"Is it supposed to scare the *bleep* out of you?" Topic

I have no idea were to post this, there is no motor section on the pluss boards.

Anyway had my first dirving lesson on bike today.

Get there, get into the driving gear. the teacher said. this is the gas, this is the clutch, this is the gear this is the brakes.

Now get on this 500 pound bike and drive!!

That was it, the rest of the 2 hours I just drove around the track whike he sat and watched me and 3 other students.

I get on my bike, it's a 750cc touring, I slighlty tuch the gass, and it shoots up to 30kmh and I'm screaming inside my helmet becasue I almost my pants. And that is silly becasue I can actualy run faster then 30, but the acceleration was so exteme it was ing scary.

The track is acutaly a skating stadium also used for concerts, so it's only like a 120 yards on the long side, so the bike covers this distance in like 7-8 seconds at 30+.
In the whole two hours I only got into second gear once.

You had sevral tests to get through, one was called crawl, were you had to keep the clutch in to get about walking speed, through cornoer ect. the idea is to go so slow you almost have to put your foot down but not quite, so I fell over, I bearly got the 500 pound bike up again. I'm not a small guy I'm like 170 pounds my self but damn was it heavy.

The other test was to drive ATLEAST 30kmh into and out of a U turn, this means you have to get the bike down, never got the 30kmh thing, either I got to about 20 and around the cornor, or I got to 30 and didn't get the bike down far enough so I missed the turn.

The 3rd test I didn't even try, you had to go at 50+kmh then do a dip one way then a dip the other way around an obsticale, I didn't try it because I was to chicken to get up to 50.

The bike it self can probebly go to 130 and down to 0 in 120 yards but, damn if I had the balls even get to 50, I got to 43 in second that was it.

The gas was so sensitive, a tiny hit on it and you jumped up 20-30kmh in like 0.25, faster then my brain could comput, it was like I was transpored 30kmh faster with out any time at 15 20 or 25, it just went from under 10 to 35 faster then my body could prosses it.

Of the 3 other noobes, one get the clear right away so he only needs 1 more double hour this time in the steets, and he can get his license.

We 3 others have to keep to the track. I simply need more balls, I know the bike can be at 70 in the turn of the standium, the bike won't fall down, when you go above 40, it's just about having the balls to dip it down

Do they do organ donor cards in Norway?

No actualy we breed a class of people we keep in basements of hospitales that we harvest organs from.

You'll be a good rider GF.

The good riders are the ones who respect the power of the bike.

The idiots zip thru traffic, speed, and usually end up getting scraped off the road with a spoon.

Good luck. Watch out for others…They won't be watching for you.

The gas was so sensitive, a tiny hit on it and you jumped up 20-30kmh in like 0.25

A side effect of learning on a 750, which is a good size general purpose bike. A common tale amongst motorcycle riders is their transition from the little 150 and 250 "dirt" bikes to a 600 or bigger. On the little bikes you show the throttle no subtlety; tromp on it or go nowhere. Doing that on a bigger bike the first time often gets the rider on his backside as the bike pops the front wheel, shucks the rider, then slews about 30 feet and falls over. Mostly while his buddies laugh hysterically and point a lot.

But the street bikes need that power. A big part of driver education in the US for many years is the phrase "Drive Defensively". In other words, drive like everyone else on the road can kill you, can't see you, and won't care if they bump you. While this often falls on deaf ears for those learning to drive a car, it is the mantra that keeps motorcyclists alive. Being able to get away from someone doing a blind lane merge is a survival trait on a bike. Get used to the speed and how quickly it can change on a bike, and that power becomes your ally.

You'll get there.

I have to learn the "oposite steering thing"

Basicly when you hit 35-40, if you just push the steering to the right it automaticly dips to the left VERY FAST, aperantly this can save your life. It's just about having the guts to do it.

LOL

Gunfreak, how tall are you? How much do you weigh?

Riding a motorcycle takes a bit of practice no question.

galvinm is right. If you are going to ride a bike -- particularly in traffic, you need to understand how the thing responds under all conditions.

