Any motorcyclists here?

[william1]

My Hayabusa has gone and bought one of these on Saturday !

 

[sizehungry]

Something i truly miss . Haven't ridden since a really bad car accident 25 years ago . For some reason I lost my sense of balance , and my "lightning fast " reactions .Reaction times have improved a lot over time , as has hand , eye co ordination , but balance is still shot , as far as staying upright is concerned . Kinda weird really , as it's not so bad in day to day stuff . I really miss my old Yamaha 650 , and the Harley that i was on the verge of buying ( after having ridden it a few times ) . Been to a few runs in a car , but it is not the same . .

 

[sizehungry]

have never had these 'class' things you USA guys talk about
or the 'tests' change of rules in the UK,over here
do now tho i think

was just a motorcycle officer riding alongside verry cautiously,shouting orders/waving what to do
bit mickey mouse come to think of it,60s tho,just go around the block and licence for life
actually think he already had it written out,as he just handed it to me signed by him,straight away
probably helped that he was a local officer and hed seen me riding/driving a vehicle illegaly underage ha around a few years prior

Oh , the good old days .

 

[Chrysippus]

Something i truly miss . Haven't ridden since a really bad car accident 25 years ago . For some reason I lost my sense of balance , and my "lightning fast " reactions .Reaction times have improved a lot over time , as has hand , eye co ordination , but balance is still shot , as far as staying upright is concerned . Kinda weird really , as it's not so bad in day to day stuff . I really miss my old Yamaha 650 , and the Harley that i was on the verge of buying ( after having ridden it a few times ) . Been to a few runs in a car , but it is not the same . .

Look, pick where you ride carefully for your restart, and have a good time. I suggest a straight stretch of paved country road early in the morning before car traffic. Stay away from curves that are sharp, and where you must lean, thereby avoiding balance issues. You'll be fine.

 

[sizehungry]

Look, pick where you ride carefully for your restart, and have a good time. I suggest a straight stretch of paved country road early in the morning before car traffic. Stay away from curves that are sharp, and where you must lean, thereby avoiding balance issues. You'll be fine.

Thanks mate . Actually ,I have pretty much decided on a trike , after talking to a few owners , and trying one out . Trying to decide on a power plant , Harley V-twin , Alloy Rover V-8 , rear mount V-W , or what . At the moment i'm leaning toward a worked Rover or Toyota Quad cam V-8 .

 

[Dave NoCal]

Motorcycle school is next weekend!

 

[Dave NoCal]

Last evening, while walking my dog, I came across a fatal motorcycle crash. Seemingly, it was a single vehicle accident in which the rider went wide on an easy curve and hit streetlight post. It is very sad. She was twenty-four, beautiful, and recently graduated from the university at which I teach. I'm still going to school this weekend but reconsidering getting a bike.

 

[Dave NoCal]

Passed the school and can now just go get my license. Still leaning away from getting a bike. I found low speed maneuvers to be difficult. Countersteering still does not feel natural to me, although I did great in the swerve exercises and test. I would like to get more ride time in controlled conditions, preferably with instruction. The instructor was great, by the way.

 

[evolution]

and likely will give private lessons for a price. Worth asking.

 

[Dave NoCal]

and likely will give private lessons for a price. Worth asking.

Good idea!

 

[evolution]

This past weekend I was walking about my neighborhood. A young man passed me a bunch of times on a motorcycle. More times than not, he was standing up as he rode past. Clearly he was wanting to pull wheelies. Also clear was he is VERY unstable on the bike. At one stop sign he sorta slightly paused at, he nearly dumped the bike. I hope he survives his self teaching - he's not a natural, the bike is physically the right size for him, but it's too big for his current skill level. So many people killed on bikes in CT each year.

To anyone reading this thread now or in the future. It's your life, no do-overs. Get training from a professional experienced rider. Start out with something small you can control & upgrade to bigger / faster later when you've got skills. If you're hanging onto the bike & being taken for a ride, if afterwards you're laughing about the pucker moments you had, you're doing it wrong. Death watches for easy feeding, don't be easy feeding.

and yes - I miss riding terribly.

 

[o0Mouse0o]

To answer your Qs.
Primarily it's my only transport. I've not owned a car for about 20 years and been riding since I left home and I'm now 46. Secondarily It's an enjoyable pass time and I've met a lot of good friends through it and of course a few arseholes as well. I go to smaller bike rallies and camping events because I don't like crowds and over recent years I've started making my own bikes almost from scratch.

I 'got into it' as I couldn't afford a car for going to college, and even if I could there was no parking so I bought a junk 125cc for £50 and made it go again. This was long enough ago that the insurance for a 19 yo was not crippling.
So far I've never 'got out of it' but have been through phases of having sidecars which were mostly for my dogs benefit and also came in handy when I was dating a woman with a preteen child that loved it.
Mostly I ride alone these days, like to work, to the shops, to social events etc. I went through the club thing and even achieved rank in a sidepatch club if that means anything to any of you. But got out of that entire scene after I eventually realised that a reasonable sector of members had no paperwork for their bikes (hence they were shit to ride with as they couldnt go here, or there or on the motorway, or into town centers) and the other half obsessed over 'club life', and this was long before the SOA bullshit, and quite frankly there was more time devoted to talking and arguing about inter club politics and the friction (that did not exist) with other clubs than there was about actual riding and partying.

Only been in a few crashes, the worst was 2000 miles from home in Italy where I woke up in an ambulance and all I can say about that is read the local road rules for each country you go to, have good insurance, and never EVER ride tired. I walked away from that one. And it's probably worth saying I've not been in an accident for approx 15 years which is probably more luck than judgment.

