- This topic has 14 replies, 9 voices, and was last updated 15 years, 2 months ago by Dagger.
To ride or not to ride?
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December 24, 2008 at 3:25 pm #2425openroadParticipant
Hi,
Ok a quick introduction of myself:
I am 22 years old, a UK resident and contemplating whether to take my motorcycle test and you guessed it, get a motorcycle.
I like many others love motorcycles to death but with the high proportion of bike deaths every year I am some what put off getting a motorcycle. Along with people telling me of the dangers of motorcycling I am stuck in a frustrating decision.
The problem is that even riding safe still doesn’t protect you from the thousands of idiot drivers on the road, not to mention the amount of traffic as well. On the lighter side of things I know someone who has ridden his whole life and now hes 54.
I would like to hear anyones’ opinion.
Thanks.
December 24, 2008 at 3:56 pm #15411Sangria7Participant“All men die…but not every man lives…” Nuff Said!
Well you can mitigate statistics toward your favor.
For example in the US, 90% of all motorcycle crashes involve people who have not taken the Motorcycle Safety Course.
Take the course and you just made your odds better.
50% of all fatalities occur due to lack of helmet – wear one and now youve reduce your odds statistically of dying.
Fatalities occur 4 times more on a sportsbike than a cruiser….
So there are things you can do to help your odds but nothing is sure fire….
December 25, 2008 at 12:13 am #15415MunchParticipant*****************************************************************************************
Common sense exists!!! Problem is -if the ones around me are setting the bar
……. I am a genius!
**************************************************************December 26, 2008 at 2:52 pm #15427BuddParticipantI can only say that I ride, and that I haven’t died from doing so.
“I am the best there is at what I do, and what I do ain’t nice.”-Wolverine
December 27, 2008 at 6:46 am #15443BuddParticipantjinxed myself, more later.
“I am the best there is at what I do, and what I do ain’t nice.”-Wolverine
January 1, 2009 at 9:57 pm #15476a beginnerParticipantStart with a light weight bike, under 280 pounds, even smaller is even better. For the first 300 hours spend half that time doing drills and exercises in a parking lot and the other half on quiet streets going under 30 mph. Keep practicing and avoid traffic until you are certain you can maneuver your bike better than your car in a panic situation.
January 2, 2009 at 1:10 am #15483MunchParticipantAssuming you know how to handle your car.
Though parking lot exercises are good basic skill builders…. in traffic and at higher rates of speed those drills are very minimized. Try that figure 8 on a freeway to dodge a newly flipped over banana truck and you end up at best sliding into a mess. Or lets just throw in highway speeds and a soccer mom not paying attention…. Those cones in the parking lot are alot easier to predict then the insane actions of another breathing person.
Parking lot skills are great for basic and very necessary skills but I would not use them to judge your “road worthiness” by them. Under 30 mph… great! Now you know you can avoid grandma in the mall parking lot just as her medication starts to wear off. 55 mph back roads and a sudden raccoon fest on a blind curve…. nope… no weave gonna save a critter there.
300 hours is a bit extreme. Use the time to get comfortable with your bike…. comfort comes at your pace… not what someone or some manuals think. Some learn more easily… some just have a blond inside dieing to get out.
Most of my time is spent on a super slab. When I get the chance I try to find stretches that are less traveled and try to figure out the most likely time when they are even more lightly used. Get used to how “sluggish” your bike responds on “weaves” at normal travel speeds by lane changes. NOTE: don’t do this to scare the guy behind ya…could incite road rage. At 30 mph you can duck and weave in a relatively small space…. highway speeds…. not even near that space. Braking is different in time to.
Definitely recommend parking lot drills, heck you gotta learn to crawl before you can walk. Endlessly doing them and focusing just on that… your riding is gonna stay limited to corner store runs. Parking lots are great for basics, for “road worthiness” you are gonna have to hit the road.
As far as you car skills go…. not even relative. The physics, feel, reaction are all very very different.January 3, 2009 at 7:37 am #15511SantaCruzRiderParticipantYou’re smart to be cautious and to go into this with your eyes wide open. Truth is, motorcycling is not the safest mode of travel. The best stats I’ve seen show that motorcycle fatalities occur at a rate of 4.8 times the rate of car fatalities relative to the number of registered vehicles. I’d be willing to wager that the average car is driven more miles per year than the average motorcyle, so the death rate per mile ridden is probably even worse than 4.8.
So does that mean that riding isn’t worth the risK? That’s a personal decision that it sounds like you’re already wieghing.
Look at this way, everyone who gets married (self included) is banking that they can beat the odds of divorce. Doesn’t mean that marriage isn’t worth it, just that you should start slow and wear a helmet (that goes for MC and dating ).January 4, 2009 at 8:49 am #15521barymartinParticipantIt’s been great reading so many thoughtful comments on this forum and I’m sure there are at least a couple of experienced riders out there who will help with a few basic questions. I’m thinking about buying my first bike and need advice about bike selection and purchase.
First, it might help to know that I passed the rider safety course (over a year ago) and am a serious bicycle rider – mostly road riding – so I have some feel for being on two wheels. Although I’ve got a dedicated bicycle for every need (road, x country, commuting…) I can afford only one motorcycle, so it’s got to be an all-rounder. I plan to use it around Los Angeles, on the freeways and for light touring on the interstates. In addition, I want a practical bike I can use panniers on, and one that is inexpensive to buy and operate.
