Most People Don't Know How Bikes Work

[@dogsrocks1028]

To me its incredible how humans just learn to do these things subconsciously. Noone tells you that when youre a kid, you just try over and over again until suddenly you do it right without even knowing what youre doing differently. Imagine how many things you do right without even understanding why oder what exactly it is youre doing. Absolutely incredible

[@VengeanceCore]

I did actually tell my kid this, I didnt know this was something people didn't know. Its also very obvious that you have to do this on a motorbike.

[@AstralArbourSys]

@@VengeanceCore My dad explained this to me when I was learning to ride a bike and it actually screwed me up, cause I was always actively trying to countersteer and I always went too far. But maybe that's just me.

[@vanceezinwoke3692]

@I'm just here for the asmr 💕 riding a bike doesn't give you confidence You find that within yourself, I think

[@bobsmith6544]

Dumbest statement ever bro LOL.

[@dogsrocks1028]

@@bobsmith6544 why you gotta do me like that though D:

[@Kragatar]

I think the most impressive part of this is the human brain's ability to do something it doesn't even know it's doing.

[@philipo8170]

Like how we intuitively learned what a parabola is playing catch. Long before it was formally discovered

[@ham1872]

Like Blinking

[@philipo8170]

@@ham1872 that’s less impressive because it’s preprogrammed, not learned

[@chickenbob562]

well you know how to do it, because your subconscious understands it its just that your consciousness doesnt register it as the same its like that with a lot of stuff, like almost everything if you think about it, it feels like we are a slower and dumber version of our subconscious selfs

[@ukkirot8264]

I mean that is how they teach you in school. You have to do something, remember something and do it without thinking about it. You can tell that Pi is Pi becouse its Pi and its made to calculate the circle and ahit but a lot less people know why Pi exist and why it works. Its scary how people are made to just "do" things and not undrestand them at all.

[@ShortHax]

It’s easy to build a rocket. It’s not like it’s bicycle-science

[@deninpaul7509]

How the turntables ...

[@wizard_dynamo]

You don't build a bicycle, bicycle builds you.

[@DoiInthanon1897]

I see what you did there 👌

[@cleanlens]

sure

[@cleanlens]

what about bananalogic

[@SeanRice-rv6ml]

I built a reverse steering bike, and while it took about 2 years to be able to ride it well, it was very much like having to learn to ride a bike all over again (except now as an adult with all the analysis skills I have gained). I learned many things about how to ride a bike, but the most fun thing I learned was the element of steering you illustrate in this video. Many people know how to ride a bike, few know what they do to make it work. Thanks for the video.

[@kjellg6532]

They have one to borrow at the sience museum in Copehagen, Danmark.Takes some time to get "reprogammed"

[@ErezVee]

I thaught myself steering with crossed hands, which, basically, has just about the same effect. Took me a couple of hours, though, not two years. I am curious about riding a reverse steering bike to see how similar it is.

[@jamiejam9976]

I never learned how to ride a bike so I never learned how to counter steer, and this has all been pretty useful in my pursuit to learn

[@smarterray]

This is a recurring nightmare 😅

[@danielmorrisonrhymes]

"Understanding how bicycles work is still an active area of research". This really is pretty extraordinary.

[@nenmaster5218]

Veritasium-Fans, I have the Hobby to recommen Science-KZbinrs to Fans of Science-KZbin-Channels.

[@Chimera_Photography]

What the hell are we doing trying to get to mars when we haven’t figured out bicycles yet 😂

[@obviouslyanonymous]

Gives me the same energy as inventing the Rubik's Cube and then not being able to resolve it

[@nenmaster5218]

@@Chimera_Photography XD

[@StraightestDakregor]

It's always funny to me how humans can create things before actually understanding how they actually work

[@jjhbball]

To me, science often shows how incredible our intuition is. There is so much that we do "naturally" without understanding the mechanics. Sometimes we get it wrong, but I like the example of shooting a basketball. The physics involved are incredible, but people can train to put a ball in a hoop at a weird angle from incredible distance, under duress, and with remarkable consistency without a deep understanding of the mechanics.

[@gerhardvaneeden5615]

Lovely comment!

[@calebr908]

And people can understand the mechanics and not be able to do it.

[@reefosjay5407]

I agree

[@ZachTechnicolour]

Or even simpler, being able to catch something thrown at you. Many intense mathematical calculations are subconsciously made in split seconds to know the trajectory of the object and where and when to catch it.

[@jacobveryberry]

As a shooter and basketball player, please do not discredit the thousand of hours “in the lab” where we learn the mechanics and physics of putting the ball through the basket (no matter the conditions) through sheer repetition and proper coaching. It’s not like we’re doing math of course but we’re still learning and experiencing it through all of our senses. The depth of understanding is subjective I agree but “dumb jocks” often know their particular stuff “down to a science”.

[@yakbreeder]

We were taught counter steering in our motorcycle rider safety course years ago. Several in the class just could NOT comprehend it. One guy almost got tossed from the class for being argumentative about it. The instructor told him that anyone who has ridden a bicycle, counter steers without knowing they are. He finally accepted that he was wrong and passed the course.

[@TheKep]

I don’t know why they even teach “counter steering” like there is an alternative. If you don’t “counter steer” then you don’t ride a motorcycle lol.

[@whiskytangi]

@@TheKep I had found the way it was explained in class was way more complex than it actually was. But that is down to the instructor

[@SteveGunn2]

@@whiskytangi I was going to comment the same thing. My instructor taught that if you want to go right you need to "press" on the right handlebar. It felt unnecessarily confusing, and was probably just better left not being said. People intuitively know how to steer as long as they know how to ride a bicycle.

[@mactraynor6243]

Sure -at low speeds motorcycles act the same way - At speed you "turn" the opposite way you want to go the entire time. Try it - going down the highway press forward on the left handle bar. The bike will lean left and turn left.

[@MistedMind]

@@mactraynor6243 To me it's the opposite order. To go left I lean left. But to prevent the bike from "falling over" I have to press left to counter steer.

[@trifortay]

the thing I love about riding a bike is that once you know how you never forget how, and riding one is just completely intuitive

[@brandonkey181]

See Mike Boyd's reverse bike video to unlearn this fact

[@ME0WMERE]

@@brandonkey181 riding a bike with reversed steering isn't really making you forget the intuition of riding a bike, it's actively screwing with it

[@brandonkey181]

@@ME0WMERE Well he tried to ride a normal bike and looked like he never rode

[@dunyacaliskan7495]

You could totally forget how...

[@yggdarsilyae6807]

This is the piece of information I needed back at 4 years old learning how to ride a bike with my dad shouting "JUST TURN LEFT", it explains everything that felt wrong at the time before it "clicked" and I never worried about it again. This pedagogic injustice won't have remained unpunished

[@RightHereRightNow00100]

Yes and no, if you were anything like my 4 year old is now, your dad could have tried to explain this to you till he was red in the face and it still would not made sense. I eventually stopped trying, but I really wanted to try and get this across as he was switching from training wheels where you actually turn the wheel the way you want to go.

[@atriyakoller136]

@@RightHereRightNow00100 exactly. A lot of things don't make sense when they are explained or presented at first. Speaking as a teacher. Sometimes you kind of have to break through the subject yourself before you understand that information that was given to you or even explained many times without you fully understanding it :( It can literally take years :(

[@y-yyy]

Oh training wheels... I think they are completely counterproductive to learning to ride a bike. They make you get used to a certain mechanism of riding, and then you're somehow supposed to learn a completely new way to ride a bike, fighting your subconscious and your reflexes? Imo it's deeply unhelpful. Just learning to ride a normal bike right away has to be easier.

[@atriyakoller136]

@@y-yyy am I correct in assuming that training wheels are the 2 wheels on the back wheel of the bike? They aren't called that in my native language (we simply call it a 4-wheel bicycle), hence the question.

[@truemage170]

@@atriyakoller136 correct, that is the term used in America for them.

[@YourPalKindred]

I never realised how intelligently built bikes were. It looks so simple but it's such a genius creation

[@conalbennett8259]

The people who designed them probably didn't realise either. It was just an accident that they discovered the principles shown in the video.

[@scragjonezv4843]

They haven't changed very radically in the 150 some odd years since we pretty much figured them out. Only took us about 60-70 years from the very first two wheeler to basically reach the peak of bicycle tech. Kinda strange that no one had gotten around to inventing a bicycle until just 200 years ago. The wheel had been around for a good long while already. Surely the other components of a bike could've been readily cobbled together for a few hundred years before they finally were. I dunno.

[@beebait1464]

@@conalbennett8259 it was kinda just an iterative thing. Early bikes looks funky and they just kept what worked and replaced what didnt work.

[@ultramaga4075]

Yah a steering wheel...deep

[@YourPalKindred]

@@ultramaga4075 see that's how I used to feel, but now that I know the mechanics behind it it feels a lot more impressive

[@ScrapPalletMan]

My subconscious knows, but my conscious mind doesn't - wild. This is true in so many areas of our lives.

[@hmr313_]

wow

[@garywhitt98]

This is some real wisdom. Thanks.

[@beezmanit2683]

yea brain is just too mysterious

[@caz8135]

@@beezmanit2683 says the brain

[@Fullchaos40]

When you're an expert at falling forward without injury you can become an expert at falling perfectly on anything.

[@muhammadtaimooradil6115]

I am doing research in dynamic balance in human walking and this effect plays a major role in people walking without falling. I saw this video a couple of months ago but today I realized that his video has direct application to how bipedal creatures keep themselves stable. Thanks.

[@ifshanee]

Wow

[@beatbasher]

I've been struggling for years explaining countersteering to people, many people would respond with disbelief because they'd been riding bikes for years and couldn't get their heads round countersteering. Even my Dad looked at me like I was talking nonsense. Thanks for this video now I can send it to him and he might actually believe me.

[@myrdhina]

In that case, an even better example is the video: "consequences of not understanding counter-steering on a motorcycle". At first it's tough to watch, but they explain the rider is okay. It's very educational.

[@colinubeh1180]

I have no idea that I have been doing it every time I ride a bike until I watched this video.

[@TheMohammadSamaeili]

Good!

[@1994AustinSmith]

Having not learned to bike until my 20's, I was aware of countersteering. Wasn't aware it was for balance. I just thought it was to make turns not so sharp. Like, get far right to begin the left turn sooner. My countersteering may be more pronounced though.