I've commuted more miles on a bike than I care to think about, currently about 75 miles a day or approx 20000 miles a year. The thing I've learned about this is to save the heroics and speeding for another day when the roads are empty and you have a clear head. And if you can help yourself don't be a weekend warrior.

Apart from when I had a good job and bought a new 1200Bandit I've been riding generally what you'd call ratbikes, and even after I'd had the Bandit for 5 years and 100000 miles commuting that to was a ratbike.

This is my current bike, Been on the road like this for 5 years. Based on a BMW R80 frame and powered from a Kubota Z482 diesel engine. Top speed 70mph, cruising at 60-65mph, mpg between 125 and 150mpg (UK), and used every day and an annual mileage of approx 20000 miles. If you're wondering I have a custom build insurance policy.

My most fun bike was a BMW R100 with a Saluki sidcar. It was a beast and the steering was never quite balanced as it could be so for those few years my upper body strength was about the best it's ever been. My passenger was mostly a rottweiler who loved every moment of it.

If you're after advice...
Get good tuition.
Be reserved with speed, especially in heavy traffic.
Be observant.
Learn your stopping distances.
Get some experience, like go on a weekend road trip somewhere rather than your usual fave roads or afternoon run.

Consider getting a city commuter class bike and then upgrading to something shinier next year. You've no idea how much it costs to replace sports bike plastics or chrome parts, and even the experienced can fek those by dropping it whilst parking on an uneven road Its also interesting that several people have gone the city commuter route into biking after chatting to me and then come back to me a couple of years later and thanked me because they really had no idea.

But most of all, keep the rubber side down

 

[FastNHard]

Not a rider myself but have some parts for sale. 05 Fat boy parts I believe. I would kill myself on two wheels.

 

[evolution]

Passed the school and can now just go get my license. Still leaning away from getting a bike. I found low speed maneuvers to be difficult. Countersteering still does not feel natural to me, although I did great in the swerve exercises and test. I would like to get more ride time in controlled conditions, preferably with instruction. The instructor was great, by the way.

Thinking on this post again.
1. Go get your license. Do it now while you're freshly trained.
Don't have to use it, don't have to buy a bike, but get the license. Keep your opportunities in life open.
2. That's okay & right. Low speed maneuvers are hard - the bike isn't helping you at low speed, even fighting you to an extent. One of the reasons your first bike should be a small, low weight bike. You learn the dynamics of all that's going on - gravity, G-forces, inexperience, your sense of balance, particularities of the given bike, .... you learn all this with experience. Sink or swim You also at some point learn that these rules which are constant - completely change with a spot of oil on the road, or that first sprinkle of rain, or a little patch of dirt/sand.
3. Counter steering needn't be natural - only familiar. Again experience.
Realize that riding in a straight line - your tire is a straight contact patch. Riding a curve - your tire is a curved contact patch. When you are turning you lean & your contact is now the edge or side of the tire which is a round surface. Only going completely straight is your tire a straight surface. As you get comfortable with the bikes/tires competence you will become comfortable leaning more or less to take advantage of the roundness / straightness of the tire's contact surface to turn your bike. You use the 'steering wheel' to turn the bike a little bit, but you use the shape of the tire to turn the bike a fair bit too. Once you get your head around that, things become more natural, feel more logical & comfortable.

When I was a young man with a sport bike I would always start out weaving the bike side to side "to warm up the tires". In reality I was awakening my awareness of the gravity/weight/pull of the bike, restting my sense of balance. I drove the car mostly, so I wanted/needed to reset myself to the bike behavior before mixing it up with traffic in town.

GO! Get your license. Practice. If it doesn't click walk away, but give it a chance & keep your options open.
Good Luck & be safe.

 

[Dave NoCal]

Thinking on this post again.
1. Go get your license. Do it now while you're freshly trained.
Don't have to use it, don't have to buy a bike, but get the license. Keep your opportunities in life open.
2. That's okay & right. Low speed maneuvers are hard - the bike isn't helping you at low speed, even fighting you to an extent. One of the reasons your first bike should be a small, low weight bike. You learn the dynamics of all that's going on - gravity, G-forces, inexperience, your sense of balance, particularities of the given bike, .... you learn all this with experience. Sink or swim You also at some point learn that these rules which are constant - completely change with a spot of oil on the road, or that first sprinkle of rain, or a little patch of dirt/sand.
3. Counter steering needn't be natural - only familiar. Again experience.
Realize that riding in a straight line - your tire is a straight contact patch. Riding a curve - your tire is a curved contact patch. When you are turning you lean & your contact is now the edge or side of the tire which is a round surface. Only going completely straight is your tire a straight surface. As you get comfortable with the bikes/tires competence you will become comfortable leaning more or less to take advantage of the roundness / straightness of the tire's contact surface to turn your bike. You use the 'steering wheel' to turn the bike a little bit, but you use the shape of the tire to turn the bike a fair bit too. Once you get your head around that, things become more natural, feel more logical & comfortable.

When I was a young man with a sport bike I would always start out weaving the bike side to side "to warm up the tires". In reality I was awakening my awareness of the gravity/weight/pull of the bike, restting my sense of balance. I drove the car mostly, so I wanted/needed to reset myself to the bike behavior before mixing it up with traffic in town.

GO! Get your license. Practice. If it doesn't click walk away, but give it a chance & keep your options open.
Good Luck & be safe.

I am going to go ahead and get my license. Thank you for the realistic encouragement.

 

[Ed69]

That's good to read @Dave NoCal , still have my license. One day I may replace my last ride with something a bit slower and less weight than this old horse: