Any Bikers Out There?

[EuroTroll]

I'm a novice biker. Bought me a bike last autumn, a Kawasaki chopper. It's a beautiful machine and if I could, I would have children with it.

I'm not entirely comfortable with it yet though. Any tips from you more experienced guys on what to learn, what to read?

Any tips, moral stories, cool experiences -- welcome. :burnout:

[markabilly]

look for people turning in front of you

In the good old days, when riding the street, I always looked for the eyes of people who might turning left or pulling out onto the roadway in front of me.

If their eyes met my eyes, they usually did not turn in front of me to be a danger. But if they did not, then too often, they did turn in front of me such that I was lucky not to crash into them.

Now the reason I say good old days, it is because in the sixties and seventies, windshields were made with lead safety glass, and it was very easy to see the driver's face and eyes.

Cycles are much harder to see and to judge their speed for many drivers, esp those without extrememly good depth perception. It is easy to judge the speed of an oncoming car, as it is wide and the more quickly it gets wider and wider, then the easier it is to know the speed and distance.

Unfortunately, there is no such advantage with motorcycles and in the absence of great depth perception, it is very difficult for the car driver to make a correct call on speed and distance.
Riders always curse drivers for "not watching out!!", but the problem is far more complicated than mere inattention and even with great depth perception, picking out a motorcycle from the background clutter is still tough. You are a thin little vertical line for the driver, and with the right background clutter of other objects, can be very difficult to see. Add in the issue of depth percetion for many drivers even with out the background clutter......


Now with the current car windshields, the eyes are far more difficult to see because of the material used along with the reflective coating or metal in the glass, make the glass more reflective.

One can try to watch the front tires to detect movment, but if you are waiting until then, you have already lost valuable reaction time....

Used to street ride all the time in the sixties and the seventies, but about fifteen years ago, mostly rode the track and track days stuff, as it just got to be too danagerous on the street.

I was in Seca for World superbike races, when Troy Blayliss and some mates came in. Of course the question was as to if he rode a Ducati as his street bike, and his response was that don't tell Ducati this, but he did not have a street license or ride on the street, because it was far far safer to be going 180 on a ractrack that 50 on the street........streets are not dangerous it is the cars that are dangerous. He is right.

Also when the road is real icy and slippery, always wear gloves. It will keep your hands warm... :fasttalk:

[racefanfromnj]

my suggestion is to not just assume a car will do something to kill you but expect it. When com,ing to an intersection with a vehicle sitting there look at the front tires, watch to see if they turn easy to see .good luck out there and keep yoyur head up at all times

[Malbec]

In addition to the above (all good advice) I'd say don't get near moving cars at all.

Filter to the front of the queue at red lights and accelerate fast enough to leave the cars behind. That way you'll be on your own with only your riding and the road to worry about.

Don't ride with your mates if you're a beginner, its all too easy to be pulled out of your comfort zone because your mate who has been riding for decades and rides a GSXR wants you to keep up.

Go on a training course. I don't know where you live but often the police run bike safety courses for very little. They can teach you valuable tips as well as where you stand with the law. I'll never forget the sight of a police officer jumping up and down in full gear shouting at me that unless I learned to break the speed limit when appropriate I'd end up dying at the hands of a car.

Don't get overconfident, there's something called the three month itch where beginners think they've learnt most tricks and start pushing too hard, I did. Believe me, it does itch a lot when you get things wrong....

And finally and most importantly ride as much as you can and enjoy it, nothing makes you into a better rider like experience.

[Hazell B]

Any tips .....?

Yeah. Never, ever try and wind it on whilst still on the 'off' ramp of an Isle of Man ferry.

Skittling down a large metal ramp with a few hundred Germans and Brits wincing/laughing/pointing at you isn't fun. Nor is it a good way to start your holiday.

On the plus side, you'll have a heaps of people come and talk to you over the TT week .... and say they wouldn't do anything that stupid themselves :p :

[markabilly]

Don't get overconfident, there's something called the three month itch where beginners think they've learnt most tricks and start pushing too hard, I did. Believe me, it does itch a lot when you get things wrong....

And finally and most importantly ride as much as you can and enjoy it, nothing makes you into a better rider like experience.
For sure.....but it only itches after you wake up, that is if you are lucky enough to wake up.....

There is the one to six month window, where everyone think they got all that is ever necassary to be great......and then you get to lick the pavment.....with your tongue, face and other body parts. For many, that is the last time they ride a bike. Either cause they no longer want to or because they can not.... :(

I love bike riding, would love to do it everyday....think bike racing is far more challenging than car racing, miss the old harley, beemer and yamee :p

[Easy Drifter]

'Filtering' to the front at a red light is illegal in Ont.
A little story that happened near here.
One dude who thought he was pretty good took on an older looking rider on a twisty road.
He got dusted despite the fact he had a faster bike.
When all was said and done and they stopped and the other rider removed her helmet he was looking at a grey haired lady!
It was Michelle Duff. Michelle was probably Canada's best ever bike racer back in the late 50's and 60's and the winner of World Championship races, the only Cdn. to ever do so.
Michelle was known then as Mike Duff.

[EuroTroll]

Thanks guys! Lots of good advice there. I've actually already had my first fall. Nothing serious, but unpleasant enough to make me much, much more careful now.

