Rating: 
Summary: Worth putting up with
Review: There are some excellent ideas in here. Whether you've just started riding or have been doing it for years it will help you think objectively and scientifically about a motorcycle as a physical system. From this understanding of the dynamics of a motorcycle during cornering, acceleration and braking you will be able to better understand and manage manouvers on the road or track.The downside of the book is a bizarre fascination with jargon, and annoying definitions of perfectly commonplace words. (I can only wonder if Code picked this up from Scientology, as L. Ron Hubbard is credited in the front matter.) There is also a considerable emphasis in the examples and photographs on the track rather than the road, but all the lessons carry across well. None of the lessons will require you to have a race bike. All the necessary parts: braking, acceleration and cornering are covered, though you'll need to look to other books for discussion of road surface, traffic, street signs, weather, and so on. Nevertheless. Ignore the annoying parts; buy it and read it. I'm pretty confident you will be a safer and (optionally) faster rider afterwards.
Rating: 
Summary: Want to really improve your riding?
Review: Code's book changed all my perpective towards motorcycling. Reading it and applying the information given in it improved my way of riding dramatically. I generally ride big enduros and at first, I was thinking that this book was for only the sportsbike riders or even for the race track fans. I was on a vacation at the Mediterrenian coast when I started to read the book on the beach. After reading a few chapters, I found myself on my bike exploring the new world of curves. My wife was a little bit angry with me but on the way back home, she was also very impressed.
Improving your cornering is only one of the many other perfect riding techniques that you can benefit from Code's book. You will also be surprised when you learn braking, looking at the road, sitting on the bike etc. Every corner of the book is full of information and it is really very difficult to get everything at once. I read it maybe 5 times and everytime again and again, in order to get the feeling what is explained in it. I got up early at weekends and rode to my favorite curves in the city just for practising. Everytime you become well at doing one thing and find out that you couldn't pay enough attention to another point. But as you practice, you make incredible improvement.
There is only one point which I found annoying in the book: The meaningless vocabulary at the end of each section. My language is not english, maybe that's why I couldn't get "the point". It was confusing.
My last word is "ANY motorcyclist SHOULD read this book regardless of what kind of a bike she/he is riding.".
Rating:
Summary: A Solid Book of Fundimentals In Need Of Updating
Review: As a beginning rider that completed the MSF riding course, I was searching for the tools that would allow me to ride faster and safer. While the MSF covers the "how to" it doesn't really go into the "why"...This book does an excellent job of telling you why you do things on the bike and how the bike will react. If you are a street rider wanting to ride faster, better and safer than skip "Twist of the Wrist" and buy this book instead. "Twist II" really should have been the first book in this series as it focuses on fundamentals, while "Twist" emphasizes the skills of road racing, which are obviously different than street riding. While the information contained in this book will always be relevant, the text and layout look a bit dated, especially in this day and age of "...for Dummies" books. The text is easy to read and comprehend but can be a bit juvenile at times. I have read and applied the concepts of this book to my everyday riding and feel it has accelerated my learning curve tremendously over what I would have learned simply by doing or listing to the advice of friends. Bottom line: 95% of riders can benefit from reading this book. Read it, apply it and be a better rider.
Rating:
Summary: A must-read!
Review: A good book, written in typical Keith Code fashion.. He likes to get into theory, but it's good theory. I must have smacked my forehead at least 10 times while reading, as it brought to light many errors I've made. This is a must read book if you're serious about carving curves and being smooth and safe in doing so! While it is primarily track-based, he does go a bit into street riding, but what you learn is applicable to both street and track.
Rating: 
Summary: Keith, drop the definitions!
Review: For newbie bikers trying to develop confidence and basic skills, "Proficient Motorcycling" and "The MSF Guide to Motorcycling Excellence" are better choices. For those with significant experience who find that they keep making the same mistakes, or struggling with the same fears and reactions, this book has a lot to offer. As many readers have said, the ridiculous definitions make this book tedious and hard to take. The amazing thing is that this is the sixth printing and these condescending and idiotic definitions are still here! [...]
Rating:
Summary: What is actually needed to learn the art of cornering!!!
