[bobolinx]

Hi All,
Finally got a bike after looking for a couple of months.
Why the ex500? I prefer a standard for better control and this bike is close, and cheap on craigslist, around $2k for a 2004 low mileage, plenty of them. I looked in the dealers and liked a bigger bike, and a smaller suzuki, but dealers are costly for a first bike, so I went with a used, and took it to my mechanic for a once over. I would have gotten a 250 ninja but, the knee angle is too uncomfortable for my screwed up knee. Cruisers are out for me, even though quite comfortable, I just prefer to sit higher over the bike, but was very tempted by a few!
So… I’ve been able to ride it for three days now. Around my neighborhood mostly with the kids watching me go from 1st-2nd-stop and again..then U-turn at the end of the road and back again. At first I flat footed the turns, but captcrashes videos helped me to get those down. Then.. around the block some…then practice starting up on a hill…then…turning onto a “real road”…quickly up the 1/4 mile, then back into a safe neighborhood. I don’t turn if anyone is approaching from either direction even on rights. This evening, while trying to do a right turn, venturing farther, but still back roads, I screwed up and dropped it. Two people stopped to offer help, which was nice, but I was concentrating so hard on getting the bike up, embarassed, and feeling foolish, that my response wasn’t so great. Fortunately, except the folded in mirror, nothing was hurt except my confidence. I circled that block two more times for better practice. My goal is to get enough control to get to the gas station! I did take the MSF, but it was over a year ago so am a bit rusty.
I only know one other rider and he is 45 min. away and not too available so you all have been a great source of information and inspiration, thanks!

[madjak30]

I would ride to the nearest parking lot and practice right and left turns…and doing turns from a stop…those are the hardest things that you will have to do on a regular basis…also practice the panic stops, you just never know when a kid will run out in front of you or a dog for that matter…

I dropped my bike last night doing a u-turn on a gravel road…practice, practice, practice…I’ve been riding/commuting for about two months now, and was feeling pretty comfortable on the bike…so even when you think you are getting good…keep practicing until you can do those things in your sleep…

Nice choice in bike, excellent starter. I bought a Suzuki GS500, which is similar…maybe a little heavier bike though…

Anyway, remember to have fun…even when you drop your toy…lol

Later.

[eon]

LOL…let’s hope you get enough control to get to that gas station before you run out of gas Congrats on the new bike and for taking it easy and practicing the simple but difficult things.

One word of warning for all relative newbies. Be very careful when you think you are getting good, that’s when overconfidence creeps in and mistakes can be made. I know I went through various phases where I thought I was getting the hang of things and started to override my skill limit. I think around the year mark is the most dangerous time for this but it can happen just about any time.

[ShamRock229]

Well at least you went with used over new right? lol

You seem to be approaching things from the right frame of mind. Just practice, practice, practice as mentioned above and +1 on the parking lot.

[Ursula Alusru]

I’m really new at this too and have dropped mine twice (once while backing up at night somewhere new after a really long ride, and once when comings to a stop at a stop sing on a hill on a gravel road), my good friend, who has waaaaaay more experience than I do, tells me that I just need to break my record. The idea is to realize that you’re going to do dumb stuff because you’re learning, but if you can put more days between the last time you did something dumb then you can actually see yourself improve as a rider.

[bobolinx]

Well, I have to thank you all for the advice to stick with the parking lot. It’s a bit small and boring, but…still great practice! I am comfortable enough to ride the 1/2 mile over to the school, wait for the baseball games to finish and start my circling. I found this site http://www.msgroup.org/default.aspx with great advice and a million tips that need to be checked out on a rainy day. I’m still having trouble starting and turning to the right with a reasonable radius. This is how the bike was dropped again! Poor thing, I think I’m the third newbie owner.
Here’s a question for you all. When starting on a hill, is your rear brake enough to hold the bike in place or are you needing to rely on 1st or the front bike as well. When I try to hold the bike from rolling with only the rear brake, it doesn’t seem to be holding. Is this normal?

[TrialsRider]

Either the front or back brake should hold the bike solid on the hills you are riding.

Here is a example of what 1 finger braking with hydraulic disk brakes can accomplish on a really steep hill and it’s almost too easy to lock up the back wheel with very little force.

…you really should get some time on a lightweight dirt bike before you stretch a muscle or something.

[eon]

I went to film me doing tight turns for my scooter forum. Been awhile since I’ve done this and I was very rusty. Just couldn’t get it together. At first I thought I was conscious cause the camera was running. When I went out of shot to “warm up” I was fine. In shot I was hopeless. In hindsight I realize I was looking at the lines (in the box here) to see how tight I was turning and thereby messing up. I eventually got there but was far from my usual form. I later started showing off and did it while standing up. Managed a few good turns and then promptly fell on my ass. Bike and me sprawled over over the concrete, a few more scratches to add to the collection now. Thought I would at least have an interesting video to show folks. Got home to find I had been recording on a full memory card so not a single frame to show for the entire evening. Doh!!!

[gitchy42]

As already said, your rear brake should be strong enough to hold the bike on a hill. There is a fairly steep hill in the parking lot at work, and I managed to hold the bike with the rear brake and kill the engine. If you have the coordination, it may be easier to start on a hill if you hold the bike on the front brake, using 1 or 2 fingers which allows you to have both feet down and still control the throttle.

As for right turns, what they taught us in the training that I did was to put your right foot down, left foot up, turn the handlebars full lock to the right, lean a little to the right and when ready look where you want to go, roll on the throttle and away you go. Everyone in the class was able to make right and left hand turns from a stop in half a lane using this technique.

Good luck and happy riding!

[bobolinx]

Thanks for the advice gitchy, I’ve decided to back away from the right turns for a while and just focus on leaning and u-turns due to a bit of skittishness. My neighbor, with a huge Harley, said that he has trouble doing anything slow and that I should just ride more and it will come. However, I’m listening to you all about the parking lot. It makes much more sense! My turns still stink, but am getting the feel of the correct throttle and clutch more. Oh… I checked my rear brake and I had bent it so that it caught on the metal guard. No wonder!

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