That’s a lot to ask of any one bike, I know, but maybe you can give me a shortlist of choices. I’ve seen a lot of talk about the Ninjas on this forum and elsewhere – and I like the idea of riding a tame sport bike – but I’m not sure I’ll feel secure on a bike with a 31” seat height (I’m 5’7” with a 30” inseam). What about the Vulcan or Honda Aero? Are cruisers not as good a choice for beginners?
Finally, I know it makes good financial sense to buy used, but I’m not experienced enough to know if a used bike has been properly broken in and treated properly or not. Do you think it might make more sense for a new rider (with no friends who ride) to buy from a reputable dealer?
Many thanks to all of you two-wheelers out there; the world would be a much better place if more people traveled on fewer wheels.
January 4, 2009 at 5:51 pm #15522MunchParticipantFirst…. I wish I knew what a pannier was…….
Buying from a dealer sounds like a good option for you. If you do not know what to look for or are uncomfortable in your judgment and do not have someone that you trust to walk you through a dealer would be a best option. Sometimes you will find bikes there that still have warranties, or even the dealer may offer one in house. It will also give you the chance to look it over and ask lots and lots and I say again as to drill it in…. ask lots of questions.
As far as cruisers being a first bike, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. I started on a Vulcan 500 and have since moved up to the 900 classic LT…quite a few of us on here started on cruisers. Actually in some instances cruisers are better as they are meant for cruising and not so much performance—in the way of speed and flash. Cruisers typically have a lower center of gravity then sport bikes but not always the case. Also the power distribution is alot different.
Oh just looked up pannier…..lol… I call it a saddle bag…as long as Google got it right. Those you can also find for almost any bike both in “soft” and “hard” versions. For sport or cruiser.
Go out to your dealer… ask to see the used bike…sit on some. Find whats comfortable to you. Me personally I sat on a few and even took the time to do a very slight lean from one side to the other, not so much in knowing you may drop it right there in house, but enough to allow yourself an idea of how heavy it will be and how balanced it is.
Browse through some of Ben’s reviews and see which ones sound great to you. It’s a good starting point. All in all the best bike is going to be the one YOU feel comfortable and safe on.January 5, 2009 at 3:42 am #15543megaspazParticipantIt’s later, so what happened?
January 5, 2009 at 4:52 am #15546SantaCruzRiderParticipantI second Munch’s advice to sit on lots of bikes. I think it’s valuable to get a feel for where each style of bike puts you and see which feels the most natural and comfortable.
To their credit, cruisers typically have such advantages as: low center of gravity, low seat height, large power bands (especially with v-twins) that help give mellower and less-peaky acceleration. Another big advantage is that most have a more raked fork and frame geometry that helps make for relatively short and controlled stopping distances (ie, front-brake panic stops are typically more easily controlled on a cruiser than on a sport bike).
On the other hand, standard bikes (which I personally believe is a category that includes the Ninja 250 and 500) also have their advantages. These include: relatively light bikes, often very reliable (typically with liquid cooling and other features that add to longevity), very maneuverable, lots of features/conveniences and among the most versatile.
Different types of bikes have certain small advantages, but personally, I think that most are far out-weighed by your own personal preference for riding position.
Along those lines, I love the look and value of cruisers, but I am personally turned off by the ergos of most. I’ve ridden them, but those that have the foot-forward ergos always feel like I’m riding a Lazy-Boy Recliner. This is just a personal preference and not at all a value judgement on the road-worthiness, worth or general desireability of cruisers. In fact, the last time I bought a bike, I lusted over a V-Star, Marauder and Vulcan, but ultimately, they just didn’t fit like a glove and I had to pass.
So instead, I’ve been drawn to (and owned) more of the standard type bikes. These include the Harley Sportster (with standard controls), dual-sports, and some larger Ninja-based bikes.
Given your riding background, I would be surprised if you didn’t have a similar attraction to standard-type bikes.
On the subject of new vs. used, I’ve gone both routes. Personally, I’d advise going the used route, but I’ve been lucky. My current bike is 15 yrs old and I bought it for less than 20% of it’s original price. I’ve yet to spend any real money on it.
Either way, don’t be afraid to follow your heart in terms of which type of bike feels right and whether new or used fits your needs.
To put it this way, I have a young friend who got interested in riding and one day we went to a local used bike warehouse. We looked a bunch of bikes, and then he said: “It probably sounds silly, but when I think about riding, I think that anything other than a Harley would be a compromise.”
So who was I to argue: If he was dreaming Harley (or dirt bike or Ninja), he should try one on and give it a whirl.
Hope that helps — have fun.
DanJanuary 7, 2009 at 6:05 pm #15566DaggerParticipantOne other thing to consider is that most motorcycle accidents occur because of rider error.. ie. taking a turn too wide or too fast.. So as much as we bitch about idiot cagers.. On the whole they are pretty easy to avoid if you’re doing your job and paying attention and always leaving yourself an escape lane.. Not to say it doesn’t happen.. But the odds are more likely that if you crash it’ll be because of something you did.. Not because of a cager..
That being said.. You’ll find many opions on what kind of bike you should get.. The only true advise that I’ve found is get out there and sit on as many bikes as you can and find what feels right for you..
Dagger
January 21, 2009 at 12:49 am #15867Sangria7ParticipantTo add on to Daggers comments…most rider errors occur on making those simply L – shape turns for some reason.
And more so most accidents happen at intersections…..
January 29, 2009 at 7:38 pm #16109DaggerParticipantThe main reason most riders crash making a 90degree turn is they go into them too fast and end up going wide.. Which either ends them with clipping a curb or going into oncoming traffic..
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