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My MSF course
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August 29, 2009 at 7:03 pm #3359stuParticipant
well today was first day on the range (last nice was all booklet questions). We were out the back of the Lee Hi truckstop here in Lexington, they have a permanent class section out the back, big space, so that was good we were not dodging 18wheelers and loggers.
After being told to stand next to a bike everyone scrambled (12ppl in my class), I tried to hunt down something not so tall (I’m 5’5ish I think). Ended up with a shiny red Suzuki GN125 of unknown vintage. There was some nighthawk 250’s, and I think DR200 dualsports which looked way to tall for me.
I think I stalled it about 10 times but no biggie. It was practically nigh on impossible to find neutral on this beast
I did all day1 exercises very well, some of the group stuff was tough, being told to speed it up when the guy in front of you is going like a snail and your being asked to speed it up into 3rd down to 2nd up to 3rd etc…
Apparently mountain biking has given me a bad habit, in MTB’ing I have my brakes covered at all times, so of course when I’m on the motorcycle I had my front brake covered at all times and was continually told to not do so…
anyway, need to study my book for the written test tomorrow.
August 29, 2009 at 8:03 pm #22008rbParticipantI am also a MTB’r and I had the same issue with the brake. I would also only use two fingers so the instructors gave me a hard time for that.
Now, everything I have read since taking the MSF course (Sport Riding Techniques and Proficient Motorcycling) says you should always cover the brake with 2 fingers so I wouldn’t worry about it too much. Just make sure you do it the way they teach it during the test. Once you have your license then do it whichever way works best for you.
Personally I always cover the brake with two fingers in busy traffic. It cuts your reaction time down quite a bit as you don’t have to reach for the brake in an emergency stop situation.
August 29, 2009 at 9:43 pm #22010SpoolParticipantThey don’t want you covering the front brake on the first day of class because if you panic you’re going to grab the front brake, and that’s one of the best ways to dump a bike going slow, grabbing the front brake when the wheel is not perfectly straight.
August 29, 2009 at 10:47 pm #22013briderdtParticipantI had a tendency to cover the front brake, and also use 2 or 3 fingers. What my instructors told me was that, while they want you to NOT cover the brake and use all 4 fingers when braking in the class, in the REAL world, especially with a bike like my SV650s, covering the brake and only using 2 fingers is actually a good idea.
August 29, 2009 at 11:03 pm #22017owlieParticipantThat sounds like the same bike that I had for my class. The first day I had trouble finding Neutral also, but the second day, it came naturally. Also, U-turns on that bike were a cinch. Our instructors called the bike the “cheater bike” because you could just power through them…
Glad to hear you are having a great time!
August 30, 2009 at 6:36 am #22034SafetyFirstParticipantEveryone has such a hard time with finding neutral in BRC. Don’t sweat it. Second tme around in BRC, I just would stop, use the engine kill switch and leave it in gear, when lining up. You can actually find neutral easier with the engine killed. Better to have the engine off so the RiderCoach can talk, and fumble with finding neutral while being quiet. Or you could just leave it in gear, but expect the RiderCoach to give you a mean look when they start your bike for the demo.
I know what you mean about the slow pokes. That’s kinda the bad thing with BRC. I think some folks haven’t quite gotten as far ahead as others, but too bad, time to move on in the lessons.
August 30, 2009 at 3:09 pm #22041briderdtParticipantIN my BRC, if I stopped the bike in first, I could NOT get it into neutral. Even if I held the clutch in and used ALL my weight to pull it out of first, it wouldn’t budge. While riding it was fine, just not stopped. Fortunately the instructors were understanding, especially after they saw me standing on the peg and leaning back as hard as I could to get it to budge…
August 30, 2009 at 7:20 pm #22043stuParticipantWell I passed, I’m now fully licensed. Aced the written (which was as easy as it could get) and scored 9 points on my riding test. I did the box double u turn no probs all morning, come exam I hit line grrr… got a point for juuuust going over my stoppage distance for my speed, and then they said I went to slow into one of the corners.. and that was it.
overall it was amazingly basic but I had never ridden a bike before taking this course, so kinda chuffed. turned out a lot easier than I expected.
August 31, 2009 at 3:46 am #22061owlieParticipantElwood, don’t give him ideas.
Stu, from my somewhat jaded perspective, don’t start with a bigger bike than you are comfortable with. The BRC was easy for me on a 125, but the move straight to a 650 was perhaps questionable.
Congrats and good luck!
August 31, 2009 at 4:20 am #22066JtownJJAParticipantGreat News, Stu! Always good to hear when someone passes the class. Congratulations!! Does that mean it’s time to enter the “shopping” phase?
August 31, 2009 at 6:44 am #22070SafetyFirstParticipantSounds like you got nickled and dimed on the same stuff I did, minus the too slow in to the corner one (I blasted through it like a road-runner.)
Time for a bike? Just wait till you get on the first bike of your own. Compared to the bikes in BRC, you’re going to love it.
August 31, 2009 at 1:10 pm #22078stuParticipantThanks for the comments folks. The wife has given the green flag to go buy which is great.
I wont be jumping on a 650 I really want the kawai 250SF but not sure about the seat height, I wanna go find a dealer and sit on one… But I REALLY like the Suz TU250X, makes me think of those awesome 60’s british bikes that I liked.September 4, 2009 at 3:55 am #22191owlieParticipantThey have a TU250X sitting at the Suzuki dealership where I got my S40. It is a good looking bike. I didn’t sit on it, but I should have.
September 4, 2009 at 7:14 pm #22195JackTradeParticipantThough I’m not in the market for one, they make me happy that the Japanese manufacturers are finally realizing the appeal of retro styled bikes with modern internals. The Euros caught onto this a few years back, and one could certainly argue Harley’s never done retro, as you have to have new designs at some point in order to look back…
Somewhat related to that, I wish Honda would bring back the Nighthawks with engines above 250ccs. I love the look of the current Nighthawk…futuristic body with oldschool spoked wheels…love to see one in bigger frame with a 650.
September 6, 2009 at 4:51 am #22210owlieParticipantHarley’s got the V-rod, which is one sexy looking bike.
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