To take a corner at the right speed, you need to judge the radius. Ever ridden with a quick, expert rider and been amazed at their ability to seemingly know how sharp a bend is in advance?
They sweep though at speed or negotiate tricky, tightening corners with complete control, as though they are psychic. Chances are, as well as having a good drop of experience, they’ll be using a technique known as ‘chasing the vanishing point’.
Think of the vanishing point like the perspective lines an artist uses when painting. The lines converge into a point, beyond which you see nothing. Only, in this case, the lines we’re interested in are the edges of the road. Where those edges intersect in your vision (or both disappear from view, such as over the brow of a hill) is the vanishing point.
Blind corners are where the vanishing-point technique proves invaluable. Keep the vanishing point a constant, safe distance away. If it seems to be getting closer, you need to slow down. But if it’s getting further away, you can begin to accelerate. As well as the road-edge vanishing point, you can use your peripheral vision in a similar way, detecting converging lines of trees, power lines or natural features for a general picture of the road’s direction.
