooth arc in the corner and keep your corner speed up you will be much faster.

As you get better and faster you can start worrying about staying on the gas longer and braking harder but that's a progression IMO.

This is probably a dumb question, but when pros talk about roll speed do they mean come into a turn, chop off the throttle and carry momentum around until they are able to roll on to full throttle or do they mean that they are holding the throttle about mid to 3/4 throttle and neither accelerating or decelerating - just holding their high speed through the turn?

My method is to chop throttle at the least opportune time then as quickly as possible get back to 3/4 or full throttle to either make the front end light to wash out the front wheel or break rear traction to spin out and lose most forward drive. 

I’m coasting in a few aspects of my life, lol!

The hardest part for me is to consistently be looking up & ahead to the next obstacle….

How do you know you are coasting?  You have to get back on the gas to reach the corner.

Yeah the last time my gf came to the track with me, she took some video. I made her immediately erase it and ordered her never to film again. I much prefer the fantasy in my head of me ripping them seeing the actual reality on video

You doing something right….if your  girl still comes to the track with you….let alone makes a video….my girl barely lifts her head when I walk in the door half dead from riding…my riding friends…whats left of them..are good at taking videos of me at my absolute worst moments…😂