[eon]

Congratulations on making such big improvements, but even more so for the obvious fun you are having doing so. But it now you will need your own slicks + tire warmers. Hopefully these things are not too expensive.

[eon]

No, the mount came with the camera (Contour HD). The mount is just stuck onto the helmet but I’ve never heard of anyone losing one.

You definitely need to get a camera before heading down that road. That’s on my ever increasing list of places to go. For me I might need 5 or 6 days to loop over Whistler and then head east before dropping back down into Montana and then back to Seattle. Hope to manage that trip next year.

[eon]

That version is by Duran Duran. It also has Grandmaster Melle singing on it and he did the original back in the 80’s. I only stumbled across this version last week and it immediately took me back as that song was a big hit in the UK back then.

[eon]

Thanks. There is a guy very prominent in the local meetup groups here and he has videoed just about every road in WA and OR. He has been my inspiration as he makes the best roads in the area look deadly boring! He does just what you say, just a forward pointing camera just showing minute after minute of corners. So I try to do the opposite of what he does, vary the camera angle, make a basic attempt to match the pace to the music etc. I have some friends who make movies also and they are better at capturing the people aspect than I am. So I try to have more ‘people’ moments in mine but that’s something I need to work more on.

[eon]

I’m afraid the company went bust in June 2009 so you might be waiting awhile. Shame though as it got rave reviews by the Top Gear guys back in 2003 who are normally tooling around in Ferrari’s and Lamborghini’s.

[eon]

LOL…did you hit your head in that fall and become a semi-sqid

I agree with Gary, weaving in and out of traffic is a high risk game and does not have a lot to do with skill. I have to confess I occasionally have to restrain myself from agressive overtakes as in the UK they are normal and car drivers will let you merge back in. Here I think I would get run off the road at the first attempt.

[eon]

If you ride it at a leisurely pace there is no reason why you would not enjoy yourself. I ride gravel roads all the time and it’s great fun getting the back tire to slide out. Admittedly I have it relatively easy on my 3 wheel scooter but my cruiser friends tag along and non of them have fallen off yet (though they do bitch at me). If nothing else you will get a little experience riding gravel. When I first started out I would freak out at the first sign of gravel mid corner after all the horror stories I have read. Getting that experience under your belt is a great help I think in knowing what to expect when you come across it unexpectedly.

[eon]

Sorry to hear about your accident. Hopefully you are okay after having a chance to rest up for a bit. I know ATGATT is a mantra around here but you might just have taken it to new levels

[eon]

Are you speaking from experience? (not trying to be funny, have no idea if you are a man or woman).
I can’t see how they would be at all comfortable or practical on the bike. Think about having that sole on your pegs all the time. And they look like they have next to no protection abilities other than a little padding. Fashion/style certainly has its place in motorcycle gear but there are limits (at least for me, who was never very fashion conscious).

[eon]

I would love to try it but several things stop me.
1. I would need to buy a bike specifically for this purpose.
2. I would need to buy a truck and a trailer to get anywhere I could use it.

Not insignificant hurdles. I see a dual sport some time in my future but that’s not exactly a trails bike either.

[eon]

Have to confess there were some farm houses and straight sections on the southern end so it wasn’t all like I showed in the video, but still lots of fun though. I was on 26 for a brief stretch and it felt like an interstate in comparison, didn’t like it much. But then it was north on 103, 202 and 47 into Clatskanie, all of which were excellent roads. Then it was back roads in WA all the way to Olympia before slabbing back to Seattle. I think I did about 240 miles of country roads that day.

I had planned on doing a tour of Oregon in a couple of weeks but have had to cancel. Definitely on my to-do list though. Are you in Portland? The area around the Dalles looks amazing. Another place on my ever expanding list of places to go.

[eon]

But I thought you might appreciate this
https://bestbeginnermotorcycles.com/forum/forum/3836/honest-hd-commercial

[eon]

Well, I half suspect the course name was chosen based on the acronym. The acronym for their cornering technique is SMART and the website used to talk about becoming a SMART ASS but they have removed that now. Twas a bit cheesy.

Looked up the details of this course again. It was designed by the founder of the training company (Puget Sound Safety) and this guy has an impressive resume. He is a certified Total Control Advanced Riding Clinic Lead Instructor along with a lot of other credentials (including many offroad ones). My impression is Total Control is focused on how to take the perfect corner and this one I believe takes into account situations you face out on the streets. The techniques will be the same (I would think) but presumably more attention is paid to leaving yourself safety margins, dangers you face on the street etc.

Whatever it is, I am sure I am going to learn plenty from it and cannot wait.

[eon]

I’ve heard nothing but good things about that class and it sounds like you learned a lot from it. I’m taking a cornering class in a couple of weeks time but it is a different one. The school offered the Lee Parks class and this other one called Advanced Street Skills. I’m not exactly sure what the differences are since they both focus on cornering but I went for ASS. I will be sure to post up my thoughts on it.

[eon]

I was never much of a mountain biker and I never raced but I have flown down plenty of mountain roads and I was always able to leave my friends behind. Call it stupidity or lack of fear but I’m convinced it was that lack of fear that kept me safe. My slower friends would crash when they freaked out on a sharp bend or oncoming traffic. I’m not convinced there was much in the way of technique that translates over to motorcycling (at least on the road). One of the hardest things for me was to roll on the throttle mid-corner when you already think you are going too fast. There is nothing in cycling that compares to that.

briderdt is probably the most experienced cyclist on this board and he has mentioned in the past he felt it helped him a lot. Can’t say I understood his reasons but something about riding in a peloton helped him make the transition.

[Author]

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