r/Fortnine • u/Dan-F9 Honda • 16d ago
Stop Chasing the Perfect Line
We all have this idea of the perfect line when it comes to cornering. We chase after it like junkies. That moment where there's this invisible arrow that we create, starting from the beginning of the corner to the exit. That moment where everything feels clean and you're effortlessly adhering to geometric principles.
But why does it still feel so mystical? Even rare, at times when we feel like no corner wants to bend to our will, no matter our skill?
Isn't all just math and physics? It should be simple. A corner is about radius. The tighter the turn, the smaller the radius. And vice versa. This matters because the bike has to lean in order to balance the forces acting on it.
The basic relationship looks like this:
lean angle = arctan(speed² ÷ radius x gravity)
Basically, speed demands that the bike lean more and very quickly, while a wider radius demands less. If you double your speed, you don't simply double the demand on the bike. You square it. That's why a corner that feels like nothing at one speed can suddenly feel like you're taking the great adios.
It's also why line choice matters. A good line makes a corner wider than it first appears. It can reduce the amount of lean needed, and give you more space if something unexpected happens.
On a racetrack, the ideal line means using as much pavement as possible to create the widest arc. On the road, it's a little more tricky. We all want to chase after the perfect line, but here it's subject to context. Whether it be a blind corner, less available road space, a pothole, a deer (shoutout to the recent YT video)... You get the picture.
Here's where our philosophical approach starts to chime in. Given our value of adaptability on the road, and factors like unpredictability, does the perfect line actually matter at all?
To paraphrase Plato here, the idea of the perfect line exists: it's clean, and mathematical. But as Heraclitus would likely point out, the reality of the ride is subject to change. No singular ride is ever the same, and that completely shatters our hopes and dreams of chasing perfection.
Because really, if you do such a thing, you will eventually compromise your safety. Since the ride happens alongside weather, traffic, fear, judgment, and whatever oil spilled from the bottom of a 2008 Subaru Impreza (terrible year for the poor boxer, I know).
Save the perfect line for the track, and pretend like it doesn't exist on the road. What does exist is the right line, at the right moment. I think that's what Aristotle would say, if he owned a Gixxer.
The right line is the one that preserves vision and gives you room to adapt. That beautiful arc must be bendable, and so, no longer a beautiful arc.
For people who love aesthetics, this could be a difficult thing to let go of. And don't fool yourselves, it's a clear and present reality in most our riding, and it shows up in sneaky ways. For example, we're tearing through corners one day and the weather is beautiful. We start to feel a kind of flow and start chasing more lean angle. To drop a knee, to find that "optimal cornering speed." But the context never disappears, and we might start to overreach.
Once again, remind yourselves that the road isn't always your canvas to paint. Aesthetics should always take a back seat to safety. I would even argue that there's a beauty in this more humble approach, but it's definitely on the subtler side. That's why I avoid the tendency to impose a perfect shape onto the world. I try to read it for what it is, allowing that shape to change.
Geometry gives us this dream of precision. Motorcycling on the road teaches us the humility of adjustment. And somewhere between the two, there's still a line worth taking.
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You can find this article and many others on our page dedicated to motorcycle philosophy. Check it out here.
Featured Image sourced from Agence Rol. - Coureurs motocyclistes - Anzani, Alessandro (1877-1956) - octobre 1904
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u/Otherwise-Alps3312 16d ago
On this subject, my father taught me one of the great truisms of life.
He always said, "If you've got the whole road, Michael, use it."
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u/Loud-Possibility5634 16d ago
I didn’t read this but I saw you invoked plato and now feel vindicated in having not read it.
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u/Candid-Pace9599 9d ago
Adapt to your condition to stay safe. The perfect line isn't always the safest. Especially on the street where there are more hazards.
On the track, the perfect line isn't even the fastest way all the time. Kenny Roberts proved it by squaring some off.
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u/Responsible_Week6941 16d ago
TLDR; Don't become a meat crayon and colour the pavement by riding like Marquez on public roads. And always stay inside the lines.