Review: From the moment I opened this book, I improved my ability to corner a motorcyle and have gotten soooo much out of it ever since. There are the things that are actually important when you are on a motorcycle and there are the things that are just a waste of time to look at. This book has the most important items for sure! Read it. And may you never corner the same again! Stoney Landers
Rating:
Summary: Source on the basics of cornering motorcycles
Review: This book is the BEST book on the basics of what is actually important when it comes to cornering motorcycles. All of us motorcycle riders and racers can go straight on a motorcycle, but what happens when you get to that corner is what most motorcycle riders REALLY care about. Keith obviously took the time to really look at exactly what was happening when a person goes to turn a motorcycle into a corner. Knowing what controls to use when and what to do with your eyes is to me the best things I got out of reading this book. this is true Stoney Landers
Rating: 
Summary: Extremely FRUSTRATING presentation of essential info
Review: Keith Code obviously knows fast riding, but he tortures the reader to reconstruct this essential knowledge with his imprecise language and kooky constructs. Examples: 1) Non-instruction: There's an entire chapter, 4 pages with multiple illustrations on "Pivot Steering". There is only ONE vague sentence actually describing how to do this: "When pushing off from the outside peg, you rather automatically go with the bike." What does this mean? The other hundred sentences talk about the development and usefulness of this "technique" without describing how to actually do it. 2) Conflicting-info -- rear-wheel slides: - p9: "staying off the throttle would have lead to a (crash) ... Chandler turned on the gas ... " OK, so I need to crank the throttle, yes? - p15. "Provided you weren't already too greedy with the throttle, your best insurance against a (crash) is simply to stop rolling on the gas." You mean, don't do what p9 said? And what if I was already too greedy, then what? - p46. Vaguely suggests not doing anything - the bike will correct itself. ----- Well, which is it ?!! 3) Definitions: "tank-slap? head-shake? brake fade? -- Doug doesn't bother to define this jargon, but devotes pages to defining elementary-school terms like: "ruin", "available", "picture", "distinct", and maybe a hundred equally simple words. Example: "Actually: In reality; factually" -- maddening! The knowledge embodied in this book is a must for any street or track rider. It's just a shame this work hadn't been better structured and edited.
Rating:
Summary: Great book, one small shortcoming.
Review: Since everyone else already covered what this book has, I'll say what it doesn't have. It assumes that you're on roads where you can be assured of good traction. Almost everything I've read herein assumes so. As long as you realize this as you're reading it, it's excellent.
Rating:
Summary: Riding fast...simple!
Review: I have applied Keith Code's riding technology successfully for over 16 years now and the more I read of it the more it makes sense, the faster I go and the more fun I have. Let's be honest, every motorcycle rider on the planet wants to go faster. Sure, we need to make sure that we all have control over our bikes and that the activity of riding motorcycles is as safe as possible, but the reality is that being safe never 'turned-on' anyone! After reading Keiths' first book "A Twist of the Wrist" in 1984 it totally changed my life. I was at the time a struggling 'C' grade racer and really enjoyed my riding, but after crashing 13 times in my first 18 months of racing, my enthusiasm was beginning to wane. I wonder why! After reading that book, riding finally started to make sense to me. It seemed that Keith had read every thought in my mind and then written them down to present my errors to the world and use me as a personal example so he could show how to fix the problems. Of course I was imagining this...or was I? I have since learned that almost every rider has the same basic questions and the same basic problems. In fact it is amazing how similar riders problems are, regardless of skill level or experience. So what was bugging me also bugged a lot of other riders too. To cut a long story short...after applying Keith's information religously and drilling it for the next year, I went back to racing and won in excess of 100 races in my career, including at Australian Championship level. I set 9 lap records in two classes, won three state championships and had only 7 crashes (including 2 mechanical failures, and two other riders hitting me) over the next 16 years. Some contrast hey! When "A Twist of the Wrist II" came out, I bought it with high expectations and Keith delivered over and above those expectations once again. The text is clear and concise. It covers real world issues that every motorcycle rider faces. It presents the simplicity of riding a motorcycle well instead of shrouding it in the mystery of complex explainations. I wondered what benefit I could gain as a rider (after all...what's the point if it just makes you sound smarter...it's got to work on the bike too) and once again the information transferred into faster and safer riding. There are not many 'sure things' in this world. For me, Keith Codes' books are one of those sure things. Read them. Ride using the information contained in them. And watch your riding improve!
| 
