Does anyone have advice for a newbie?

[mrstopot]

Hello everyone. I found this site earlier and I am so glad that I did. There is just so much info here.
Here's a little about me. I'm new to riding. The last time I rode was over 10 years ago! And I only did it a couple of times because I was too scared after I kept tipping the bike over. But I had always been around them. Today was my first day on my bike. I just bought a V Star 650. I haven't taken a course yet so my uncle was showing me what to do. I was scared to death today. First time I drove down my block 10mph and turned around. Did great until I had to stop. Forgot to pull the clutch and the brake at the same time. Bike fell over. Thank God I was already stopped. I thought that I was going to pee my pants I was shaking so bad. My uncle made me pick the bike up myself. I got it up after giving it everything that I had, and went back down the street again. After the first fall over I learned that lesson. Pull the clutch and brake together. So far today I put 20 miles on it just puttering down the street at 10mph. going back and forth. I haven't shifted gears yet into second because I'm scared that it will jerk on me if I don't let the clutch out slow enough. Tomorrow I'm going to try and go 20 mph and shift. Today I was just trying to get comfortable with the bike. And learning how to take off and stop.

Is it normal to be this nervous your first time on a bike?

Also can anyone tell me how not to stall out the bike everytime I stop. I hold in the clutch all of the way and apply the brake come to a stop and then it just dies. What am I doing wrong?

If anyone has any advice or words of wisdom for me I'd appreciate it.

[Brackstone]

Take an MSF Course to help yourself get acclimated to riding before you learn anymore bad habits.

90% of people involved in motorcycle accidents are taught by friends or family members. Only 10% of people are professionally trained.

[Skier]

Sounds like the clutch may not be properly adjusted.

Before you get all hot and bothered to play with your bike some more, get professional training: you've had a long hiatus and it won't hurt to get the basics down again.

[Grey Thumper]

Take an MSF Course to help yourself get acclimated to riding before you learn anymore bad habits.

+1000

Have you signed up for a course? Aside from the reasons already mentioned, it's also a heck of a lot less nerve-wracking to dump someone else's bike instead of your own

[shane-o]

Hello everyone. I found this site earlier and I am so glad that I did. There is just so much info here.
Here's a little about me. I'm new to riding. The last time I rode was over 10 years ago! And I only did it a couple of times because I was too scared after I kept tipping the bike over. But I had always been around them. Today was my first day on my bike. I just bought a V Star 650. I haven't taken a course yet so my uncle was showing me what to do. I was scared to death today. First time I drove down my block 10mph and turned around. Did great until I had to stop. Forgot to pull the clutch and the brake at the same time. Bike fell over. Thank God I was already stopped. I thought that I was going to pee my pants I was shaking so bad. My uncle made me pick the bike up myself. I got it up after giving it everything that I had, and went back down the street again. After the first fall over I learned that lesson. Pull the clutch and brake together. So far today I put 20 miles on it just puttering down the street at 10mph. going back and forth. I haven't shifted gears yet into second because I'm scared that it will jerk on me if I don't let the clutch out slow enough. Tomorrow I'm going to try and go 20 mph and shift. Today I was just trying to get comfortable with the bike. And learning how to take off and stop.

Is it normal to be this nervous your first time on a bike?

Also can anyone tell me how not to stall out the bike everytime I stop. I hold in the clutch all of the way and apply the brake come to a stop and then it just dies. What am I doing wrong?

If anyone has any advice or words of wisdom for me I'd appreciate it.

yep i have some wisdom;

host up a pick of you, with a vstar 650 including the damage from it being dropped, and a copy of todays news paper sitting on its seat, then Ill share all the wisdom under the australian sun with you.

cause i think this post is BS !!!!!!

[camthepyro]

Take an MSF Course to help yourself get acclimated to riding before you learn anymore bad habits.

90% of people involved in motorcycle accidents are taught by friends or family members. Only 10% of people are professionally trained.

Not to be a jerk, because I completely agree with you that an MSF course is the best thing in the world, but those statistics are very misleading.

If 90% of all people involved in crashes are not trained, that doesn't mean that untrained people are 9 times more likely to get in an accident. You have to consider the people who DON'T get in accidents and are not.

If 90% of the riders on the street are untrained, than it would make sense that 90% of people involved in crashes are untrained. That would mean you have an equal chance whether you're trained or not. I don't know what the percentages of trained vs untrained are, but I'm sure it would make a huge difference in the context of the statistic you quoted.

Again, I'm not trying to come of like a jerk, and I'm not trying to nit pick, I just have a pet peeve about misleading statistics.

So, mrstopot: Take the MSF course!

It is invaluable training. I couldn't tell you how many times it's saved my life. Plus, you get to drop their bikes instead of yours when you're learning!

[Brackstone]

Not to be a jerk, because I completely agree with you that an MSF course is the best thing in the world, but those statistics are very misleading.

You should familiarize yourself with the Hurt Report.

Quoted from the report:
24. The motorcycle riders involved in accidents are essentially without training; 92% were self-taught or learned from family or friends. Motorcycle rider training experience reduces accident involvement and is related to reduced injuries in the event of accidents.

[Gentle Giant]

Take the course. In addition to them teaching you the basics about your bike, most of them have their own bikes to learn on. They are generally 250s so will be much smaller, lighter, manueverable, and easy to keep upright.

[jstark47]

1. Another vote for the MSF course. Take it.

2. Buy some engine guards / crash bars for that VStar. For example: http://www.scootworks.com/partsyamcrashbar.htm

[Lion_Lady]

Sounds like the clutch may not be properly adjusted...

She just said she last rode 10 years ago and only a couple of times. It could be that she just isn't familiar with using the clutch.

Also can anyone tell me how not to stall out the bike everytime I stop. I hold in the clutch all of the way and apply the brake come to a stop and then it just dies. What am I doing wrong?

Do you continue to hold the clutch lever in after you have stopped?

So long as the bike is in gear, you have to hold the clutch lever in if you aren't moving, or it will stall.

Please, do yourself a favor and sign up for the MSF course. Your uncle can only teach what he knows and he may not know the safest way for you to learn these important basic motorcycling skills. Would you let him teach you to fly an airplane (assuming he were a pilot)? My guess is probably not, because flying is very dangerous.
P