[eon]

Interesting. My bike has had a large windscreen on it from day one. The one day I took it off I felt I could barely control it in fast corners due to the fact I was hanging onto the handlebars to support myself. Being forced to sit straight up certainly does not help when you are getting wind blast though. I put the windshield back on when I got home as I preferred to be smooth in the corners and I would just live with the heat.

[eternal05]

If you haven’t discovered earplugs already, get yourself a big-ol bag of them and put some in every time you ride. You’ll notice a) really strong wind doesn’t bother you anymore, b) you don’t get hearing fatigue after a long ride, c) you feel much calmer while riding, and therefore will tend to ride better.

Don’t worry, you’ll still be able to hear everything you need to hear, including sirens, other cars, horns, and of course, your engine. This is standard practice among motorcyclists, so don’t think I’m giving you some weird voodoo magic tips here

[owlie]

Agreed.

And if you don’t believe us. Go for a ride with them in (best if you are going 30+). Take them out after ten or fifteen minutes and ride some more. Once you’ve taken them out, you will notice pretty clearly what eternal is talking about.

[samh]

Pinlock works great.

UPS delivered a new visor and pinlock insert tonight. I figured out how to put them together, and got them on my helmet. Took the bike out for a ride, absolutely no fogging. You can see the helmet fog around the insert, but the main view stays perfectly clear. I wouldn’t have believed it works this well.

On another note I tried out a short stint on the expressway tonight. I literally almost passed out from the anxiety. I don’t think I was quite ready for that, but oh well, I survived. Only thing to do is do it again

SH

[JtownJJA]

The freeway is a little scary for the first several times, but it does get easier the more you do it. However, don’t force yourself to do anything that you don’t feel ready for. I ride about 7 miles or so of freeway on the way to work, but I still have never ridden on the Columbus Outer Belt (route 270). Too many lanes and too many crazy drivers!

[samh]

Just experienced the much-talked-about cabbie making a left turn in front of a motorcycle. In all fairness, I was going about 20mph over the speed limit, so maybe he just misjudged how much room he had. Anyway, I had plenty of space to get out of the way, but I definitely said “whoa” in my helmet.

Same ride I also went into a turn too hot and panicked. Luckily I got out of it just fine, but I grabbed a handful of brakes right before the apex. Stupid I know, I should have just held on. I guess the key in this situation is dumping speed _before_ the turn, and then being really smooth through it. I feel like I want to go to a track day or something just to practice my cornering in a controlled environment.

Anyway, I’m definitely telling myself to ease up… I’ve got about 150 miles on the bike, so I guess I am really in a zone of too-much-confidence + extreme-inexperience, which is a pretty awful combination.

Buuuuut.. I am having FUN!

SH

[JackTrade]

…until you experience another classic, the distracted driver on the cell phone who doesn’t see you there as he/she decides to changes lanes. It’s more of a slow-moving horror (“Hey, what are you doing? Don’t you see me?! Hey! Hey! – there’s a vehicle here!!”) than the gut punch of the sudden left-turner.

[Author]

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