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Heresy - Is 'Twist of the wrist II' a hard read?

3009 Views 24 Replies 19 Participants Last post by  davidbeinct
I was given 'Twist of the wrist II' written by the much respected and recommended Keith Code.

Anyone else think this is a very hard read?

I do not mean to criticise the intent or the content but I feel that the author does not make his points clearly or particularly concisely and this would all be extremely difficult for a novice rider to understand or an experienced rider to absorb.
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Yeah, I've always said that the content was good, but the writing was horrible. Also, Code's insistence on defining common English words is mystifying.
It sucks. There is good info in there--buried somewhere--but actually reading the damn thing is a like trying to cuddle with a wet, angry cat.
I agree with you totally. I tried several time to read that, but the writing style was sooooo tedious I just couldn't get through it. One the other hand I absolutely LOVED reading and learned so much from Sport Riding Techniques by Nick Ienatsch. So much so that when I was ready to take a high performance riding school I chose Freddie Spencer's because he is the lead instructor there. I fgured that I could learn and relate more to that teaching style.
I agree with you and Michael. It is a great read, I like in better than twotw 1, but defining the common English words is annoying.

CAG
The thing that pisses me off about the book (Twist of the Wrist 1)... There are so many open ended questions.

Such as:

Will you try it?

Will this help you?

Can you apply it?

etc..

I hate those friggin foot notes!! :mad: ;)
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I got a Twist of the Wrist vid from the library and found it horribly tedious to watch. I won't try reading the books after that.

I too like Sport Riding Techniques.
I am glad to hear all your opinions somewhat concur with mine.

I was so worried that I had lost the ability to read and learn from the written word.

I believe the content is in there but blame very poor editing or no editing (an Editors job is to make the book readable)
I bought 'Soft Science'... it seems like it's written in english, but I'm really not sure.
I gave up the first time I tried to read it.
I spent $20 on it, maybe I'll try again.
CRASH! said:
I got a Twist of the Wrist vid from the library and found it horribly tedious to watch. I won't try reading the books after that.

I too like Sport Riding Techniques.
Me too, except I bought the video. I was underwhelmed by the presentation style & overall production.

Ienatsch's book was easier to read and more enjoyable than watching the Code video.
Actually, I found TOTW II helpful, but it was a tough slog.
I've read TOTW II, but it's been a few years. It was definitely difficult to understand and learn from. More recently I read Total Control by Lee Parks and found that more useful. I'll probably read TOTW II again, just to see if I can pick up anything useful after having read a few other books on riding technique since then.
I'm not knocking Code's content; just his presentation. I did get some useful info from it, but nothing you can't get elsewhere in a more readable format.
I had a similar experience with Twist of the Wrist I, although I did find that once I got about halfway through it, it got much more readable. I don't know if that's because I got used to the style, or if it really did get better, but either way it started to make sense and become useful.
I'm currently reading- Total Control: High Performance Street Riding Techniques by Lee Parks

I like it better than Sport Riding Techniques (so far) ......

His writing style is very easy to comprehend and the practice 'drills' are good, too
I've read both of the TOTW books (glutton for punishment), they're horrible. Like everyone says, there's good info in there but you have to really want to find it.
The TOTW books may be difficult reads, but the info in there is invaluable and the guy really knows his stuff. Everyone should read them anyway, or at least #2. I signed up for his school about 8 years ago at Texas World Speedway but got rained out on the first lap. I was able to meet him at a Doc Wong ride once though and have an interesting conversation about something I had discovered about finishing my turns better. Seemed like a really great guy with an open mind.
I agree just finished reading it again after about 8years and it was a labor. Great info but poor delivery. I think it could use a good updating and reprint. I think the side notes are usually not needed and don't help the flow if the book. I would also like to see and appendix with a brief follow up of exercises and the SR's. I believe there is some great information that could be presented in an easier was too follow and understand and also make the reading process enjoyable.
I got all three of Code's books for sale.

Will anyone buy them?

Will they stay awake while reading?

Should I have sold them before this thread?

(Sold: to exchange money for something)
While I am loath to pimp another forum on the DML, if you're really interested in Keith Code content, you can ask him yourself or read his responses to everyday riding questions:

Questions to Keith Code, Round One. Thread now closed.

Questions to Keith Code, Round Two. Currently active thread
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