FWIW, my kid started out on a 300cc Honda and drove that for . . . 3-4 years before he decided he needed a bigger bike (so his girl friend could ride too and still maintain 75mph going up the Columbia gorge). He then looked at quite a number of bikes before settling on a 1300 cc Honda. This apparently weighs about 750 lbs.

Now the thing is, Ian is a professional muscle. 6'1" and . . . 220-240 lbs. He loads and unloads air freight to a living. There are very few college athletes that have his level of musculature.

Anyway, he says 750 lbs is his limit. He doesn't think he could handle something bigger (and they do make much bigger in terms of total weight) safely -- and he is a fanatic when it comes to safe operation of a bike.

Well best of luck. Just don't get in over your head.

mjc

(nods) I agree with all of the above… I used to ride a bike (A 250cc honda).

I stopped because I got tired of being too hot in summer in all the gear, and too cold and wet in winter no matter how much I wore.

Also, I couldn't lug much stuff around and hated falling off the thing. I averaged about once a year, usually in the wet hitting a white line or tram-track, although once I tried going around a corner with a flat back tyre.

That said, there were times, riding along in the evening on a road without streetlights, I could believe I was flying…

To add a bit to Quidveritas's comment, don't get a bike that you can't lift back on it's wheels if it falls over.

Street riding is way too dangerous, gravel, other drivers etc. Get some help and prep your bike for the track, take a class and go racing, much, much, much safer.

Gunfreak, mind all the comments 'bout bike size.

Lori's (third) bike is middlin' between her first and
her second. She had a Sportster and it was a good
learning bike for her. She jumped up to a HUGE
cruiser, dumped it a couple times and had trouble
getting it back up (even using her legs as she'd
been taught), finally lost it on a gravelly curve and
bailed right before the bike went over the drop-off and
down about 100 feet.

So, her current bike (a soft-tail) is smaller and some-
what less powerful, but is a good one for her.

'Ware cars and trucks, GF, and ride a BRIGHTLY painted
bike…

"Gunfreak, how tall are you? How much do you weigh?"

5`11" 170 pounds

Get a Ducatti. All the power and less than 500 lbs.

Man I was sore as hell yesterday, like I had just run 5 miles and done 200 pushups the day before.

Motorcycling is the most fun ever…well rolling a six when you really need it is up there too…

Anyhow, riding takes practice. Staying alive takes more practice.

Last year I was on a 600 going down the street when a truck in the opposing lane stopped to make a left turn (I'm in the US so the turn would be across my lane). I watched him stop and wait. I watched as he bolted into the turn just as I got too close to stop.

I opened my eyes to see a deputy sheriff and an EMT looking down at me. I looked to my right and saw my foot next to my head. "That's not good…" I remember saying.

I had a dislocated knee, cracked pelvis, two broken ribs, a couple of cracked vertabrae, and a concussion. But I was alive. I was alive because, even though I couldn't stop, I was able to slow and turn the bike enough to glance of the side of truck instead of getting launched head first over the top.

The reason I was abe to do any evasive action at all is because I listened to my Motorcycle Safety Foundation instructor and followed his advice. He told us that when the opportunity presented itself, empty parking lot, no traffic, etc., that we should practice swerving and emergency braking. It was the instuction and practice that saved me.

Now, I know guys that have ridden bikes for forty years and never had more than an occational close call. But bad things do happen from time to time. If something does happen, it's probably not luck that will be the deciding factor, it's skill. Skill takes practice.

Go, enjoy your new motorcycle. Just remember that you're engaging in a dangerous activity. The best way to manage the risk is to recognize it and do what is required to minimize it. That means ride defensively (but not paranoid), ride within you capabilities, and practice emergency manuevers.

BTW, check out YouTube videos on picking up motorcycles. I saw one that demonstrated how an average sized guy can right a Goldwing by himself.

You may not be cut out for motorcycling, as you appear to be a BGB. Have you considered a pedal tricycle?

Please feel free to join the best M/C forum on the net though therevcounter.com . This board should be of particular interest link