Cornering On Your Cruiser

A motorcycle is a powerful, fun, and potentially dangerous vehicle—though that really just adds to the thrill. Cruisers are especially popular, but some of the aesthetic choices that make them a favorite can also make things like cornering more complicated. We here at North County Indiana Motorcycle® want to make sure you stay safe while you speed along, so we’ve put together some tips for cornering on your cruiser below. 

To learn more, or to see the cruisers we have for sale, contact our store in San Marcos, California, or our sister dealership Riverside County Indian Motorcycle® in Corona, California, today!

What’s Different About Cruisers?

Motorcycles are already pretty finicky when it comes to cornering, but cruisers are another story entirely. Some of the same unique features that make cruisers into their iconic selves also make cornering harder, like the extra weight and bulk. These can make leaning a more dangerous proposition, which ends up impacting your turns.

Cruisers are also much closer to the ground, meaning several parts low on the chassis can end up scraping against the ground if you’re not careful. Things like your foot pegs, the exhaust, and the side stand can all scrape or catch something on the ground. At best this causes some damage to the parts themselves, at worst causes a slideout or sends you flying.

Strategies to Counteract This

Braking

Since your cruiser has such a low ground clearance, you want the suspension as high as possible during your turn. Hitting the brakes, unfortunately, lowers the suspension. Try to finish breaking before you start into the corner itself to keep the suspension higher, which can help prevent anything from hitting the road below you.

Accelerating

Once you start the turn, or even once you hit the midway point, accelerating into the turn can actually be helpful. It causes the suspension to actively lift up higher, further improving the turn. Just make sure to feather it.

Shift Your Weight

Obvious as it sounds, shifting your weight into the turn is crucial to helping your bike tilt and move your center of gravity to a safer place. Make sure you’re sitting up straight before you start your lean, though.

Wider Turns

Another obvious point worth repeating, wider turns require less lean. Given how low your cruiser is built to ride, that can make all the difference. Larger arcs also improve your visibility and control, so focus on getting the widest turn possible without drifting out of your lane.

Use Your Senses

During a turn, be attuned to any scraping sounds or unfamiliar vibrations. That’s an early warning sign you’ve hit your maximum lean and should adjust to avoid scraping up your bike further.

We hope these tips help you keep your cruiser and yourself safer during turns! For more information, or to see the cruiser motorcycles we have available, contact us at North County Indian Motorcycle®. We proudly serve the people of San Diego and Oceanside, California—let us serve you today!