[@SolDizZo]

The only thing I nitpick is why in the world people in small cars countersteer all the way into my lane before making their turn 🫠

[@pzodeosrs]

I recently taught a friend how to ride a bike. She had only tried once in her life and found steering incredibly difficult. Intuintively she was trying to just turn the handlebars and she kept falling. It was amazing to see how it suddenly clicked for and she was able to ride so smoothly after that.

[@micahcantor7356]

I learned how to ride a bike at 17. It took about 20-30 minutes of me on the street looking very similar to the people in the video, and then, all of a sudden, it clicked which was a very strange feeling.

[@daringlex]

Special Ed 🤨

[@Ok-but]

@@daringlex 'flash news' some people dont know how to ride a bike

[@Daniel-dj7fh]

If you're still teaching her, teach her how to ride slow before riding fast.

[@ChaoticNeutralMatt]

@@daringlex I'm happy to know that you are the exception that learns everything immediately. Congratulations, I'm not sure how you get anything done when faced with actual difficulty.

[@Captain-Cardboard]

You need to get Tom Scott to try this; he's the expert!

[@segalanicolas5608]

As long as Mike is there, he should be okay

[@BackYardScience2000]

My thoughts exactly!

[@DoiInthanon1897]

That would be a great collaboration

[@roykale9141]

I just watched that video!

[@cheeen]

That's the video showing after this for me

[@abehartshorne6028]

I find this very interesting. I ride my bike to work every day. I find this to be true at only low speeds. At higher speeds you lean into the bend before to turn the handle bars, so there is no leaning the opposite direction first. This can also be done at low speeds, but naturally you do go the opposite way first if not thinking about it. Pretty cool.

[@oldmanandthesea3384]

Same here. I have to be going pretty slow to use the counter steer to turn. To stay balanced at low speed I of course let my instinctive counter steer take over.

[@hughjardon3538]

It's the opposite way round. Get up some speed, take your hands off the bars and see how fast you can turn, then try the same at low speed.

[@abehartshorne6028]

@@Observ45er you can shift your centre of gravity easily, move your head, shoulders, upper body mas, even lower body mas if standing, and the knee on the side you want to move outwards, and your entire weight has shifted. Then the bike will follow and lean that direction also. Centre of gravity is easily manipulated on a bike.

[@abehartshorne6028]

@@Observ45er ok, get on a bike and try it. It works. Without getting all scientific, you can just get on a bike and try. It's the same as standing up. Do it, stand up now. Lean to the side, you will start to fall to the side, not the opposite side, but the side you lean. On a swing you have your pivot above you, you are the force, and the reaction happens below you, you move the opposite way. Put it this way, roll down hill on a bike, lean. Just lean to the right let's say. If you want to, you can lean right, and not react, do not turn the handle bars, and just fall all the way to the ground. Or, you can lean to the right, and just like if you stand up right now and lean to the right, you will start to fall to the right. On the bike, as you start to fall, you turn you handle bars to the right and your force now goes into the bend. I mean try it. I test it on the way to work. I encourage you to get on a bike, roll down hill and just lean to the side, as if you are trying to topple over, which you can do, you can just lean and fall. But then follow the lean with the rotation of the handle bars and, boom, you are turning. Use science to understand the findings. In this case you don't need science to predict the outcome, it's just a bike, you can go and do it. I believe you may be imagining this as a stationary bike or slow moving. Where if trying to balance without moving, when you lean right, you will push the bike out left, to keep the gravity centre. But at a speed, when trying to turn, as in move to the right, you do not want gravity centre. You fall right and then follow with a turn to the right, and the force gets pushed into the ground. Ah, I mean, do the experiment. It proves itself. Alright, peace.

[@Observ45er]

@@abehartshorne6028 I've been riding a bike much longer than you have and understand the physics very well. I stated facts that you don't really understand and haven't looked at what you really do to ride a bike. . I am sorry, but thee is no way that your simple "experiment" can identify the science because there are too many things affecting it including your ability to correctly observe what is going on and just how YOU may behave on the bike. . P.S. I've been through this very thing years ago and the very carefully designed and observed experiments using video that we set up in an 11th grade physics class support what I report here. Sorry, but "try it" is not studying science.

[@mads9259]

As the saying goes "It's just like riding a bicycle." Once you learn, you can presumably maintain the ability with little effort or thought. Bicycle riding is such an experiential skill and I think that quote really helps underscore how intuitive and indirect the learning process can be. Great video!

[@TheUlquiorraCifer]

As a kid I couldn't figure out how to ride a bike for around a week. However I suddenly figured it out after watching another kid falling off of their own bike.

[@purevessle2641]

I didn't realise the quote ended until the period after thought, but I prefer it that was.

[@nataleeisjustchilling2737]

I thought the saying was just “you never forget how to ride a bike”

[@kalidos7681]

@@nataleeisjustchilling2737 cant believe anyone would be rude to a bike

[@nataleeisjustchilling2737]

@@kalidos7681 oops lol my bad I fixed it

[@michaelsearing8369]

As a mechanical engineer, I have to add that there IS a way to turn right without steering left. Stand up on the pedals and tilt the bike to the right. Since the bike is between the pivot point (of the inverted pendulum) and your center of mass, your overall center of mass will shift to the right, causing you to fall to the right and then catch yourself by steering to the right. You can try this at home without a bike by balancing on one foot with your arms at your sides, then pushing your free leg quickly to the side. You'll always fall in that direction (if you do it quickly enough that the foot you're standing on can't correct for the shift in mass). This effect isn't very noticeable while biking since you're usually sitting on the seat (removing this degree of freedom). And you're usually moving fast enough that leaning the bike causes a natural steer (in the same direction) which moves your pivot point faster than rocking the bike moves your center of mass. This is also a way to track stand without rolling back and forth. You'll find this very difficult to learn, since typically when you fall to the right, you push your arms to the right, but to balance on a stationary bike, you need to push your arms (the bike) to the left. If you haven't seen it, check out Smarter Every Day's video "The Backwards Brain Bicycle" as a complement to this video. And this is your only option if you're riding with a group and your front wheel overlaps the rear wheel of the bike in the front of you and comes close to touching it; you can't steer into their rear wheel to turn away, since you'd hit them and wreck yourself. And you can't brake hard, since you'd wreck the person behind you. You have to get out of the saddle and tilt your bike away from theirs, initially countering the bike's natural tendency to steer in that direction.

[@wellstanner3216]

Was looking for this comment. I guess as a competitive cyclist I have been able to become aware that the correct technique to corner at higher speeds and even more efficiently is to lean and essentially countersteer a little bit. The countersteer is not something you practice but rather the weighting of the bike is huge. Getting more weight closer to over your wheels and tires allows you to increase grip because of what i assume to be increased contact patch and some physics. Cool to read! Thanks

[@gigabrother458]

@@wellstanner3216 This video is for and about how tourists ride those blue rental bikes. Try steering this way (as shown in the video) on a downhill at 40mph and have your dentist on speed-dial.

[@rndviddump304]

​@@gigabrother458 YES. Exactly this. I often feel as though the plot gets lost in some of these explanations. When you are going sufficiently fast enough, a slight shift of your weight by leaning the bike and body are enough to allow for a turn without having to first turn the handlebars in the opposite direction. If you look at a video of a person steering without touching the handlebars, you will find at even lower speeds that shifting weight will turn the wheel in the intended direction of travel. Unicycles can also be brought up, but that's slightly outside scope i think. Imo the correct explanation in this video should be that bikes are steered primarily by shifting weight not by turning the handles. The handles are there for comfort and precision/stability.

[@creeperlano7805]

you wouldn't have to stand up right? i mean i can already do it by sitting and only leaning to a side

[@nrdejong]

@@rndviddump304 I think you're missing the point slightly - it's very difficult/unnatural to "shift weight" on a bicycle without being able to manipulate the steering. Slight adjustments to the steering is how one compensates for shifting weight. This is also true on a bike that is ridden with no hands - only in that case the rider has to be sensitive/careful enough about their weight distribution that they can make minor steering adjustments by balance. It's a positive feedback control system, so in order to turn right with no hands, the rider intuitively will start with a very slight lean to the left, and induce a left turn in the steering wheel before leaning right to turn. Most people find this a bit difficult (and it very much depends on the inherent stability of the bike), so they instead make minor (read: pre-turn) steering adjustments with their hands, and then as you say, actually lean to make turns. But in either case, control of the steering is critical to maintain balance.

[@keleighshepherd345]

I'm a radiotherapy engineer. At my job interview for my current position, I was asked to explain in layman's terms how a bicycle works. I explained how the pedals make motion through the gears, and then rapidly dissembled with "as to how a bike stays upright in motion? I have no idea, I'm not a bicycle physicist" AND I STILL GOT THE JOB

[@bobbyboobs8816]

As an interviewer you would have got extra points for that. It is essential that people in technical positions understand the extend of their knowledge and are honourable enough to admit such even in high pressure situations where revealing the limit of your knowledge could be detrimental to you personally. The worst answer in the world is to try and bluff your way through.

[@apekshamaheshwari9666]

but how do hula hoops stay in equilibrium during motion but falls when its stationary?

[@Anudorini-Talah]

@@apekshamaheshwari9666 speed invert gravity force. sam,e with the bike wheel experiment horizontal

[@carljensen5284]

They were just hoping you knew the answer so they could take credit at the nobel prize ceremony

[@dreamwolf7302]

Questions like that are actually geared towards to checking the ability of the applicant to acknowledge when they dont understand something. Because in any medical field, the biggest danger to patients, are professionals who cant accept that they dont know something.

[@DigiplayW8]

this is the video that needs to be shown in all MSF courses for motorcycles. most instructors don't explain counter steering well enough. they just say "turn left to go right" and "turn right to go left"

[@DoctorMotorcycle]

I figured this out by accident when I did a (small) motorcycle build and wanted to see how tight I could make the steering stem to act as a ghetto "steering stabilizer". I tightened the steering stem to the point where it required a fair amount of force to turn the bars, and I almost fell off the bike when I let the clutch out. It was un-rideable. I had always thought gyroscopic procession was why the bike stayed stable, and immediately realized it was the abilty to constantly re-correct that keeps you from falling over. Would you consider doing a video on the mechanics of Trials bike riders?

[@soffyh0tgirllvecam452]

xdxd

[@hsw268]

"... gyroscopic procession..." ???

[@yamahammer4413]

Hoo boy. Trials riding would be quite the physics lesson.

[@JoPro06]

@@hsw268 see from about 8:40

[@AnyBodyWannaPeanut]

@just some guy tired of life What?

