[owlie]

Yep- I took my class Thursday evening. I posted up my thoughts here: https://www.bestbeginnermotorcycles.com/forum/forum/3776/experiences-experienced-rider-course

[owlie]

I know- it is wild. I would have preferred that it didn’t because a) I think that the test is a distraction to practicing the exercises and b) the test cut into time that could be used for instruction.

However, in the end, I would rather that riders who are unwilling to take the BRC for whatever reason have an opportunity to get some real instruction…

[owlie]

Thanks for all of the suggestions guys. My guess is that it is probably #3 on Eternal’s list. I say that because I remember that when I started looking for the exit, I was always looking over my shoulder.

Thanks for all the comments and suggestions guys. It is a beautiful clear day outside- I’m going for a ride. Eternal- I owe you some ride pics.

[owlie]

I would totally love to do something like this… Just not on a monster bike. I’m with eternal, give me something small and maneuvarable, and I’ll be happy to do figure 8s all day long….

[owlie]

Glad to hear that it is going well. The wobbly in the corners will get better with practice.

Good luck on the road test this afternoon!

Owlie

[owlie]

Congrats on the new bike! Post up some pictures so we can oohh and ahhh over it.

[owlie]

Sorry, sometimes my analogies only make sense to me.

I don’t think about most things that way, only my steering input (ie wether to push the bars or pull them). With my head and eyes, I look where I want to be, not where I’m going. My biggest struggle there is remembering that on turns where I want to be is at the exit to the turn, not 10′ in front of wherever I am now…

[owlie]

Thank you for the suggestions.

I’m going to have to think about your lane positioning suggestion (and probably ride it) because I’m still missing my Aha! moment. It is tickling at my mind with another thought/question that I have been having that is not yet fully formed – something that bothering me for big sweeper curves, but I’m not sure how. Playing around with what your suggestion might give me both.

That is a great suggestion for dealing with the push in curves- and I like how you think about it. Different than I do, but we each connect to different ideas.

Owlie

[owlie]

Okay, so here’s my thoughts on this on. I tend to pull rather than push. Eventually I figure this will even out to equal pressure on either side, but here’s how it evolved for me.

Basically starting with the MSF course, I had alot of trouble with the idea of “pushing the direction you want to go” to make the bike turn. I don’t know why- maybe because I haven’t ridden a bicycle in 15 years? I really struggled with getting the turns done during the class. Once I got my bike and started riding regularly, this still haunted me. The first month or so, I didn’t spend any time on any thing twisty even though there were a couple near my house. The very short distances that I would travel on the local twisty (about 1/2 a mile) were so slow that somehow it didn’t matter.

Then one day, I ended up on a twistier portion of Trunk Road with more traffic than I had anticipated and voila! I was suddenly riding beyond my comfort level- too twisty and too fast. And suddenly I couldn’t turn the bike. Something- let’s call it panic – clicked in my brain and I started pulling the bike AWAY from the centerline instead of pushing the bike into the turn. Since then I think about it as pulling the bike away from where I don’t want to be instead of pushing it to where it should be.

I realize that this isn’t the ideal way to think about it (yes, it is basically like using target fixation as a way to avoid whatever you are targeting on), but it works for me. I just continue to work on looking through the turn and figure that with experience I won’t need this neumonic.

[owlie]

Hello!

+1 to everyone who has posted above.

My thoughts- I’m a 5’2″ female. I looked at pretty much all of the cruisers available on the market last summer before I bought my first bike.

I passed on the V-Star 650s because they felt really heavy under me and the center of gravity seemed to high. (How do I know this? When I sat on the bikes with my feet flat on the floor, I shifted the bikes right and left under me to understand how the weight felt.) Frankly, more so than any other bike (Harley Sportster 883 and 1200 included), the V-Star just felt like a REALLY BIG bike.

I settled on a Suzuki S40. It is a single cylinder 650. Because it is a single cylinder, it is substantially lighter than any of the other 650s on the market. It also had a lower seat and a lower center of gravity than any of the other cruisers that I sat on.

You guys should both take the MSF class and sit on a few bikes before you decide what to buy. Also consider that, unlike with cars, you can’t simply move the seat back and adjust the mirrors to make the bike comfortable for either of you to drive.

Last, but certainly not least, thank you for your service.

[owlie]

I still haven’t ridden at night. I’m not sure that I’ll even be riding at night when I take the ERC Thursday evening. Twilight perhaps, but not night- unless it is overcast.

Honestly though, in my part of the world, we’re coming into a time of year where if you want to ride in the dark, you have to be out past 11pm. So I’m not much of a yardstick…

[owlie]

Will do. I have the end of this week off to play, and the green just started popping out around us last week. It is gorgeous up here.

Of course, the weekend before last, we had flurries…

[owlie]

One comment on your question regarding how big a bike to get- it looks like you are in the UK. I think that there are restrictions on how big a bike you can ride when you first start out. You should check into that before you set your heart on something.

[owlie]

In response to your comment about buying a scooter to find out if you’ll fall before you buy a bike…

Your better option would be to take an MSF class (rider education) and get some experience riding a motorcycle to see if it is for you.

As for the 250 vs 500 argument- What kind of riding do you plan to be doing? How long and at what speed? If you aren’t going 70mph or spending 2-3 hours at a time on the bike, it really is a moot point.

[owlie]

15st = 210lb

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