Riding a motorcycle at speed is (much) harder than it looks

There are invitations that a motorcyclist finds difficult to refuse: riding high-performance motorcycles for a whole morning on the Estoril Race Track is on that list.

The excuse was The BMW Motorrad Experiencewhich took place on the second weekend of May, a marketing operation by a German brand that, for three days, offers a rare opportunity to hundreds of visitors – journalists, businessmen, customers and convince them – testing brand motorcycles in different disciplines.

In addition to the chance to drive the brand’s models, which in itself is nice to do, the attraction turns out to be, for the most part, a race track. We can see in this experience several dimensions. Allow me to highlight two: the practical one, which is the opportunity to speed without fear of fines, potholes or oncoming traffic; and another, a mystery, the fact that the main drivers of F1 (Senna, Schumacher, Mansell, Prost) and MotoGP (Rossi, Lorenzo) raced on this circuit.

Circuits on the rails are led by pilots, with groups separated by experience levels. Since it is the first time, this one writing to you fell, and well, into the “slow” group – the beginners give way to the more experienced and faster groups.

Those half a dozen laps around Estoril, as well as being very fun, served as a kind of lesson – according to another one held in Madrid behind the wheel of a car -, which realizes that going fast, like a race. Drivers do, it is very difficult, it requires hard work and certainly talents that few have.

The driver who took us on the rounds did not need to make any effort. He didn’t even brake or put his knee down to make a turn; before, I had to struggle to get close to him. But our guide was very generous with the torches, giving instructions to ride behind him to teach us how to make “lines” – the term used to designate the paths on the route, that is, the places where the bike must be in order to perform. the best trajectory.

BMW’s “guides” didn’t have to try too hard. Here indicate the best trajectory
Diogo Silva

We didn’t leave with more knowledge about the art of racing, but we definitely understood how difficult it is to race on a motorcycle. We see MotoGP riders riding with speed and elegance, but we don’t see the hard work, courage and talent that goes into creating those incredible moments.

The same can be said about those who prefer the ground to asphalt. BMW Motorrad also prepared for the weekend an all-terrain experience to demonstrate the capabilities of the different GS models, and home teachers explaining that in order to walk in the world we have to tell the body to do the opposite of what we learn for the road. Once again, this is easier said than done.

The event, which held its 16th edition this year, also gave 1200 participants the opportunity to test their skills with obstacles and, of course, a road trip around Sintra with one of the 28 BMW models there. A corporate insider told us that the Experience is, for some regulars, “the event of the year”. The year goes by fast.

Riding a motorcycle at speed is (much) harder than it looks | history

Amani

Related posts:

Amani