[@desidudes78]

i love how he's just got this dude with him who's like a bicycle/unicycle physics expert who's so passionate about the bike physics he created a rc contraption to demo his point

[@morry32]

cyclist are weirdos

[@workingguy-OU812]

Years ago a motorcycle racing teacher welded the steering on a track motorcycle to prove this same point to deniers.

[@MyuuriShiina]

@@morry32 whats your purpose of saying that

[@nkaurum3482]

@@morry32 aren’t you just salty because you can’t ride a bicycle yourself?

[@LTVoyager]

@@MyuuriShiina Clearly, he’s a cyclist.

[@LyricWulf]

"Turn right to go left... Hm..." -Lightning McQueen, moments before disaster

[@jeffthedog_2619]

lol

[@ottlight]

ayo my favourite embery piano dog

[@hasainn.7784]

Ah yes, Doc Hudson instinct had prevail the truth.

[@woozbeast]

Reminds me of the scandinavian or Finnish flick in rally!

[@vigilantcosmicpenguin8721]

The mechanics said Lightning McQueen would never race again.

[@OffSeasonCicada]

As someone who's learnig how to ride a bike at 27, this is actually super helpful to know! When I try to ask my friends how to do things like this they have no idea besides "You just do it." This video is such a great resource!

[@wiktorwektor123]

This is called: "process of learning how to ride a bicycle". After it's finnished you do it without even thinking about it. If I may suggest something while you learn to ride: 1. Remove pedals. 2. Lower your seat so you can easily put your feet on the ground (sitting on bike). This way you will always be in control of moving bicycle without a need of anyone else or risking falling (you can always use handle brakes and put feet on the ground for support). This way you will learn balancing on two wheels. After that install pedals and get your seat higher.

[@arvt_]

my greatest motivator is FEAR

[@arvt_]

actually it's my only motivator i think i have a problem

[@karistone1297]

@@arvt_I’m 62 and relearning. Fear is a huge challenge for me. But I have found that keeping the speed down and stopping when I get too panicky is helping. I also changed gears (went up) so the bike is harder to pedal and it helps keep my speed down. Also my seat is still quite low so I can touch the ground with my feet…that helps me feel safer. Don’t give up. Just take baby steps.

[@maryrosetran5109]

I was taught by my playmates to steer in the direction of the fall when i was learning.

[@situationnormal2217]

It's actually fascinating how our body learns something intuitively yet our mind stays blissfully unaware. When I said our mind that doesn't mean brain or something, by mind I meant conscious decision making. So all you nitpicky geniuses can stop now.

[@SternLX]

Yup, with motorcycles you're carrying more speed, so you're not really make a left to go right, you're just pushing the front wheel off axis to get it to lean in the opposite direction. Above a certain speed you can just lean the direction you want to go and input nothing on the bars. The front wheel just falls in the direction of the turn due to the rake distance.

[@Anudorini-Talah]

no u i know how it works. simple physics

[@ChrisTian-uw9tq]

The broomstick balancing was a great example of this right?

[@Nerine98]

And the more mind you try to push on whatever your doing, the worse it gets

[@phobos2k2]

It is fascinating. In a similar way we learn our first language. A child can speak and pick out errors, but not tell us all the grammatical rules of the language, because they never learned them. Still the best way to pick up a language. Learning the rules should always come second.

[@bobbyhill4118]

I remember learning to ride a bike with no hands at age 13. Letting go of the handle bars completely made me fall once and I cut myself up pretty good. I was laying in the middle of the street for about 4 minutes soaking in all the pain. But I got it down and learned to be aware of the steering along with my leverages. Only really works when you’re going in one direction at a high speed, but you can do wide turns with no hands

[@NotNecessarilyCringe]

I can

[@justind4763]

I used to ride all around town with no hands. One day I went down a hill and rounded a bend at the bottom of the hill. My front tire went into a small but deep pot hole that I didnt even see. I smashed my face and had to go to the ER and a plastic surgeon to fix the hole in my nose.

[@EvpatijK.]

@@justind4763 🤔🤔🤔

[@petersmythe6462]

Not just wide turns at high speed. You can start with no hands, get up to speed with no hands, orbit people with no hands... I use my hands on difficult terrain or when I need the brakes.

[@justind4763]

@@EvpatijK. what?

[@LethalLemonLime]

What's most interesting to me is that humans can do something without even knowing it. I learned to ride a bike as a kid and have never forgotten. I still have a bike now and ride it regularly. If you asked me how to turn, I would've simply said just turn the handle in the direction you want to go. It's incredible that we intuitively counter steer without knowing that we are actually doing that.

[@alexisaguirrevideos]

4 levels on competence. The highest is unconscious competence and that’s when we do things without knowing how or why we can do it! Super neat.

[@olehammersland9652]

In David Eagleman's book Incognito he recounts an experiment where people were asked to close their eyes and "act out" how they would change lanes in a car. Similarily, most people got it all wrong and would have crashed into the curb. They steered left on an imaginary wheel, and then positioned their hands in the original position again. But everybody missed that you actually have to countersteer to the right again for the car to go straight ahead, and not keep swerving left. Very interesting to me.

[@Yawyna124]

Noone has to calculate their trajectory to know how hard they need to jump to hop over a pothole. The ability of fleshythings to grasp physics is truly neat when mathematical and biological knowledge of how it works is esoteric to most.

[@MsKassandraKotaku]

I struggle to ride a bike and have since I was a kid. I still try to ride periodically and can go awhile but find it stressful. I’m always hyperaware that I need to counter-steer and found that out the hard way as a kid when I turned the handlebars without and took a nasty fall. Actually knowing this makes it harder for me to ride. Lol

[@crisalcantara7671]

It's called mastering a skill and forgetting that you mastered it just like a baby learning to walk it becomes part of you 😎

[@karistone1297]

At 62 I’m relearning bike riding but haven’t quite been game enough to try turning. I think that’s what I used to do without thinking, but it’s super-helpful to be reminded of it, and less embarrassing than falling off!🤣 Many thanks!

[@AndyPanda9]

Motorcycle enthusiasts hashed this all out 25 years ago in an internet group I belonged to (and I'm sure it was hashed out many times before that - I bet the Wright Brothers knew exactly how it works). The subject came up in the Motorcycle group because getting your motorcycle license had a question about how to turn - and to pass the test their answer was turn left by leaning left. We did similar experiments back then trying to lean a motorcycle that was modified so you couldn't counter-steer and it couldn't be done. Excellent job explaining it in this video - now a whole new generation can be amazed to learn about counter steering.

[@tommyduris3044]

Spot on!! 👌🤟 i was waiting for someone to say that

[@flashpeter625]

I heard that for a motorcycle, the profile of the tire is also important for cornering. Riders are taught that they need to put more throttle to go around a corner at the same speed than if they went straight, and that is because the tire has a smaller diameter on the sides than in the middle, so when cornering, you need to wheel rpm to maintain the same speed. But also, when the tire is tilted, the tire has larger diameter on the outside than the inside of the contact patch, and because the wheel spins as one piece, the larger diameter has to drive a larger distance, so the tire traces a curved path. It basically acts as a differential. I have difficulties joining this with the subject of the video. Am I talking out of my ass? Are they just complementary effects? Can you steer a motorcycle/bicycle on razor thin tires that have no profile?

[@travismiller5548]

That was a hard question to answer on the test. I got it wrong. The question on my test was a bit different, and the only available answers were weird. The question was: which way do you press the handle bars to turn right. Just putting the whole deal into words was weird enough. Not about leaning like you said (and I would have thought.) I never thought about how I press the right handle bar forward, and therefore start falling (and turning) right. The whole thing was a little counterintuitive.

[@VolodymyrPavlyuk]

@@flashpeter625 they are just different phases of the turn. You use counter steering to lean the motorcycle from a vertical position, and once it's leaned the tire profile kicks in and that keeps the motorcycle along the curve.

[@Charliened1]

There is 2 books on the subject I would highly recommend. Bicycling science, and motorcycle chassis design. There both very interesting and definitely worth a read.

[@rosspetersen4434]

Now you and Destin can go on bike rides together

[@Corkoth55]

I just re-watched his old video yesterday and now this gets uploaded a few minutes ago .. freaky!

[@Robert-cu9bm]

And make a super impossible bike to ride.

[@wizard_dynamo]

@@Robert-cu9bm That's the plan.

[@gabor6259]

With Tom Scott.

[@pratyakshyt]

Yeah I remember this bicycle from destin’s video

[@RadeticDaniel]

"so the steering is not only responsible for turning, but also balance" That is such a fundamental in motorsports and also apply to cars by transfering weight between the wheels through the suspensions. The more you understand how to change friction forces in the wheels through weight transfer, the less you turn through the steering and the more you do it on the pedals. And in old school gokarts you can actually lean forward to increase turning forces without changing the steering angle, which is really cool when you get it right the first time =D

[@fr8ud64]

wow

[@CompletelyNormalPhenomenon]

This is why people saying that you "just have to lean" into the turn on your scooter or motorbike are just plain wrong and the cause of many injuries and deaths. Countersteering is the ONLY safe and effective way to learn how to ride a bike. Almost all bike crashes are caused by people panicking and not countersteering when required. Telling people to "just lean into the turn" should be considered the same legally as giving instructions and encouraging someone to commit suicide. It is literally the same.

[@Daniel-dj7fh]

The go cart thing, that's because you're putting more weight on the front tires causing it to slip less. One would assume that the tires dont slip when the vehicle is turning, but that's not the case.

[@Daniel-dj7fh]

@@cokecan6169 I don't want you to get into dangerous hobbies, but you should try motorcycles, that takes driving/riding technique to a finer stage. Also I've been sim drifting on grid autosport, whihc is pretty dope

[@humptydumpty8161]

Oher 4 ldc

[@davidhill5879]

This is one of my favourite videos he's done, I'm glad he put up the short that led me back here

[@I_Mark_Mills]

As a motorcyclist, I very quickly learned about counter steering. Somehow it's just more important to know this information when you're travelling at 50mph haha.

[@stevepseudonym445]

As a bicyclist I've never been consciously aware of turning the handlebars to initiate a normal turn, but I've never ridden a bike that weighed more than perhaps 30 pounds. If my bike weighed several hundred pounds and the rotating wheels weighed 20 pounds or more I presume that I'd have to steer the bike out from under me to shift the weight.

[@Ichibuns]

It's one of the first things you learn when learning to ride a motorcycle. Push the handlebar in the direction you intend to turn. The property is FAR more apparent when riding a motorcycle. Going faster speeds you also need to counter steer through the entire turn instead of just the beginning of the turn.

