Practice makes ...... no such thing as perfect, but will make you more confident. Saddle time is the only way to get to where you want to be. Leave the cage, take the bike.

 

Sounds like your not looking ahead of the curves. Take an approved rider course. You'll pickup some great tips and learn many skills.

 

What helped me when I started riding, was to ride with an experienced friend who knew and respected my limits. He was very good about using proper techniques while I was with him so I didn't pick up any bad habits. This also helped me learn what the bike was capable of. By following him, I learned how to approach and take a corner, and many other skills I still use today.

 

A good course is a good idea,ride like a pro video.Main thing is ride at the speed you are comfortable with.I have a couple buddies that flat out push it when we hit a lot of curves,too fast for me.They know they are going to push it harder then me and also know that im going to ride at my speed.Sometimes they pull over and wait,sometimes they just back off a little.Improving your skills is always good but dont push it

 

I agree with all those who have said to look farther ahead and accelerate through the curves.
When you downshift (before entering the curve) release the clutch slowly and give it more throttle , it will make engine braking smoother. Try to match engine speed with bike speed. Then release the throttle if you need to slow down more.

 

Good advice from everyone here. When I learned to ride I rode with a few guys who had 20+ years experience and they taught me everything I needed to know. That being said, it takes what it takes and if you are not comfortable figure out what the exact problem is. Possibly the way you are sitting on the bike like stated above, possibly you need glasses or contacts, possibly more practice is necessary. It took a lot of explaining for me to understand how and why to accelerate out of corners. Until I understood the centrifugal force factor it made no sense.

Another problem I had was that I tended to target fixate and just watch the rider in front of me as opposed to the road in front of them. The watching where you want to go is extremely important and I learned the hard way that if I watched the guard rail i would end up hitting it. I have never seen Ride Like pro, but am sure it would be helpful. Keeping your riding skills sharp are an extremely important part of riding.

I also agree with the over thinking that people have mentioned above. Relax. No death grip on the bars. Breathe. I know that trying to do anything when I am not relaxed makes it that much more difficult. Good luck and practice, practice, practice.

 

I agree 100%--always look where you want to go --

 

Here's a couple of pointers that may help. Sweepers, curves, blind curves, & on ramps should be no problem if you are looking into the corner as deep as you can see. Watch a racer (car or motorcycle) and see where they are looking while turning. They will be looking deep into the turn.
The throttle, You should be in the gear you need to be in before leaning into the turn and slowly accelerating as you progress through the turn. One of the tricks of turning any vehicle is loading the suspension as you enter the turn. As you enter the turn you load the suspension the slow acceleration keeps it loaded. If you brake or shift you upset the balance of the chassis because you unload the suspension. Don't coast through turns it is very difficult to adjust your line while coasting. I can enter almost any curve at 10mph above the posted limit and negotiate it flawlessly. Practice and confidence will take you a long way.

 

I also started back in riding around 45...Alot of great info above...I did take a class,found it VERY helpful!!! You might practice up/doun shifting more!! should give you better feel of gears at different speeds.I found myself having trouble gaging speed and weight of my EG on hills and turns also!! Good Luck and YOU WILL GET IT!!!!.. R.W.

 

A key factor in learning is success. A phrase to remember is safe - fun - learn. I would suggest using a familiar road that has some moderate curves and speed changes. Ride this road alone so that you set the pace and do not need to worry about other riders. Repeat the section several times in each direct over a period of several weeks. Your skills and confidence will increase.

An earlier post suggested the Dragon. I could not disagree more. You need to gradually increase technical demands and put in the mileage at each level of difficulty until you feel comfortable.

Keep riding. The cure is mileage!