[gitchy42]

I hope you have a good time in the training! All last week I was a bit jittery, counting the days to the weekend…hehe

[gitchy42]

Didn’t have to do a u-turn actually, but we had to make a sharp right in a box without putting down a foot or going over the lines, got through it fine. While we were practicing I had a little trouble, but most of that was because I was following someone that was going too slow into the turn, and too slow in the turn and too slow out and too slow through the weave….I kept having to worry about running her over, even when I backed off a lot I managed to catch up. Actually I had the most trouble with the quick stop while we were practicing I kept goosing the throttle, and freaked out a little and released the brake. Happened two or three times before I learned that it doesn’t matter what the throttle does when the clutch is in.

[owlie]

No U-turn? That’s a shame. It really is a useful skill to have. I’d suggest picking up the “Ride Like a Pro” DVD and practicing it in a parking lot with your other new skills. I promise that you won’t regret it.

[gitchy42]

We did do some ‘traffic’ practice though. Changing lanes, sharp turns from a stop, and negotiating ‘traffic’ (other people in the class). I’ll check out that DVD. Thanks again.

[gitchy42]

My first time on a quad was a little honda that had a centrifugal clutch, so I only had to worry about shifting. After I learned a clutch in a car/truck, when I hopped on my friends’ blasters and banshee’s it was easy for me. Also, a guy at work has a midget race car that has a zuke 1-litre and running gear, with the hand-clutch located on the shifter, so I got some more practice easing out the clutch to get that thing moving.

For learning in a car, I’ve found that using a car that needs to have the clutch replaced makes it a little easier, or one that has a HUGE friction zone. The clutch will usually slip enough that it is forgiving when you dump it out too fast. The problem is that you don’t really learn to ease it out, but it gets you started.

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