[@adam346]

also why having a strong dampener is a good thing on bumpy roads.

[@tomcooney183]

Agreed, motorcycles are much heavier too, need a lot more rider input to execute aggressive manoeuvres

[@justinross165]

Yeah you REALLY become aware when your bike is suddenly 600lbs instead of 40lbs lmao

[@LegalEagle]

Mike Boyd could ride that bike.

[@nedben1602]

Yo!

[@KiLLJoYYouTube]

Colin Furze would make a bike you could never fall off of using the trick.

[@becomingachristian]

Mike Boyd is now legally obligated to ride that bike.

[@YourCapyFrenBigly_3DPipes1999]

Well well- looky here. How our worlds collide! Glad to see you're branching out into the sciences, Eagle! That's very well-rounded of you. Long-time fan btw, under several different accounts now.

[@kosviik9584]

He could teach Tom Scott how to do it. Imagine the absolute beast riding this one better than a normal one.

[@daanodinot]

Always fascinated by the fact that there was a period of 50 years in human history were you could go from city to city by train, but there was no bicycle yet.

[@theevermind]

Also, we put a man on the moon before we put wheels on our luggage.

[@johnbaldwin8340]

Time travel exist hahah. YOU bring it to the UNKNOWN

[@suhailadeeb4407]

Actually 14 years earlier

[@strayhoo-manonyoutube7898]

It's like we learn words first and then alphabets

[@boycottjews]

I believe this was European history as much of the rest of the world is still lacking in both technologies.

[@hammadmaqsood7884]

this just demonstrates counter steering, and people do it intuitively when riding. This applies to any two wheel transports. On a motorcycle you never pull the handle in the direction you turn, especially at high speeds. You always push the handle opposite of the direction you tend to turn.

[@z-beeblebrox]

You know a design is perfect when a hundred or so years after it's invented, researchers are still studying how it works so well

[@borncomatose]

Exactly it's why the combustion engine should never go away

[@z-beeblebrox]

@@borncomatose Unless you power your bike with lit farts, I think we're talking about two different things

[@lilnibba2905]

@@z-beeblebrox lit farts sounds much cooler to me

[@Lazy_ness]

The actual combustion engine is a cool thing, it’s just it’s fuel source. But still a really interesting piece of engineering, although not as simple as the bike tho.

[@borncomatose]

@@z-beeblebrox no because if it exists for years, stills works and still gets improvements then it's literally the same mental as you 🤣 lmao ur just slow

[@BlakeEM]

When you ride motorcycles this is the first thing you learn. I'm pretty sure it's the rake angle (keeping the front wheel straight and countering any lean) and momentum is why the bike is stable. The gyroscopic effect does help, but it's not required.

[@dwareb]

I was going to say this too. But yeah, first thing you're taught.

[@MichaelLazorchak]

Push left to turn left.

[@girla9480]

Motorcycles are a lot heavier, however. To turn a motorcycle, you have to shift the weight of the vehicle, which requires counter steering. To turn a bicycle, you have to shift the weight of your body, which does not require counter steering. It's just that most people don't really train themselves to do that, as keeping your body static in relation to the bicycle and using counter steering is the easiest riding style. You can trivially show that counter steering is not required by letting go of the handlebars and steering by shifting your weight. You can also prove that counter steering is not required by letting a bike coast without a rider and observing that it turns in the direction it leans without any counter steering being performed, e.g. at 7:24 in this very video.

[@Bill_Brasky]

Came here to say something similar.

[@isaackvasager9957]

@@MichaelLazorchak "push left to turn left" I ride motorcycle and I remember when I first started I was SSOOOO amazed and confused by this.

[@Derps189]

As a mountain biker, this is quite amazing and this is literally good advice on making my own balance better. This trully shows the amazing capability of a human being

[@speedysfriend6974]

I've learned the concept of counter steering by sessioning random things throughout my yard, and have learned to use it to my advantage when trail riding (especially skinnies). This video is a really good way of explaining it to those who haven't discovered this valuable concept yet.

[@speedysfriend6974]

@VaderxG the video conceptualizes things that aren't usually focused on, so now with the better idea of specific things actually going on, you may be able to more precisely target those specific things to find tune skills and ideas. I know it may sound a little foreign especially for skill sports, but we do it all the time in everyday life, and it can and had been done this way too.

[@SobboMonkeVR]

Ayo? Clip or clipless mtb?

[@denniscrabtree2170]

In a mountain bike book I had from years ago they suggest turning the wheel in the opposite direction to cause the bike to lean before changing the steering direction to get around trees or other obstacles.

[@dcj991]

@VaderxG I know you're on good faith but everyone is a life long student. You can " Master" something and still learn profound and previously unknowns to you things in any field or discipline ever.

[@Durwood71]

Skilled bicycle riders would have no problem turning that bicycle even with one side locked. The fact is, you don't need to counter steer to turn if you shift your body weight correctly, which is a necessary skill for mountain bikers, because quite often, you can't counter steer when negotiating obstacles and narrow pathways.

[@wegvS]

Countersteering is also something you should internalize as a motorcyclist. In high stress situations like avoiding an accident, it happens quiet often, that riders steer away from the obstacle, just to then drive right into it because of countersteering.

[@secret-name]

This. Any motorcyclist worth their salt should have at least a basic understanding of countersteering.

[@lordgarth1]

The issue with steering wrongly in this type of situation is because people tend to steer where they look.

[@abrokendowncar]

I was about to say this

[@Triple_J.1]

It's not even possible to ride a motorcycle through a curve without deliberately counter-steering into, and out of, the turn. The higher the speed, the more acute the effect.

[@wegvS]

@@Triple_J.1 Most people will countersteer intuitively, but this does not necessarily translate to high stress situations, which is why every motorcyclist should know and understand this effect in my opinion.

[@Ammar34567]

"Since most of us can ride a bicycle" Tom Scott: **nervous sweating**

[@sajid_ahamed]

can he not ? is there any video of his in which he says this?

[@zyaicob]

Watch yesterday's Tom Scott Plus video

[@ragnkja]

@@sajid_ahamed Yesterday’s video on his second channel, with Mike Boyd.

[@FogelTheVogel]

*Laughs in dutch*

[@sajid_ahamed]

@@ragnkja just watched it, unreasonably funny

[@Tomoyo_Sayomura]

I’ve read it somewhere that bicycles are one of or maybe the most well designed inventions humans have ever came up with. The design is so perfect and works so well with human body that few adjustments were made since their invention. Truly a masterpiece.

[@mikehammer3515]

I agree.. they truly are amazing... but I will point out that mountain bikes have had great improvements in capability in the past 10 years. They refer to it as "the geometry" of the bike.. proportions and angles have greatly changed in the past decade, making a tremendously more capable mountain biking machine. I had no idea until 2 years ago when I finally got a nice "trail bike".. It took me a month of research to understand what I was getting into. I've always ridden for my entire life and I'm 39. I was blind to what MTB really was.. I watch a lot of KZbin..lol😄.. My skills have come a long way since then. In fact, MTB races have actually gotten more gnarly and technical in these past years because of the advancements and further understanding of bike geometry and suspension.. Suspension is a whole other subject.. it's also advanced greatly in these past years.. I highly recommend MTB.. Now is the best time to get into it.. bikes are better than ever.. I wish I had discovered it much younger. I guess in it's essence, I can agree with you though.. we've been using derailleurs since way back.. The basic design holds true.. a bike is a bike. If ya haven't caught on, I love biking!😆

[@ruslankazimov622]

Just like bow..and archery in general. The physics behind them are really complex. Different bow shapes, materials, dimensions and also arrow length and arrowheads for different tasks. If we were to calculate precise trajectory of arrow ... we would have had so many variables to include. When we put them down to mathematical formulas and geometric shapes, they are like really complex stuff. But you don't have to understand it when you have visiual feedback on your inputs instantly.

[@omniyambot9876]

Ughh I'll stop buying Dura-Ace now.

[@Xxmeca421xX]

I'd disagree. A car that can run by exploding gas in a cylinder is by far more ingenious.

[@kokbasE]

False, talk to anyone who owns a recumbent.

[@nfineon]

I was hoping to see more physics explainations behind the demonstration, so here's something interesting: Turning left/right also depends on your speed as well . At high speeds, we need to countersteer (turn left to lean right which turns the bike right) but at low speed turns below +/-25 kph it reverses so we need to turn the handle bar right and lean left to turn right to make a U-turn or tight corner. You learn this intuitively with practice, but there is a transition velocity where you must make a call on how to turn the bike depending on the corner angle and your speed. The type of input can also change mid corner, meaning a corner taken just below or above the steering transition velocity may require a different line and turning technique especially to maximize performance (watch the insane 60° lean angles in Moto GP and see how they push the limits of physics) How about a follow-up video on a motorcycle to demonstrate this behavior. The mass of your 2 wheeled ride of choice also affects this transition velocity that will require an inversion to your inputs (harder to demonstrate on a bicycle, easier on a motorcycle). You should do a Collab with the guys at FortNine, they make amazing videos on this and you could describe the crazy physics involved. Link to FortNine: (KZbin)/U1mSavQ_DXs

[@kwhp1507]

As someone who rode heavy motorcycles, you also learn to “counter lean” at low speed.

[@SkaForFood]

Was just thinking that the experiment was missing that. Lemme see that figure 8 on a 1k bike

[@deusexaethera]

You mean keeping your body upright while leaning the bike into the turn? Bicyclists do that too at low speeds.

[@mickaelht598]

but isnt that only at low speed, like at high speed we dont counter lean

[@DefinitelyNotHaraku]

This video just proves he has never ridden a bike. Pushing to turn instead of pulling is just too hard.

[@coreycarpenter2489]

I was thinking of saying something like this but you beat me to it.

[@fristlsat4663]

It would be thoroughly fascinating to see this bike ridden by a good bicycle trials rider. To be good at trials you have to be able to separate lean and steer, you sometimes need to avoid countersteer to get your wheels in the right place on an obstacle, or even counter lean, as in lean the bike to the left while turning right. Of course a lot of trials riding doesn't involve the wheels turning, so "riding" may be to loosely defined in this case.

[@geroutathat]

Yeah i would like to see someone who can throw the bike around under them. When I want to turn left I dont lean left, I usually just lift my knee and lean the frame over to somewhere between 45 and 90 degree. I am not saying I could still cycle the bike, however it would be interesting to see whats happening and would happen if the bike was changed slightly. Also Id like to see what happens when people get up and run on the bike, with the frame violently moving from left to right as they go straight on.

