5 Important Things I Learnt About Off-roading With Yezdi

My love for going off-road is a bit of an open secret. So, simply the thought of having some tricky sections to attack with the Yezdi Scrambler at my disposal at Jawa-Yezdi’s Nomads Trail Attack event had me drooling.

And to ensure that I didn’t break any bones while trying to do so, Yezdi had three trainers looking over mine and the other riders’ movements. As a novice rider who was thrown into the deep end of mud-plugging, here’s what I learnt:

Know Your Bike

Off-roading takes its toll, not only on you, but the bike as well. So, it’s always a good idea to give it a thorough check. Checking things like the pressure and condition of the tyres, brakes, suspension, etc ensures that you always know how your bike will react in certain conditions. 

You don’t need to be The Hulk

My slender build has always left me feeling a bit diffident when it comes to handling heavy bikes. But having spent some time with the 192kg Yezdi Scrambler, I realized that you don’t need to be the strongest man in the room to take such bikes off-road. 

Your lower body is everything when it comes to riding. Simply gripping the tank hard with my knees and using my core to move the bike around took a lot of pressure off my shoulders. Keeping the balls of your feet on the pegs further expedites the act of changing directions. With the help of the instructors, these two things combined made the bike feel a lot less heavy since I wasn’t muscling it into corners and my upper body was used simply to point the bike to the direction it needed to go in. 

Look Where You Want To Go

This is sage advice no matter what you ride. Look Where You Want To Go. Simple. Your body – and by extension, your motorcycle – will go in the direction you’re looking. If your eyes are pointed at the floor or what’s immediately underneath you then everything is coming at you at a rapid pace even if you’re actually moving slowly. 

Looking up and in the direction you want to travel allows the brain to scan ahead, take stock of the surroundings, and plan your next move. Of course, scanning is dependent on speed. The faster you’re moving, the farther ahead you have to look. If you’re navigating slow, technical terrain, then your gaze will be on your immediate surroundings.

The thing you don’t want to do is target fixate. If your eyes are locked in on something, it’s hard to break away from it, and if your motorcycle follows your eyes, guess what? You’ll be headed straight for the thing you’re staring at.

To Stand Or Not To Stand, That Is The Question

You’re never going to be proficient at dirt riding until you learn to stand up. This provides a few advantages. First, this transfers your weight down to your feet, which you can then manipulate to steer your ADV or navigate different terrain, something you can’t do sitting down. 

Next, standing up gives you a much better perspective of what’s ahead. The farther ahead you can see, the more time you have to plan, prepare and react.

Be sure to keep a slight bend in your legs while standing so your legs can soak up jolts that make it past your suspension. Place the balls of your feet on the pegs – that’s where your balance is – and remember to stay loose so your arms and legs can act as secondary suspension. It may feel awkward at first, but keep practicing and eventually, you’ll commit it to muscle memory.

Take A Chill Pill Dude!

Off-roading is a physically intensive sport. So take it easy. You don’t have to take that picture-perfect shot of you jumping the bike over rumbler strips and slide the bike all around on your very first day.  Remind yourself to relax (say it out loud if you have to), and if you need to, slow down. While you’re at it, practice deep breathing exercises by inhaling fully through your nose, pausing a moment, and exhaling through the mouth. Most importantly, enjoy yourself. If you aren't enjoying being out on the trails, you won't get better at it. 

At the end of the day, the insights given by the trainers helped me gain a better understanding on how different off-road and trail riding is compared to everyday riding on tarmac. This was a much-needed session for the off-road nut inside me, and I can’t wait to attend more such events.