This is why so many people on this forum support starting off with a smaller motorcycle.Rogero wrote:Couple of follow-on questions...
I got my first ever bike a couple of weeks ago. I was riding 5-10 miles every day to build up some comfort level. Then after a week tried to do a u-turn on a country road. Ended up on my butt again with some scrapes on my bike. Arhggh!!!!
Question 1: Obviously one week in was too early for slow speeding. When would I be better trying it? Or maybe now is the right time, but I should start with bigger circles in a large parking lot or something?
Question 2: this was the second time where I got going too slowly and tipped over. I have a Harley Softail (aka heavy am-fm). Anyone have any tips on how not to go down once a tip over starts? In both cases I got the bike stopped. In the first, the shock of falling sort of froze me and I just went down. The second time I felt it coming and tried to not go over but the bike is so heavy I couldn't hold it. Then I got my arm down to try to prevent the bike from hitting. Right - holding 800 lbs falling with my arms. Wailed my arm on the concrete instead... Thought I might have broken it. Obviously the wrong strategy! But what's the right one?
I won't speak for others, but for me, it was more important to be proficient at slow speed maneuvers than most things. Any chump can get on a bike and go straight. But your slow speed riding is very important.
Once a tip starts, depending on your seating position, you can use your legs and hips to prevent the fall. Don't try to use your arms. You can hurt all kinds of things (as you found out) like that, including your back.
There was one instance in which I was making a u-turn on a local road a few days after I got my bike. I screwed up and was real close to dropping it, but instead I gave it a little more gas and whaddya know, she stayed up! That was my biggest problem in the BRC, actually, making tight u-turns. I never gave it enough throttle. So if you feel yourself tipping over a big, give it a wee bit more gas, but keep that rear brake covered so you can tighten up the turn a bit.
Definitely spend a lot of time in the parking lot. I got my bike in January. I weight about 120lbs, 130 on a good day. I am admittedly scrawny, no insulation at all. After work, I would ride down to the local Target (shifts ended around 2am, so it was terribly cold) and just spend time weaving in and out of the parking spaces, practicing emergency stops, etc. Not only is it good to practice those skills, it's good time to "bond" with your bike. You get a much better feel for how your motorcycle behaves when you dedicate that sort of time to slow speed riding.