[@sebastianramadan8393]

Separating lean from steer is something most kids learn early on, but that'd help, yes... The stuntmen may be able to pick the right wheel off the ground, and scoot around on the rear wheel exclusively, changing directions as required and so forth (like in "the nosebleed section").

[@rokmerse9551]

you can lean and ride straight but you can't steer without leaning, i don't believe its necessary to counter steer first to make a turn, since you can drive a bike without hands, where only leaning is applied, so if those people are as good as you say they are (idk since i've never heard of them), i don't think they would have a problem riding that bike. I have also payed much more attention since i saw this video, and since i've been interested in the similiar phenomenom i noticed a few years ago, and u would have a hard time convincing me that i cant do it without a counter steer

[@sirhetmanpirate]

@@rokmerse9551 If not using your hands, only leaning, the bike will counter steer by itself. That method won't work for this locked-handlebar bike. They didn't show it in the vid, but if you locked the handlebar and pushed the bike down a hill, it will crash...

[@tizianseifert5374]

First mistake, do this standing. Then it is way more simple.

[@fountains4268]

I learned to ride a motorcycle with a man that taught me counter-steering where you push away from your body with your hand on the side that you want to initiate a turn. It was so counterintuitive to hear, but once I learned how the bike reacted underneath me, I realized that I was doing it instinctively. You push away and as you "fall" into the turn, you then turn in to complete it. Learning how to ride a bike (in theory) all over again by having someone describe the actual movements rather than the instincts was jarring to me. I still think about it every now and then (riding motorcycles for over 20 years) and it still trips my brain when I move the set to the right to steer left. Thanks for the video, great stuff.

[@Observ45er]

Yes. Motor cycle riders learn about counter-steering.

[@EtaSoon777]

Is a 100mph high speed sweeper the same or is the counter steer a endless phenomenon? Head tube angle 📐 and bike style also comes play. Cafe bike with steep head tube angle are the extreme examples. Counter steering is best demonstrated by viewing a remote controlled motorcycle. Crazy

[@EvpatijK.]

Контрруление помогает только на уклонах, посмотри внимательно на гонщиков MotoGP...

[@dakota9821]

@@Observ45er You figure that out yourself? 🙄

[@stevezelaznik5872]

@@EvpatijK. Counter-steering works on flat surfaces as well. You just have to be going fast enough. (Hopefully Google translates my response well enough)

[@djopdam199]

I have had more then 25.000 hours of experience of riding a bike. Before I saw this video and smoothed out my riding style by (consciencetly) counter steering when entering a corner. And it increased my cornerspeed I am a better rider because of it.

[@zacktheslayer6564]

Only time I have ever steered without doing this, I defied gravity, shifted sideways at almost 60-70 degrees (I felt the grass on my knee by the sidewalk) and did a full 180 turn in under half a second. I dont know why, or how i did it, but I took a break from riding my bike that day... I was legit just amazed...

[@_boof]

Damn bruh, you drifted that btch?

[@zacktheslayer6564]

@@_boof pretty much yeah, but i was so young xD all that ran through my head was "God, is that you, the light, I see it." lmfao

[@rogerelzenga4465]

@@_boof Wanna drift a bycicle? let out ALOT of air from the back tire ... (with every bump your rim should hit the ground) .... then do this lean in trick and hold on for dear life :D have fun! :D

[@Blnkskates]

Had to happen once too

[@bickboose9364]

@@zacktheslayer6564 Is that how you turned from your average mundane Zack to Zack the Slayer?

[@neurostreams]

"...how bicycles work is still an active area of research." That was a gem.

[@jagatiello6900]

I used to think of the transistor as the greatest invention of all time but I changed my mind a few years ago for the bicycle. It's efficient, it's cheap, it's eco-friendly... ...and it can surely teach us some physics as well.

[@MJ-uk6lu]

@@jagatiello6900 I think that greatest invention so far is likely money. Something that we all use and are familiar with, but so many things are still unknown about how precisely it behaves and why. But after that to me comes psychology. It's fascinating how we try to understand how we think/behave, while using just one or few brains. Sounds like paradox, trying to outsmart the literal brains to explain why it does what it does. But yeah, bicycles are cool too, but more precisely bicycle engineering and physics.

[@extragoogleaccount6061]

@@MJ-uk6luNot sure if psychology counts as an "invention"....

[@prusak26]

Well, my 6 year old mountain bike, the one I paid £2000 for, is considered by many “unridable” because its head angle is steeper by 1 degree, and the reach measurement is 20mm shorter than the latest model. What was once called “responsive steering” is now called “twitchy AF”. Even though we now know what sort of works, and what kinda doesn’t, bikes are still evolving and they will for years to come.

[@MJ-uk6lu]

@@extragoogleaccount6061 I guess it doesn't, but as science subject it's interesting, but also absurd (due to my mentioned paradox). It seems to have no end and it's impossible to accurately find answers with it.

[@LazerLord10]

The "caster angle" of a bike is also why 4-wheel cars are stable in the forward direction (same with 3-wheeled robins). But that's also why going reverse at high speeds is very unstable.

[@whoreslayer]

Yes

[@ninx_music]

yep

[@strangeclouds7]

3 wheel robin?

[@bigiron4018]

Also, to add when driving in reverse you have toe out in the front wheels, which makes the wheels want to turn, not go straight. But doesn’t apply to 2 wheeled stuff.

[@Encicia]

@@strangeclouds7 The Reliant Robin is a car that only has 3 wheels.

[@vikingthedude]

6:23 here we see Derek trash talking a bicycle wheel

[@redamasarani]

😂😂

[@VictorbrineSC]

The fact that there is still research and some mysteries for such a common every-day object is insane

[@Prophes0r]

Not really. The more stuff you understand, the more you realize that you don't really understand those things.

[@sharonmiller7213]

I love it

[@user-v4v5c]

Yeah really only for science-fans, not people with an actual scientist mindset. We dont know most things about everything We cant even predict the motion pattern of a swinging 2 bar linkage

[@urk5204]

It’s wild to think we still don’t entirely understand a human-made device invented nearly 140 years ago. It’s not like there haven’t been advancements to it since then either, and all without entirely understanding the how of it all. Human intuition is incredible

[@lucagethmann7682]

It gets even weirder. The language which is used to describe the concept of a bike is itself not a bike, right? So in order to understand something you need to create something else? It gets even weirder, but I'll stop now before the lizard people find me.

[@lunchbox9991]

This is well known to people who ride motorcycles. I once had an argument with a work colleague because he simply REFUSED to believe countersteering is a real thing. he got really upset like I was questioning reality or something.

[@ross302ci]

I remember having my mind blown by this when I first rode a motorcycle. Like I knew bicycles had some self-righting properties, but the countersteer there is so fast and light and intuitive that you don't really notice it. On a motorcycle, you contribute so much less to the inertia, it's more like you're an observer of the dynamics than a part of them. The first time you push the handlebars opposite the direction you want to go and the bike just eases over into the turn is such a cool moment.

[@Novur]

I was just about to comment something similar, I'm glad to have found this comment already here

[@yourfavoriteeggo2250]

Came here to say the same thing. There are tons of videos on counter steer for motorcycles. This video is actually one of the best IMO because it uses more examples than just motorcycles

[@HatedJared]

I remember trying this when I first started riding motorcycles. On the freeway at 75mph, if you push the left bar up, like you were making a right turn, the bike leans left. Its odd passing cars on the highway like that.

[@TheToastedBiscuit]

I have a friend who rides his bicycle to work every day and has been for the past 3 years. We were out on a bike trail and when we took a little rest at the turn around point, I told him about countersteering (I had just started riding a motorcycle and it was fresh in my mind); it ruined the rest of the trip for him. Now that he was consciously aware of what was happening he kept steering all over the place trying to test out this newfound discovery and ended up crashing at one point. Crazy how people can master something and have no idea how it even works.

[@that1person643]

I had a good feeling this was about counter steering before you mentioned the remote control. Its a big part of riding a motorcycle as well and when you explain it people don't understand yet they do it so intuitively.

[@renken240]

@Glen Spivey I do the same to my friends that ride.Telling them you push left to go right, they think I'm crazy. Keith Code explained this in his book "twist of the wrist" .

[@reymisteryo9163]

Most newbie motorcycle riders overshoot because of that. When they ride fast and encounter a curve, they often steer where the road is going, then accident happens.

[@t0k4m4k7]

@@renken240 You mean push right (handlebar) to go right, right?

[@therewat]

I thought the same thing too. Had a feeling its about counter steering.

[@therewat]

@Glen Spivey yes. I too do that with my pillion showing them counter steering and it blows their mind. Lol

[@mrblahbah2522]

Finally “turn right to go left” makes sense after 18 years of not knowing what doc Hudson meant

[@gusmartin6053]

This explains why I feel like I get stuck riding close to the edge of a sidewalk. I need to steer towards it first before I can steer away from it. I always thought this was some psychological barrier but it's just physics.

[@qgqsrg1]

just lean the entire bike instead of just turning the handle/front wheel, can be a pain at slow speeds but still possible, just don't sit and counter balance with your body. You don't need to turn the handle/front wheel to turn (or barely for sharper turns but after the bike lean so still no need to counter steer).

[@igorswies5913]

Technically it is a psychological barrier - no physics force is blocking you from falling onto the road

[@paulmichaelfreedman8334]

Yes, very treacherous situation, I know exactly what you mean. Trying to squeeze past cars on the curb side will get you into that :P When it happens to me I try to keep a centimeter or so of space between the tyre wall and the curb. It's enough to countersteer. Also if it does happen that space runs out a quick hard jerk on the handle bars will warp the tyre enough to shift the centre of gravity into the favorable direction. So never blow up your front tyre too hard because that makes it harder for such an emergency maneuver. Mind that my bike has a fairly thin front tyre as it's an all-road type bike (Honda XL600V Transalp 1994) and I mostly ride on studded tyres

[@weevilinabox]

If you reach the point where your front tyre is brushing the kerb, you can neither steer away nor lean away. If you're going too fast to stop, only a bunnyhop over the kerb will save you.

[@Liteg0]

When learning to ride a motorcycle you learn about counter steering, but you also learn about target fixation. Target fixation means that you go where you look, so if you see a hazard in the road, and you focus on it to try and avoid it, you will instead run into it. Counter intuitively you have to try and focus on where the hazard is not, and you'll be fine. So in your case it's probably both a psychological and a physics problem.

