Flat turn in motocross: corner cleanly without a berm, seated, with weight and foot forward, practise it step by step and protect your knee while doing so.
The honest answer: A flat turn is a corner without a built-up berm. You slide forward on the seat, put your inside leg forward, put your weight on the front wheel and let the motorcycle pull through the arc with throttle. Your grip comes from the front wheel, not from a wall.
And here is the part almost nobody tells you up front: we found no study on flat-turn technique. Biomechanics data on body position in motocross corners are also missing in PubMed and Europe PMC. What is supported is the price of a mistake. Among 1,500 accidents in off-road sport, ligament injuries accounted for 344 cases, almost 60 percent of them in the lower extremity, especially at the knee [1]. The flat turn with the leg forward additionally challenges this joint, which is practical knowledge. And in a comparison of 27 top off-road riders, the motorcycle, technique and tactics seem more important for success than the metabolic capabilities [2]. All moves below are coaching practice and carry no source number.
Realistically: this is an intermediate skill. Expect many repetitions before you trust the front wheel.
When does the flat turn belong in your repertoire? Whenever there is no berm or the line in the berm is cut up. On many tracks that is more corners than you think. Whoever rides them safely no longer loses time there and saves strength, because he is not fighting the motorcycle.
Choose an arc and a point at the corner exit that you look at. Your head turns into the corner early. The motorcycle follows the gaze.
Milestone: Before turning in you look to the exit and not at the front wheel.
Slide forward on the seat before turning in. That loads the front wheel. The upper body stays forward, the elbows stay up.
Milestone: You sit forward without cramping.
Put the inside leg forward, with the foot near the footpeg. It serves as support, not as a training wheel, and does not hang dragging on the ground. Make sure the knee does not get twisted.
Milestone: You ride a lap in which the inside leg stays calmly forward.
Give steady, measured throttle in the arc. The rear wheel gets drive, the front wheel stays loaded. Do not release the throttle suddenly, or the motorcycle stands up.
Milestone: You ride the arc with an even line.
Raise the speed in small steps. If the front wheel slides away, go back one step and check weight and gaze.
Milestone: Three speed steps higher than at the start without the front wheel sliding away.
Ride a corner ten times and change only one thing per lap: seat position, gaze or throttle. Note what the front wheel does. That way you learn what really works. That is coaching practice, and there is no study on the flat turn itself. After each lap take a short break, shake out your arms and check whether you still grip loosely. Cramped hands take away your feel for the front wheel.
A corner without a built-up berm. You sit forward, the inside leg is forward, the weight is on the front wheel, and you pull the motorcycle through the arc with throttle.
Usually you sit too far back or give too little throttle. Slide forward onto the front of the seat and hold steady throttle. If it keeps pushing, take the speed down.
Forward, calm, near the footpeg. It supports you but does not drag on the ground. In the analysis of 1,500 accidents, particularly many ligament injuries occurred at the knee [1].
The mandatory gear in FIM Europe competitions comprises helmet, goggles, gloves, boots and upper-body protection [3]. A knee brace is an option, not a must. Ask your instructor.
There are no reliable data on that. Expect many repetitions across several training days.
Landing in Motocross: Touching Down on the Landing Slope and Absorbing With Your Legs