[anthonyvop]

2 things.

1st. A Kawasaki cannot be a Chopper. Only a Harley-Davidson can be a chopper. I am not a fan of H-D. I had one and it was the biggest P.O.S. I ever owned but if you tell a real biker that you have a Kawasaki "Chopper" he will explain to you very sternly the error of your ways.

2nd. I don't care what the law say....A car always have the right of way over any motorcycle. Traffic laws are secondary to the Laws a Physics.
A 3000 Lb car will always win over a 500 Lb motorbike. Trust me. I know the hard way.

[EuroTroll]

1st. A Kawasaki cannot be a Chopper. Only a Harley-Davidson can be a chopper. I am not a fan of H-D. I had one and it was the biggest P.O.S. I ever owned but if you tell a real biker that you have a Kawasaki "Chopper" he will explain to you very sternly the error of your ways.

Yeah, I knew I was a little loose with the term. A "cruiser" then.

[Malbec]

2nd. I don't care what the law say....A car always have the right of way over any motorcycle. Traffic laws are secondary to the Laws a Physics.
A 3000 Lb car will always win over a 500 Lb motorbike. Trust me. I know the hard way.

Its always best to assume that drivers are a) blind, b) incompetent and c) ignorant of the law/driving regs and often a combination of the three. That way you can't be disappointed....

[Daniel]

2 things.

1st. A Kawasaki cannot be a Chopper. Only a Harley-Davidson can be a chopper. I am not a fan of H-D. I had one and it was the biggest P.O.S. I ever owned but if you tell a real biker that you have a Kawasaki "Chopper" he will explain to you very sternly the error of your ways.

2nd. I don't care what the law say....A car always have the right of way over any motorcycle. Traffic laws are secondary to the Laws a Physics.
A 3000 Lb car will always win over a 500 Lb motorbike. Trust me. I know the hard way.

There seems to be this stupid attitude among some people (not just bikers I must say!) that if the're allowed by law to do something that they should do it. Seriously you fools, the legality of something hardly matters when they're scooping your remains up off the blacktop.

Mark, J4mie and I went up the Hardknott pass (the steepest road in Britain) on Saturday afternoon and there were a group of cyclists who seemed to think the middle of the road was a great place to be when riding. Sure legally they can do it but ffs if I hit them and knock them off it aint going to be pretty :mark:

[Sonic]

I used to ride but got fed up with nearly killing myself!

[airshifter]

I would heed the advice of the others in regards to cars and trucks... always assume they don't see you. Defensive riding keeps you alive, and is much more important than when you are in a like sized vehicle.

Take a GOOD training course if you are new to bikes. A good course will teach you theshold braking, low and high speed handling, obstacles, avoidance moves, etc. Many people often find they never did those things until forced. We had to take a course to get a military sticker and I was amazed how many riders almost never used the front brake, much less had an idea of how much faster it would stop them.

Buy quality safety gear and use it. I've seen people get messed up at low speeds without decent gear, yet have seen people walk away from much worse accidents when wearing protective gear.

And most of all, respect that a bike is not a car, and you can get in over your head much faster than in a car. As you gain confidence explore the limits of your bike on a track or other safe and supervised place. If you ride with others don't let experienced riders force you to push your limits, especially on the street.

[Storm]

I ride a bike everyday too (its based on the old British single), but I wish I had the opportunity to lay my hands on some of the beauties that you guys (Americans/Brits) have easy access too (cheap!)

Either they are not sold here or if they are then they cost much more than most big cars.

[harsha]

I do ride bikes , just the only difference is that you guys ride them for pleasure and I ride them out of necessity....

[Malbec]

there were a group of cyclists who seemed to think the middle of the road was a great place to be when riding. Sure legally they can do it but ffs if I hit them and knock them off it aint going to be pretty :mark:

They were practising a basic principle of defensive riding, dominate your lane. The idea is that if they ride in the middle they control the pace of the traffic behind and force them to treat the bikes (whether powered or not) with respect, overtaking them as they would a car.

Riding on the side of the road puts them in the gutter where grip is worse and its more likely that some driver will simply barge past them without giving them much space, knocking them off the road or worse. Its one of the first things urban bikers get taught, I didn't realise cyclists have started to do the same.

[fandango]

I ride a bike every day in and around Barcelona, and not just to and from one place, as I work in a lot of different parts of the city.

My rules to keep myself upright:

-Don't be the craziest idiot on two wheels. You don't have to be Mr Goody-two-shoes all the time, but for example Barcelona has a lot of motorbikes, and there's always someone who's flying along, winning the race. Don't be that person. If you find everyone else seems to be crawling along and you'd feel more comfortable leaving them in the dust you're probably overdoing things. Back off.

- Stay within your limits. If you're on a wonderful winding road, taking things as fast as you dare in the curves, don't try to break world records, enjoy that you are doing YOUR best.

- Be aware of where cars' blind spots are, and of whether you're in one or not.

- Watch for paint in the wet, and for manhole covers, and your possibly-slippery shoes if you stop on a slope.

- Keep your tyre pressures correct. Better running, better stopping, and better feel for when something's not right.

- In the Summer, park in the shade :)