[@esc8engn]

as a veteran of the retail bicycle industry in new england for about 15 years, and an avid cyclist for longer than that, i find this particular mystery *very* intriguing. well done.

[@johnbaldwin8340]

Then you start challenging yourself to actually ride the UNRIDEABLE bicycle and guess what. Our body does move with everything

[@everlasting1237]

as an internet and youtube engineer, i commend this comment

[@Arkios64]

Tom Scott: "I have just now finally learned how to ride a bike" Meanwhile, Derek, just a few days later: "Here's the reason why most people learning to ride a bike have problems at the beginning"

[@EcceJack]

My thoughts exactly! :D And also responding to the "gyroscopic effect" statement along the way

[@gormster]

Dereked again!

[@yakoto4876]

exactly what I thought LOL

[@TechNextLetsGo]

He would have learned how to ride it in 30 minutes.

[@hoangminhnguyen4800]

@@arshad4695 on the tom scott plus channel, he learned to ride a bike from mike boyd whose channel is about him learning new skills

[@clydeivorpalma7651]

I know how bikes work. Push pedal down→Whell turns→Me travel

[@PaulSinnema]

I’m from The Netherlands. Needles to say I’ve been riding a Bike all my life. This is an eye-opener. I knew that my brain automatically understands the balance of a bike but I never knew the science behind this. Thank you Derik.

[@alveolate]

i wonder if this means there's a more instructive way to teach someone how to ride bikes now...

[@ronaksingh3220]

our mind is more complex than we think bro

[@ronaksingh3220]

our does things we don't even know

[@NardKoning]

I found it funny that obviously the bike researchers were Dutch from TU Delft haha

[@mikehammer3515]

I'm in Pennsylvania.. I been riding my whole life.. that kinda blows my mind that before a turn, you turn the other way first.. I ride A LOT! To realize this after all these years🤯🤯😲

[@zone07]

This was one of my biggest arguments as a motorcycle rider. Counter steering awareness is vital to motorcyclists for avoiding accidents at slows speeds as in traffic.

[@AlenHR]

Yea, it is amazing when it clicks for you. You can steer with one hand while moving your body around, and still maintain perfect stability and directional control.

[@TheJohnreeves]

How long ago did you learn? That's what they teach new riders where I am (Oregon, US). They emphasize it a lot.

[@kmech3rd]

I changed over to a trike years ago. I still have to fight my instincts when I ride.

[@armadilllo]

thing is everyone does it and doesn't need to be taught.

[@sacr3]

I ride a Vulcan 2000 myself and I never knew why motorcycle riders felt like they just HAD to explain counter steering. If you've ridden a bicycle, you already know what counter steering is. The moment you hop on a motorcycle you already know about counter steering. Yet for some reason bikers feel like they gotta tell people about it. Tell people to keep their legs tucked in at low speeds as opposed to sticking them out, better advice, people instinctively stick their legs out to balance but it actually decreases your stability.

[@texarama]

This was the first thing they taught us in our motorcycle training class back in 1981. Important for accident avoidance.

[@N2eJyriOo]

And they still do today.

[@myrdhina]

An amazing video for that is: "consequences of not understanding counter-steering on a motorcycle". At first it's tough to watch, but they explain the rider is okay. It's very educational.

[@JordyJayHomer]

I've done heaps of cycling over many years. A while ago, I couldn't ride for 3 months due to a busted leg. When I got back on the bike, riding the first couple of hundred meters was weird. It took me a minute to get used to it again. How interesting! 😆

[@tripl3stan]

As an avid mountain biker, this blew my mind. I’ve never realized how genius the idea of bikes were and when I’m mountain biking I’m flying through tight gaps at high speeds, not realizing how many small adjustments I am making to keep the bike going where I want it. Definitely going to test this theory when I get home from college this weekend to see just how much I don’t know about something I love.

[@Rick_Cavallaro]

>> going to test this theory when I get home It's actually kind of difficult to test. At higher speeds, the amount of counter-steering can be quite small - and subconscious. But the more aggressive your turn, the more aggressive the counter-steer will have to be to initiate it. Some folks have mentioned in the comments that they can always see the track of the front wheel counter-steering after going through a puddle. Perhaps you'll be able to see it in the dirt as well.

[@XtreeM_FaiL]

@@Rick_Cavallaro It is very simple test. The problem is that even when you fully concetrate, the countersteering effect is still very subtle and hard to notice. It will be easier to notice on a heavier motorbike.

[@alexchene4064]

As a fellow mountain biker, my friend and I do not counter steer at all when riding, at least not enough for his iphone slow mo to pick up. Maybe its unique to just me an him, or it could be mountain biker thing due to having less room on turns to counter steer

[@Rick_Cavallaro]

@@alexchene4064 It's easy to believe that you don't see it on video - particularly when riding faster, and definitely harder to see when you're linking left and right turns. It's easiest to see if filmed from directly in front and initiating a turn from riding straight. But I can very nearly assure you that you're both doing it. Some people have also mentioned that it's easiest to see by looking at the difference between the front and rear wheel tracks on the ground.

[@XtreeM_FaiL]

@@alexchene4064 You do it all the time, every time. Even when you ride straight (straight as possible) you constantly countersteer.

[@ffmag9501]

So that’s why driving without hands is easily possible. Always thought I just mastered balance but most work is done by the bike itself. Truely interesting video. Never thought about biking this way.

[@eluukki2056]

its easy to ride without hands

[@danielsnake23]

honestly anyone that can ride a motorcycle can do this or should do this easily. the video is acting like this is so hard to do but it isnt. all you have to do is push down the steering wheel for the side you want to go to. or a good rule of thumb is where your head points your hands will do it automatically therefore changing directory

[@MoBaK]

@@danielsnake23 the video didn't at all say that??

[@ticktockbam]

Is easier to pull your hands off the bike when you're going at high speeds on a flat terrain like an asphalt road, but it's also possible to do it at low speed on a bumpy, rocky road too with a little bit of practice and confidence.

[@stefthorman8548]

@@danielsnake23 an motorcycle and an bicycle, have different mechanics, an bicycle, operates at lower speeds, try to turn on an bicycle, without contersteering.

[@betatree]

The counter steering is one of the first things you learn when getting your motorcycle license!

[@farLander1]

yep, and when you're at speed steering is always with countersteer, which is a little scary when you think about it lol

[@Robert-cu9bm]

@@disturbeddonut2151 Unless you going slow.

[@TheDaltonNetwork]

Yes, and it's much more obvious on a motorcycle. They very explicitly teach you to literally push the handlebar of the side that you want to turn into, to induce the lean. Want to turn left? Push left. Want to turn faster in a tight corner, even though you're already leaning and turning? Push left more!

[@paulmichaelfreedman8334]

@@farLander1 Yes but it is tiny compared to low speed counter-steering.

[@merlijniboy]

And they do this because it it harder to move the bike from side to side quickly with your bodyweight, at speed, counter steering is way faster! In some countries, dodging a couple of cones at 50 km/h using counter steering is part of your exam.

[@bopatzable]

right now i want nothing more than to film myself riding a bike

[@Bismarck-S]

I actually did some "Research" like this of my own. I sometime tried to steer my bike without leaning, and I found it to be very hard just pointing the handle in the direction I wanted to go go. I eventually discovered that this is technique we've been using all along, just by executing a dumb idea of mine.

[@aaronclay4665]

you can tho i did it all the time as a kid mostly going slowy tho, its just more easy to counter

[@justicegaminginc]

if you instead use the handlebars to lean the bike with you when turning you dont need to do any counter turning, i figured this out when i noticed i usually lean hard into pedaling to go faster and when doing that i end up forcing the bike to lean and i incorporated that to steering and it works

[@PentaFox5]

@@justicegaminginc yes i dont do counter steering since kid, meybe thats why i had so many falls, but now i drive my bike with no counter steering

[@Nobody-vr5nl]

Counter steering is how you ride a motorcycle. Body positioning is a major part of it too. Upright, leaning, or counter balancing depending on the turn.

[@aztecklover69]

its doable but its almost inpossible when ur not on flat land^^

[@JRowan180]

Understanding these concepts at a basic level is vital to becoming a proficient motorcycle rider, and any rider that took classes understands counter-steering. This video however digs deeper and makes it extremely easy to understand! I would love to see more details about this specific to motorcycles which involve much more mass and significantly higher speeds. Counter-steering is significantly more noticeable there than on a bicycle.

[@anonamemous6865]

Bro I learned motorcycle just in one day... My father just say that I should make it run and ride it and I find it stupid LoL... But luckily I'm not injured and still alive

[@anonamemous6865]

Btw we sold it tho

[@clementm5417]

With heavier wheels, but mostly because of higher speeds, coriollis effct comes into action. It means turnig the wheel to the left will produce a torque to roll you to the right. Hopefully this goes in the same way so it adds to the effect described in the video and you don't have to act very differently depending on speed. I'm unsure how big each effect is though, but pretty sure the video is correct in not mentionning coriollis on a low speed bicycle while a speed motorcycle is mostly coriollis.

[@clementm5417]

@@anonamemous6865 You didn't learn motorcycle in one day. you managed to ride one. There's a difference and it'll show the first time you find yourself in a bad situation.

[@bobbym6130]

I still remember how they taught the counter steer for normal turns and for a quick wobble avoidance you don't counter turn, but you have to wobble quickly back.

[@brotendo]

Countersteering is one of the first things you learn when attending motorcycling classes. They teach you to push the handle bar on the same side that you want to turn (i.e. push the left handlebar to go left).

[@einarberg7870]

Whats the point of mc schools teaching counterstering when everybody already know how to do it whithout knowing what it is?

[@stephenhiggins8744]

or turn left to make a right.

[@Panda_Gibs]

@@einarberg7870 get on a motorcycle some time. Counter steering is definitely not the intuitive way you will try to control it. The extra weight of the bike will make you want to shift your weight to muscle the bike the direction you want to go. This bad habit is very ineffective though. Thus teaching correct steering technique.

[@OfficialAzor]

@@einarberg7870 u learn this because the speed of a motorcycle and weight is allot higher, I'm taking my license now and yeah you will do it automatically, but when u know this actively u can go faster and have more controll in a corner.

[@brotendo]

@@einarberg7870 I learned it at a racing school. The point is they want people to do it more purposefully and aggressively when they need to take different lines to pass each other in turns. They also don't want you to just gently and instinctively fall into the turn, you want to be assertive and enter the turn with purpose. Have you ever been on a racetrack?

