Suspension vs Throttle Control

[misti]

Which is more important, a good suspension set up or really good throttle control and why?

Misti   [moto]

[Spidey]

Really good throttle control.  If I switch bikes, I can't take good suspension set-up with me.

Also, good throttle control will allow you ride around bad suspension.  Good suspension will only save you from the results of poor throttle control up to a point.  And past that point, you're likely to be about 10 feet in the air, wishing that you'd picked throttle control and not suspension.   

Finally, good throttle control acts like good suspension.  If you know how to roll off properly and roll on properly without upsetting the bike and know how to use the throttle to change weight distribution entering, during and exiting turns, you're doing a lot of work that you'd otherwise be asking the suspension to do.  It goes back to my original point -->  good throttle control will compensate for suspension set-up.  It's one of the reasons why good riders can take a shitty bike and make it go faster in, through, and out of turns than you thought possible. 

[He Man]

Good Throttle control because you can always fix the suspension.

[Ducatista]

Good throttle control.  Lacking a skill will always paint failure before setup will.  I'm still on a bike that is sprung for a 220 pound man and I had cold tear issues for the first time at Barber this year.  Poor throttle control will highside you WAY before suspension will cause you to spin the rear or push the front. 

[ScottRNelson]

I recently had the suspension on both of my bikes readjusted by a suspension expert: Phil Douglas at Aftershocks Suspension.  Both bikes work considerably better on rough roads now, with the ST2 showing the biggest improvement.

But I consider throttle control to be way more important than suspension setup.  Best, of course, is to have your suspension properly set up AND learn proper throttle control.

[Cider]

I agree with the comments above.  It would be nice to have good brake control as well, though!  Maybe just slow hands in general.

[misti]

Really good throttle control.  If I switch bikes, I can't take good suspension set-up with me.

Also, good throttle control will allow you ride around bad suspension.  Good suspension will only save you from the results of poor throttle control up to a point.  And past that point, you're likely to be about 10 feet in the air, wishing that you'd picked throttle control and not suspension.   

Finally, good throttle control acts like good suspension.  If you know how to roll off properly and roll on properly without upsetting the bike and know how to use the throttle to change weight distribution entering, during and exiting turns, you're doing a lot of work that you'd otherwise be asking the suspension to do.  It goes back to my original point -->  good throttle control will compensate for suspension set-up.  It's one of the reasons why good riders can take a shitty bike and make it go faster in, through, and out of turns than you thought possible. 

This is a really good explanation.  I too believe that throttle control is more important for these exact reasons.  With good throttle control, you can get your bike working the best it can and you can ride around some suspension set up issues.  By rolling on the gas early in a corner you change the weight bias and put more weight on the rear, this ultimately puts the suspension in the best workable range.  You could have the best set up bike in the world but if you coast through the corners or have crappy throttle control, the suspension won't be able to work like it was designed too.

I had a student at Barber once that kept bottoming out the front suspension and he kept blaming the suspension for the problems.  However, when I was riding behind him I witnesses that he was really late getting on the gas and most of the weight was on the front tire for most of the corner.  I asked him to just try to get on the gas earlier to see if that would prevent the front from bottoming out...he was very skeptical, but was pretty happy when the problem went away and he realized that good throttle control could fix some suspension issues, or at least make them a bit better.

This doesn't mean that there is no need for suspension tuning, or that your suspension isn't important...  I just think that it is better to start with good throttle control and work up to tuning your bike once your throttle control is really good then vice versa. 

Cider also made a good point about brake control as well, if you have poor control of the brakes, that could upset or effect the suspension as well couldn't it?

Misti

[gh0stie]

I just spent a few minutes checking out your site and oogling your race pictures..........sweet!