Why Learning to Ride Off-Road Can Help You Become a Better Rider
Riding a motorcycle in general is a fun, fulfilling way to get out on the roads and enjoy the freedom it can give you.
As you gain more and more experience, your confidence on the roads and in your abilities will improve and rise, and you will know how to adapt to certain situations and ride on various types of surfaces.
That is until you try to ride off-road; this is when all your experience that you thought you had goes out the window, with many riders getting humbled rather quickly. Off-road riding is entirely different to riding on the tarmac, you have to ride the motorcycle differently, using the brakes in a different manner, and controlling the throttle and power output using the clutch.
Despite this, the skills you can learn and pick up when riding off-road can and will help you become a stronger and more proficient rider on the roads, from throttle control to riding on tricky surfaces such as loose gravel, you will be more at ease with the rear tyre sliding around and being a little looser as you will have the skills to control it.
Riding a motorcycle off-road can help improve your overall motorcycle riding skills in a number of ways. Here are a few of them:
Improved Balance and Control
Off-road riding demands a higher level of balance and control from the rider than riding on roads paved with tarmac and concrete. This is due to the fact that dirt, mud, and gravel are completely unpredictable and can force you to ride in ways you didn’t expect or make manoeuvres to avoid things such as rocks, mud, and holes with lightning reaction times.
A stronger sense of balance and control will come from riding off-road; you will need to be precise but also have the ability to control the motorcycle in moments of difficulty. As your balance and control skills improve while riding off-road, you will find that they will translate to the tarmac.
Body Position
Off-road riding also demands that you maintain control of the bike by correctly positioning your body on the bike at all times.
This means that you will need to stand on the footpegs. Understandably, this may be a strange sensation at first for many riders.
You will find that when standing up, it is much easier to adjust your weight in order to assist the bike in manoeuvring through corners and over obstacles, plus your legs will act like shock absorbers, taking the impacts of the bumps in the road and keeping you in control instead of rocketing you out of your seat every time there’s a bounce.
Because of this, you will have a higher chance of developing an awareness of how the posture of your body impacts the handling and stability of the bike. This can translate into riding on the tarmac, not because you’ll be standing up and riding, but because you’ll be more used to how to control the bike with your weight.
Adaptability
When riding off-road, you’ll need to be able to swiftly adjust your riding style to suit the constantly shifting terrain and weather conditions.
This means being able to read the terrain in front of you, adjust your speed and line accordingly, and make split-second judgements to avoid any obstacles.
When travelling on tarmacked roads, having these skills can be of great assistance in preventing accidents and responding appropriately to unforeseen circumstances. This is because your reaction times will be quicker and your knowledge of how to react appropriately to a hazard will likely have improved.
Confidence
Last but not least, riding a motorcycle off-road can help you get more comfortable on a motorcycle and gain confidence when riding on the roads.
As previously mentioned, having additional confidence through recognising threats and problems that could arise when riding off-road and the knowledge that you will be able to manoeuvre and control your motorcycle in a safer manner in these situations can transfer to the tarmac.