[@Hunters_Games]

This is great advice for beginner motorcycle riders. Often times beginner motorcycle riders are confused with the concept of counter steering, which is much more imperitive on a motorcycle at speed than a bicycle.

[@Harry.Dresden]

This is taught explicitly when you go through motorcycle courses, it’s even more important to know this when operating at multiple times the speed and hundreds of pounds more weight to that you can safely operate the vehicle

[@AndyDentPerth]

Motorcycle turning is very different although initiated the same. At very slow speeds you are relying on the centre of gravity to keep the bike upright and you turn by steering in the direction you want to go. At higher speeds, yes you initiate them with counter-steering but it's because you ARE using the gyroscopic effect - much faster wheel speeds with much heavier wheels. So there's not the second turn back that is shown in in this video with bicycles, after the counter-steering. These differences are even more dramatic when braking on a curve. I had to have a tendon reattached after crashing my motorbike the first time back on it in years after many years riding bicycles, because I didn't realise my muscle memory was all wrong, and ended up braking into a median strip because I braked in a straight line.

[@SILVERK5]

@@AndyDentPerth All 2 wheels vehicles turn the same way, by leaning into the turn and using tires with rounded thread profile to allow it (as opposed to car's flat ones). The major difference between bike vs bicycle is the effect of the rider's body to initialte a turn. A lot on the bicycle, less on the motorcyle where the proportion of you weight over the total weight is not as great, plus the heavier wheels have more inertia (gyroscopic effect)...Thus steeting with the handlebar is more efficient than steering only with your body (same for the bicycle by the way, especially at high speed). But fondamentaly, they are the same. And as explained in the video, turning the handlebars to the right will make the vehicle "fall" to the left and thus turn left, and vice versa.

[@jridenour31]

​@AndyDentPerth Everything you just said is wrong. Turning a motorcycle at any speed is initiated and stopped by counter steering. You're not using the gyroscope effect, you're fighting it. The second turn back into the direction of the turn after the initial counter steer is also done on a motorcycle. You might not notice it but that doesn't change the fact that it's happening.

[@ashodmartirossian6487]

And that is the only way to fight the side winds.

[@venanziadorromatagni1641]

I realised this when, as a teenager working at a fast food restaurant I was asked to take their comically oversized tricycle and go and pick up trash around the restaurant. Being used to riding a bike simply by leaning, and counter-steering, but never having thought about it, I just kept going into the wrong direction, in public, on a freaking tricycle! I provided very good amusement to my colleagues that day (And refused to ever ride the stupid thing afterwards)

[@47chester]

Derek, another easier option is to ride through some water, say in a car park, then see the tracks made by the wet tyres, there is a loop in the opposite direction that you are turning, that initiates the turn… this is how I convinced my kids….

[@MrArik86]

Not nearly enough likes, and yes, true! As a Dutchman, riding my bike through the snow (for decades) proves the same. Watch the lines.

[@matthewyabsley]

You forgot the mention the flux capacitor.

[@bugjams]

Question: Why do most older people always add ... to the ends of random sentences like this? As a younger person, reading "this is how I convinced my kids..." sounds extremely ominous and threatening. Is this just a generational difference? Did adding ellipses to the ends of sentences mean something different before the year 2000? Nowadays you do it when you want to sound awkward, unsure, or foreboding...

[@almarma]

​@@bugjams since the beginning of humanity, older people have teached younger ones how things work. What’s weird about that exactly?

[@adamsmallridge8794]

@@bugjams I use the ellipses to signify that I could say more about the subject but decide to leave it at what has already been said. Basically saying that’s all the stuff you need to know but there was more that went into teaching the kids.

[@lestick4368]

As a competitive cyclist I'm glad you made this, because people always assume I know how everything works, so I can now give a half decent explanation

[@Daniel-dj7fh]

Or point out to the video and say, "I learned it by doing not understanding"

[@lestick4368]

Nono, I gotta sound smart, and then when they inevitably ask again I'll point them to the video

[@729Crew]

compete with my cylcing skills i bmx an i bet i could burn yo as up out the dig 25 tooth single gear is all i need to suply the gap sauce

[@dimitridan8112]

@@729Crew who cares lol

[@729Crew]

@@dimitridan8112 im cold on tha bike dawg

[@NachoCheese2]

I remember I used to loved riding bikes, was my favorite, then mine got stolen (Didn’t get a bike after that, was in like 06/07) then one day in middle school I was visiting a friend but he wasn’t home and his mom and my mom said I could take the bike and go check his other friends house (I was scared to ride a bike since it’s been like 7-9 years) I did it while scared of falling and hurting myself but eventually I started doing it…same story goes for high school I ended up getting a bike to go to school after not having rides and I was scared to ride it and fall but eventually I got used to it and it was just like walking when I woke up for school

[@miserys.company]

As a kid this was “ghost riding.” Always a concept that caused dread about the danger of your bike hitting something but the curiosity was overwhelming. Kudos to this.

[@mee2556]

👍

[@Flameancer]

I remember this, essentially you use your own body as the handlebars to preform the steering.

[@Force1Com]

Finally, a video that's relevant to my life

[@AdderallXR831]

@@Flameancer its all in the hips to steer

[@alexchene4064]

@@AdderallXR831 for me it was in the upper torso, I would shift it to the left to go left, and right to go right. It is much more noticeable when riding without using hands

[@RayMak]

This is the best rigged bike to deter bike thieves

[@ruok3351]

reported

[@user-vp5cs8pd1l]

@@ruok3351 for what

[@bazzzanator9485]

@@ruok3351 I’ve reported you

[@ruok3351]

@@bazzzanator9485 reported

[@LiborSupcik]

silly of you After trial and error of some 20 bikes leaving me: the best deterrent is an uninteresting plain bike with 2 (even shabby) locks. If interesting go for recumberent bike (it takes 5 min to learn). If battery powered keep the battery detached.

[@jgfence123]

This reminds me of linguistics. Things we can do so easily but can’t explain the mechanisms behind, and when the mechanisms are explained they sound wrong at first. Makes sense that both fields are still so deeply studied.

[@brandonmorehouse7507]

Yep like how apparently there’s an order of what adjectives are supposed to come first

[@Queer_Nerd_For_Human_Justice]

@@brandonmorehouse7507 Yes, I love the adjective order list. It's so arcane yet so basic. Like "white old small man" sounds weird but "small old white man" doesn't.

[@lookdawg187]

I lean before I steer, because if you do what those bicyclists do on a bike going over 80mph you're going to have a bad day mmkay.

[@bezbezzebbyson788]

Yeah that's really good example of this. I got into linguistics as a hobby for conlanging and it's crazy how much complexity is in any language system (phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics,...etc) that a native speaker of the language easily masters ~95% of all that by the age of 12. Linguists say that this is due to our inner linguistic capabilities as humans

[@enzog1078]

I disagree. Linguistics is so simple and how people don’t understand how they speak baffles me.

[@crazydinosaur8945]

a Veritasium video where i did know the problem and answer before the video told me! i feel so smart!!

[@Danno_87]

As a motorcycle rider, this is a golden rule when leaning into turns. Lean right, turn bars left. Sounds counter intuitive, but yeah. This guy explains it better than I ever could lol

[@shifty7739]

Or as they say push out on the handle bar in the direction you want to steer. It much easier to feel this effect on a motorcycle. As you are riding in a straight line you gently push forward on the right hand grip and the bike leans right.

[@DragonHide94]

It's the centrifugal force of the front wheel. As you try to turn it, it leans at 90 degrees from how you try to turn it which forces the entire bike to lean with the wheel. Then you follow through.

[@jorimills1368]

when it comes to a motorcycle its really dependent on the size of the bike and the pace you are going at.

[@crabsodyinblue]

also on motorbikes, there are weights at the end of the handlebars, desinged to help with the balance, sounds crazy with 600pound bikes that 1 pound weights make a difference but they do

[@sethcooper6480]

@@crabsodyinblue bar weights are to reduce vibration and vibration only. The only way the weights would effect balance is if they could move outward and inward. Like having a passenger put an arm outward. The weights are stationary and equal.

[@daxquimm9799]

Maintaining balance on a stationary bike is referred to as a “track stand” in the cycling world. Just a fun fact from an avid cyclist!

[@joopie2time2killu]

In professional cycling its usally called by the french name : sur place, meaning on the spot.

[@benhansen1474]

Cyclist also love saying this word to prove they are a real cyclist and not just a bike rider haha.

[@G-WOE]

This comment is more interesting then the video

[@idlehour]

Thats so weird my sister in law just named her baby Track Stand Grasso.

[@mbos14]

@robert mayes have fun with your gridlocks.

[@danielklopp7007]

Motorcyclists (particularly those that ride fast sport-bikes with "clip-on" - i.e. short - handlebars) know about counter-steering (as Derek noted, it's the ONLY way to get a single-track vehicle to turn). Armed with this knowledge, I taught my boys to ride bicycles in less than an hour (with no training wheels). I had them sit on the bike, with their feet on the pedals, while I stood behind them gripping the back of the seat (so I could balance them). I then told them to steer in the direction of the lean as I leaned the bike from side-to-side. I kept leaning their bikes from side-to-side until I was confident they could counter-steer to correct the lean. BTW - the part Dereck didn't talk about is how you have to steer into the direction of lean to get the bicycle back upright.

[@stephenbrogan2002]

I was looking for this comment. This is one of the first things you learn when you have a motorcycle.

[@MAC_V4_2K]

There is nothing particular about sport bikes that have clip ons vs normal handlebars. The same principles apply regardless of the kind of motorcycle

[@wupme]

Its really common for him, especially in recent videos, to leave out information. Might be on purpose or simply not knowing enough about the subject.

[@TheKeyote]

@@wupme almost certainly left out on purpose for the sake of brevity. Annoying to those of us that want a deeper dive for sure, but as one of the biggest science communicators out there his goal is to make it more digestible for a wider audience

[@Lex-tz7ww]

I don't understand how motorcyclist are any different from any other riding a bike of sorts, the same principle is applied in both fields and naturally ud become aware

[@liamgaul]

it's because you're trying to make tight turns at slow speed and need to countersteer to get the bike to lean quickly. If you were going at a decent speed around a steady corner you can just lean into the corner and you don't need to countersteer. Countersteering is not absolutely necessary to turn.

[@kayleelaw1744]

Hey Veritasium, to further prove the point that counter-steering is automatically happening to keep the rider-less bike stable, did you ever try rolling the modified bike with the steering locked to see if it stays upright while rider-less rolling down the hill? It would be a powerful image to watch that bike fail to be upright.

