Customer Reviews

Smooth Riding the Pridmore Way

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Reg Pridmore explains his title this way: "Being smooth isn't just an artful and elegant way to ride, though it is these things too. You must be smooth before you can go fast, and be smooth to be safe." He's talking about winning and survival.
Pridmore is a former AMA Superbike champion, known since 1986 for his CLASS track schools, which thousands of riders have attended. He brings 50 years of riding, racing and teaching experience to the task, in this book, of passing on his lessons in print, emphasizing safety. His style is very first person, totally sure of himself, utterly uncompromising.
Winners win and street riders survive, Pridmore explains, through lifelong learning, working constantly to improve their technique and eliminate their mistakes and bad habits.
This book is not a quick or particularly easy read and is best taken in bites. The interleaved anecdotes from the author's rich racing and riding experience are occasionally intrusive but always entertaining and informative. The photos, by some of the best in the business, are sensational (many from Reg's collection are sadly uncredited).
Reg's starts with the essential, basic element: attitude. He goes on to discuss the core need for smoothness, to avoid upsetting the subtle dynamics of a motorcycle at speed. He talks about 'control,' analyzing the correct approaches to throttle management and proper braking (as a racer he was known as a 'late braker' of formidable finesse). He candidly scathes the clumsy, brutal application of throttle or brakes.
Readers who liked Nick Ienatsch's SPORT RIDING TECHNIQUES, reviewed here by me, will not be disappointed by Pridmore's SMOOTH RIDING but will note many divergences in opinion, especially the endless controversy between body steering, which Pridmore espouses, and 'countersteering' at the bars. Capable riders use every bodily sensor and muscle group to achieve results. There are few 'perfect' answers. Readers know the difference between road and track, affecting every aspect of riding, and Pridmore includes substantial material on street, group, wet-weather and two-up riding.
Pridmore wants us to take in his book, understand it, make it work for us every time we ride, considering every aspect each time we throw a leg over a bike. Every gearshift, every brake application, every twist of the throttle, every line, every body position, must be optimized for smoothness, speed and safety. That's his message and it comes across clearly.

I started with Keith Code back in the late 80's and eventually read most of the major motorcycle training / safety books. Each book adds something to my archive of techniques. It might be just one paragraph that I didn't really digest on the first time through.

Reg talks about smooth in a way that connected with me. The information may have been found in other books I have, but Reg reached me and changed the way I ride for the better.

If you're interested in the history of our sport his side notes about racing and riding on the street in the 60's are worth the price of the book.

My wife and I have taken his class and this book added to the experience. I highly recommend this book.

If the main point of Pridmore's book is in proclaiming the mantra, "Be Smoooth" over all else, it is a success. I think there is a lot of credence to the concept, but I'm not sure how much stock real-world riders will put into this. And I'm not sure how well Pridmore sells the idea to his readers.

It is so easy for riders to have instant gratification. If you are an adult with the financial means, you can walk into a dealership and purchase a 160 hp motorcycle with no riding experience and drive off. This is the mentality that Pridmore is up against. To compound the problem, there are so many intricate pieces to riding the Pridmore way that most motorcyclists will not invest the time and effort. And where this books fails the most is how to put these ideas to practice. Pridmore addresses so many different things that this reader wonders where exactly is the best place to start?

Although he does not overtly say it, I think Pridmore intended for this book to be a complementary manual for his riding school. He cites it so often that one begins to wonder what he is selling; "Smooth Riding the Pridmore Way" or rather "Come to CLASS Where You Can Learn Smooth Riding the Pridmore Way."

My recommendation is to buy the book if you plan on attending his riding school. However, unless you are fastidious about your practice riding sessions, you will see only minimal gains if going it alone.

This book is the perfect book for riders who are comfortable with their bike and ready to take things to the next level. I had read David Hough's "Proficient Motorcycling" already when I got this book, and wasn't expecting to learn much when I tried this book out from the library.

Needless to say, I was totally proven wrong! Where Proficient Motorcycling focuses 80% on street strategy and 20% on mechanics, this book is the other way around, and a great complement to Hough's books. While the book is basically about advanced riding techniques that racers use, the focus is always on how these techniques make you a safer and more capable rider on the street. This is one of the things I like most about the book. I also read an older version of Keith Code's "Twist of the Wrist", but found it hard to relate to because it's a serious track racer's guide. This book has skills you can immediately start applying to your current riding, even if it's just a daily commute to work.

Although the book is not very long and is a fairly easy read, I'm finding that it's taking a long time to absorb the techniques. It takes a lot of attention to break old habits, and one doesn't have much attention to spare in the first place on a bike. Anyway, I've gotten a lot of enjoyment out of adjusting my riding to use the techniques in the book, one at a time. It's brought a new level of freshness and areas to focus on improving to my riding.

Let me begin by saying that I was slightly disappointed by this purchase. I had hoped for an in-depth discussion of riding technique, providing useful insight on bike control and operation.

What I got, however, was page after page of misty eyed reminiscences about the "good old days" of motorcycle racing. While interesting, this is not what I was hoping for in a book about riding skills.

Actual technique sections were rather light on detail, and provided no more information than even the most basic of motorcycle instruction courses. Essentially the book could be summed up by just writing in big letters "DO EVERYTHING SMOOTHLY", and leaving it at that.

On the other hand, this book might be useful for people who have just begun riding a bike, and have not undergone any instruction.

This book was more for the rider that wanted to race. I had wanted a book more for riding streets. Many of the authors ideas did fall into that catatory. Good reading.

This book, I felt, was geared more for the track or sportbike rider. I did come away with new ideas even though I ride a big touring bike (Goldwing). It was a good overall read for the cold winter months and now I look forward to using the things the book suggested.

I'm sure Reg wrote this book for the good rider that wants to raise his skill level. He does go into valuable points for downshifting and braking that are applicable to all riders. For the new track day rider, I found two areas that other books don't cover as well, or at all: 1) Keeping tight lines, not using the whole road (or track) and why, 2) his four-step method to learning how to hang-off a bike is certainly the best and safest approach to this topic I have read anywhere. He has other valuable insights to offer after you've mastered the basic riding skills. The best sources for those are (depending on your experience) "Motorcycling Excellence" (best for a first-time rider) by the MSF, David Hough's "Proficient Motorcycling" combo(I personally prefer his second book, "More Proficient Motorcycling.") and Nick Ienatsch's "Sport Bike Riding Techniques." As far as I'm concerned, Hough's and Ienatsch's are "must-reads" for all riders from the first-time newbie to highly skilled rider. If you really want to hone your track riding or racing skills, latch onto Andy Ibbott's "Performance Riding Techniques: The MotoGP Manual of Track Riding Skills." Definitely a "must-read" for those that are track bound. Lastly, to have a complete library of riding skills & techniques, buy Lee Parks' "Total Control," last on my personal list but still worthwhile. If you ride, I guarantee these seven books will be the best investment you ever made. They cover it all, no need to invest any further.

I've read a lot of motorcycle rider books. Several are riding strategies and training related. This book is very well written. The progression and explanation of the riding tips are such that you immediately understand what and why he's recommending a certain skill. Its also structured in a way that you can use it as a reference and progressively master each technique.

Was I impressed? I registered for a CLASS day with Reg and will be riding almost 1,000 to get there for it.

Recommend the book? Absolutely. Read it, add the techniques to your riding, and you come to appreciate the lessons almost immediately.

You will enjoy this book whatever your experience in motorcycles. To say be smooth is the same as to say be fast but author does have some helpful advices to share.