Newbie Here, With Several Questions :D

Message

PioneerUrban · Wed May 02, 2007 4:45 am

Thanks for all the terrific advice and replies.

I don't think it's the bike "wobbling", I think it's me. I'm terrified that if I go faster than 30, I'm going to dump it or miss a turn, etc..... Has anyone else ever felt this way?

I'm sure that practice will help and I decided to go back and re-take the MSF course.

alrick · #12 Unread post by **alrick** » Wed May 02, 2007 4:58 am

Best things to do is just relax those stiff arms there. Let the bike ride the road and stop trying to force it to do otherwise.
I am not sure you are doing this, but it worked for me!

CrioGeniC · Wed May 02, 2007 5:15 am

PioneerUrban wrote:Thanks for all the terrific advice and replies.

I don't think it's the bike "wobbling", I think it's me. I'm terrified that if I go faster than 30, I'm going to dump it or miss a turn, etc..... Has anyone else ever felt this way?

I'm sure that practice will help and I decided to go back and re-take the MSF course.

ATGATT
All The Gear, All The Time

We all ride with a certain level of fear and uncertainty, but if you stay prepared for as much as possible out there, if and when the dump does happen, if you are geared properly, it will make the hurt a whole lot less. I have only been riding a short time, around a year and have only ridden my bike around the block once wearing a Tshirt, Levis, Tennis Shoes and a helmet. I felt naked as a jay bird out there. Never again. Helmet, gloves, leather jacket and over the ankle riding boots. The more protected you feel, the more comfortable you will be on the bike.
Keep on riding and enjoy it and learn something from it every time out. You will be clicking off those highway miles in no time.

Crio

btw, thats a sharp set of twins you have in the pix.

Nibblet99 · Wed May 02, 2007 5:46 am

alrick wrote:Best things to do is just relax those stiff arms there. Let the bike ride the road and stop trying to force it to do otherwise.
I am not sure you are doing this, but it worked for me!

+1, my money is on the death grip causing the problems

Relax your arms and hands, they only really need to be guiding the bars/throttle. The bike is not so overpowered that you need to hold on to prevent falling off.

It sounds to me like you just need to practice and get comfortable at 20 then 30 then 40, etc. In this case, a larger bike simply won't feel more stable, when its you inducing the wobble, not wind. From my own experiences, 125cc bikes are great to learn on, it should hit 60mph no problem at all, so just practise till you're comfortable at 60, then start trying to use it for going to work, etc. when you're happy, start finding some twisty roads, and build some skills there too with the cornering (you have to remember to be confident in the bike, and just relax into looking through the turn, and it'll do it just fine.

Pretty soon, you'll be using 90% of the bikes power almost all the time, and thats when it'll start teaching you to take corners smoothly, picking better and better lines through them, planning in advance (thats something people starting on a big bike, simply don't learn as quickly - if at all)

When you've sucked every last bit of skill from the bike, then move up to a larger one if you wish

PatArmyRet · Wed May 02, 2007 11:56 am

Great replies and advice, and I have to ditto what the other new riders mentioned, I was nervous right out of MSF. First I rode around my townhome complex, getting used to the friction zone, practicing starting, stopping...early on weekend mornings when there wasn't any traffic. From there it was off to a residential neighborhood (next day). Same thing, starting and stopping on up hills, down hills, 25 mph zones. Then off on 40 mph roads...but only when comfortable at my earlier stage.

Then traffic, and the morning commute, not looking at the speedo, and simply moving with traffic. Still slightly on edge, but that helps me stay focused.

This weekend I'll do some highway riding. Once again, when there isn't a lot of traffic.

Take the MSF again? Great idea, imo. Whatever it takes to gain skills and build confidence.

Dragonhawk (I think) has a page that lists similar steps of progression, which I have used as a guide. http://www.wyndfeather.com/learn/motorcycle.htm

Flting Duck · Wed May 02, 2007 1:07 pm

PioneerUrban wrote:Thanks for all the terrific advice and replies.

I don't think it's the bike "wobbling", I think it's me. I'm terrified that if I go faster than 30, I'm going to dump it or miss a turn, etc..... Has anyone else ever felt this way?

I'm sure that practice will help and I decided to go back and re-take the MSF course.

I"m teaching my brother how to ride and he was having the same problems. It's a mental barrier you have to break when you think the bike is going to fall over but you really need to accelerate through turns. Not goosing it, but just slowly rolling on a bit of throttle. It will eliminate the wobble as the slight acceleration stabilizes the bike.

I suspect that you may also be trying to actively steer the bike through the turn - that's what my brother was trying to do. Try to relax and just look where you want to go without worrying about your steering input too much.

And LOOK UP and through the end of the turn. If you're staring down at the ground or the front wheel then you're not going to progress.

It took my brother six or seven street sessions to get there even after he was doing quite well in the prioir psrking lot sessions. It just takes some people a little more time - and it's pretty natural to be scared when you start riding.

Stick with it and practice, it'll come.

(And do check your tire pressure as someone else recommended.)

Dragonhawk · Wed May 02, 2007 5:30 pm

PatArmyRet wrote: Dragonhawk (I think) has a page that lists similar steps of progression, which I have used as a guide. http://www.wyndfeather.com/learn/motorcycle.htm

Yep. That I do.

My list was:

1 - Ride a parking lot.
2 - Ride sidestreets.
3 - Ride mainstreets at night when there was no traffic.
4 - Ride mainstreets during the day.
5 - Ride the highway at night when there was no traffic.
6 - Ride the highway during the day.
7 - Ride canyon roads in the mountains.

I spent about 1 or 2 days on each of those steps before I felt comfortable with moving on to the next one.

Just remember, it's not a race. It's not a contest. You have nothing to prove to anyone. Just because I did each step in 1 or 2 days doesn't mean anyone else should take that much time. If you have to ride parking lots for 2 weeks instead of 2 days before you are comfortable, then ride parking lots for 2 weeks. If you feel comfortable after 2 hours, move to the next step after 2 hours.

Everyone learns at different rates. Just do what feels best and don't worry about how long it takes.

koji52 · #18 Unread post by **koji52** » Thu May 03, 2007 4:04 am

yea dude...im still nervous about riding...but not as much as i was when i started...i woke up a few mornings at 530 when i was learning...had my roommate ride the bike (he's been riding for a while now) and I just practiced riding around campus with no traffic...there's plenty of curves and turns, stop signs and traffic lights, and pot holes in the road so I got a good amount of practice with moving the bike around...if you have a school around you, i'd try that out.