[@XtreeM_FaiL]

It will fall as fast as stationary bike.

[@a2z726]

I was waiting for that.

[@gabrielschoene5725]

The minuitephysics video showed this demonstration. Worth checking out

[@deusexaethera]

It's been done before. Bicycles with locked steering fall over immediately when rolling.

[@yashkumar8245]

I was about to ask this

[@TimeBucks]

This is so cool.

[@QuintBUILDs]

First learned about "countersteer" in my Team Oregon motorcycle training class. But by the time I bought a motorcycle I'd forgotten and almost wrecked!

[@JLchevz]

yeah first thing I thought too

[@dieseljo2]

I also learned about this topic while at RYP motorcycle trials training. I was thinking unicycle, then BOOM there it was in the video. I love this channel!

[@jdotoz]

"Push the handgrip on the side you want to turn toward."

[@IanUniacke]

This saved my life one day. It was amazing how perfectly it works.

[@robertchmielecki2580]

I discovered it when I learned to ride a bike without holding the handles. You can still turn (maybe not that sharply, but simple 90degree street corner is easy) just by balancing your body, no handlebars involved.

[@utkarshdubey5741]

You need to turn left, to turn right - Doc Hudson.

[@MadNumForce]

It's basically the same with any "body skill". Nobody knows how a hammer works either. You can tell: give a hammer to someone with zero previous DIY experience and they will impart whimpy hits. You end up bodily figuring out how to best hit with a hammer, without a hint of "hammer theory". And I'd believe it's actually more complex than steering, especially to attain peak efficiency, like the construction workers who know their tools and body so well than no matter the nail to drive it, it's basically done in two or three hits without marring the surface. They have zero conscious hammer theory, yet their brain does a huge amount of calculation to issue an exactly timed and measured contraction signal to each muscle of the shoulder, arm and hand to precisely produce the optimal desired result.

[@Michallote]

Yes it's crazy how Brains work out things so fast. I would argue that with current computer technology it would take cemturies for them to figure out how to make themselves (in a logic point of view) but many humans figured it out in the span of their lives. We're still yet to understand our own

[@utkarshupadhyaya7091]

Seems to me your logic has more English Literature than actual technicality 😂

[@sntslilhlpr6601]

Same with throwing a ball. Or catching one. How does an MLB outfielder know where the ball is headed right off the bat? Is it just a matter of experience or is his brain doing ballistics and fluid dynamics (magnusson effect) under the surface in a split second?

[@acio83]

It's like birds know how to fly but they don't understand aerodynamics

[@TheBoojah]

Regarding hammer skills, you should see Tom Scotts blacksmithing video. At first he is absolutely terrible at hammering, but soon finds the swing of it and learned to hit the metal with proper force.

[@rem362]

This is also a thing you can see on motorcycles. Let's say you let off the bars and just lean to the left. The bar also turns to the right for a moment until the bike dips to the left side. That's also how countersteering works at higher speeds. I feel like this is a technique that most bikers are aware off because it's an essential for driving safely

[@pleasedontwatchthese9593]

True, its basically a required skill if your going 30mph or faster.

[@randomcreativename]

Push right go right

[@joby602]

@@randomcreativename And yet not taught in UK bike tests. Almost killed me on my 2nd or 3rd solo ride. Weird how varied different countries teaching priorities are, and the UK test is otherwise very rigorous.

[@alone9695]

@@joby602 that sucks

[@joey_diaz_clips]

I'm glad I saw this comment as I actually am getting my first bike around Christmas with the help of my dad so I'm trying to learn what I can before I start my lessons

[@xXxLolerTypxXx]

When I attended school for my motorcycle licence, we were told pretty much the same, both counter-steering and that a bike is inherently stable without input. Knowing about counter-steering makes you quite a bit more agile than people who think they steer by shifting their weight.

[@DJLuckeyLu]

Correct :) this is what I was taught, too! Didn't make the figure 8 routine any more easier the first time one goes about it, though... lol

[@jko2001]

I came on to say the same thing. I was thinking "what is wrong with these people? don't they know about counter-steering?". Then I realized I only actually learned that explicitly during motorcycle lessons.

[@SteveJones172pilot]

You're lucky you had that training.. when I first got on a motorcycle, it was out front of a friends house with no instruction, and I ended up in the opposite ditch every time I tried to turn for the first couple minutes.. With very slow speeds, it acted like a bicycle does, which I was fine with but at some speed, it seems the effect is amplified, and/or maybe the gyro effect increases, and the dynamics change. Once you figure this out, you can steer simply by intentionally pushing the OTHER handlebar to cause the lean. it was fun

[@hayden3774]

The first two minutes of this video all I could think of was motorcyclists who counter steer already do this

[@xXxLolerTypxXx]

@@SteveJones172pilot I had the exact same problem when I drove a quad the first time, because you don't need to counter-steer with them, but since they got a handlebar like a motorcycle, your brain is wired to do that.

[@agent.cheeseballs267]

what happens if you lean instead of countersteering

[@meljuncaguioa6336]

Yeah you're right😮

[@cccycling5835]

Being both a cyclist and motorcyclist I’ve known about countersteering for a long time. It causes a lot of accidents with new motorcyclists actually so it’s a very important concept with higher speeds. With a motorcycle, the turning of the bars is much less obvious because of the extra weight and the higher speed: so you have to very purposely ‘push’ the bars in the direction of the turn, very important when cornering.

[@Daniel-dj7fh]

or pull, depending on which hand we're looking at because one pushes and the other pulls. I think a more important thing to motorcycling is to be smooth, many people brake and accelerate way to jerky and that's usually the cause of washing out your rear wheel in a corner or in a straight.

[@evand746]

came looking for a biker that knows this haha

[@adrianmcclung5472]

@@evand746 same here lol

[@Momo_8k]

I personally felt that the counter steer effect only occurs above about 18mph or so (on a motorcycle)?

[@moteroargentino7944]

Same here. It has some slight differences tho, due to (like you said) the weight difference. For quick turns at low speed I usually turn the handlebars in the direction of the turn, but only after I also leaned in said direction. What surprised me was learning that the gyroscopic effect has little to do with stability. You always learn something new 😃

[@philherb0656]

The execution of this video was great, I just get a tremendous anount of joy seeing people (strangers perhaps) interact and have a great time together. There’s something so pure about human connection and communication that I love to see.

[@Rick_Cavallaro]

Fun was had by all!

[@DarkShroom]

you know you've been in lockdown when you start enjoying watching basic human interaction

[@doblet664]

@@DarkShroom or he could be an empath, regardless. Reality is more complex than your narrow worldview 🤡👉🗑️

[@DarkShroom]

@@doblet664 my world view is not narrow, it's just rational

[@doblet664]

@@DarkShroom You're delusional, poor little thing. Bless your heart, son

[@nicksilver3757]

As a motorcyclist I'm actually surprised that most bicyclists don't understand counter-steering. Whether its a motorbike or a pedal bike, counter-steering is part of Riding 101.

[@amandacoelho9524]

as a motocyclist i thought the same... when riding a motorcycle you have to learn this very fast in order to ride properly

[@Ghost19_]

I think it has to do on how simple it feels riding a bike is, compared on how it would feel with a motorbike. Since I'm able to ride both, I can without thinking much find comfort riding a bike as simple as I though it would be compared to the moment I started seating on my motorbike and passively know all the precautionary rules before heading in.

[@joopie2time2killu]

This is cool and all, but how would you explain biking without hands (not holding the steer) , like any decent cyclist from my country can?

[@adamjones9379]

@@joopie2time2killu 5:40

[@swegatron2859]

As a motorcyclist I’ve observed a lot of motorcyclists don’t actually understand counter steering. They take the “turn left to turn right” too literally. They think while they’re turning left they’re holding the handle bar right. The counter steering only refers to turn initiation. I saw a guy on tiktok telling people he’s counter steering while linking turns, there is no counter steering when linking turn because the “counter steer” effect comes from the end of the previous turn. But he wasn’t having it and thought he was actually pulling the bar the opposite way he was turning during the turn. Gets me so frustrated, some motorcyclists are so stubborn 😂

[@SofiaisSunshine]

Push with left to turn left, push with right to turn right. Taught a few people how to ride a motorcycle and this is how I instructed them. Made sense to them and that works for me.

[@pedroakjr2371]

I always wondered how we were able to ride the bike without holding the handlebar. It was even more confusing to me since some of my old bikes are impossible to ride like that, while the new ones seem naturally designed to control themselves. Now I understand why.

[@maxwilson7001]

Huh. Now I kinda want to try it

[@pedroakjr2371]

@@maxwilson7001 Don't forget that to let go the hands of the handlebar you need a considerable amount of speed, otherwise it won't work. There's always a risk involved, but once you learn how to balance it you can even make turns without the hands.

[@maxwilson7001]

@@pedroakjr2371 Good info to have. Thanks

[@itsianman]

@@pedroakjr2371 i watched a guy ride around all the time for miles without using his hands and turned and everything...i eventually figured it out a bit, but could only do it for pretty short distances

[@BisexualPlagueDoctor]

Physics is so easily manipulated in way that feel unnatural

[@OmDahake]

Just knowing that scientist are still researching how cycles work just surprises me that how much physics just a simple object carries

[@Raleford]

I think it also demonstrates just how complex physics is as a field. We don't even know everything about the things we know.

[@liamg9410]

@Check my about page link get a life dude nobody is doing that

[@manuelbuitenhuis7337]

I also think a bicycle is far from a simple object

[@VoicesofMusic]

When I rode a motorcycle we all countersteered. But I guess we were just steering.

[@scottricklaroque7428]

Dern, you beat me too it. I told a new rider, a good friend of mine, to steer opposite the way he wanted to go and he said I was crazy, then the next day he came to me asking about it, I'm glad I read an article in cycling magazine so I could explain it with big words so he didn't feel dumb. lol

[@IntziGG]

@@scottricklaroque7428 same happened to me too lol but with a lot of people.

[@Rustbelt76]

Wasn't a big issue, but my muscle memory counter steering on motorcycles made the steering on a jet ski really awkward first time I rode jet ski.

[@gamestycon2239]

Yes that help to not crash, basically when you lean you are steering to the right to go to the left because the faster you go the more force you need to counter steer and turn the motorcycle same as bike

[@thefoxydown23]

@john smith same thing riding an ATV, turning the first time will have you think "oh I'm a dumbass"

[@BarderBetterFasterStronger]

"Most people don't know how walking works. If you just start moving your legs forward, you just fall on your back."