Total Motorcycle Community Forums

If you can't afford a safety course, pick up a copy of Proficient Motorcycling(?). I've heard it recommended on here before.

i understand everyone recommends the MSF, and i do plan on taking it. Here in hawaii, we have an 6-8week waiting period for the MSF, and like i'm sure most of you would, i'm learning to ride in the mean time rather then letting the bike sit for 6-8 weeks. i'm meeting with an experienced rider today who's going to help me with some of my issues

Sounds like a good plan to met with an exp. rider. What's already been recommended is what I'd say too. Stay in a big parking lot and practice all the techniques, one by one before combining them with traffic and busy streets.

First start off with clutch control. Practice starting and stopping. Do it over and over and over and over etc etc. What this does is makes a new muscle memory in your brain and hands so that the movement becomes natural and normal, rather than feeling inconsistent.

Then move onto other exercises, like weaves, S curves, loops, boxes. One of th exercises I practice quite a bit is the turning-from-a-stop. Since the parking lot is empty and there are painted lines, I just stop in a slot as if it were an intersection, then make a right or left into the isle. You can do that at various angles too. This will help you smooth out the combination of starting and steering at the same time.


I think the hardest thing to do but the most effective thing was keeping my head up and looking ahead to where I wanted to go. Don't look 5' in front of you. Look way up ahead where you are trying to end up. This will keep your body and equilibrium focused on its expected target rather than two steps in front. If you look two steps in front, that is where you will go.

Next thing is trusting the tires. New riders just don't have the trust and experience in their bikes and leaning is an unnatural feeling at first. That will just take riding and practice.

I don't want to admit it but looking back I did slow starts too, and I can say that they're much better and safer than stalling all the time. Just get used to releasing the clutch and getting going faster, think ahead of time that you're going to start, and after practice you won't have to think about it; it just happens.

many people have problems leaning a bike over in both directions, speaking for myself I feel less secure leaning my bike over on the right side, but I have no problem scraping my footpegs on the left side, maybe its the bike I ride that it feels heavier on the right, but to be an experienced rider you must learn and not be afraid to lean that baby over, bikes and the tires are designed to be leaned over, to new riders I would suggest find a friend thats an experienced rider and try to keep up with him and you will have less fear watching someone else doing it

Bad advice.

Dangerous in fact.

MotoF150 wrote: to new riders I would suggest find a friend thats an experienced rider and try to keep up with him and you will have less fear watching someone else doing it

Pongo wrote:Bad advice.

Dangerous in fact.

MotoF150 wrote: to new riders I would suggest find a friend thats an experienced rider and try to keep up with him and you will have less fear watching someone else doing it

yeah, even i would say that's a bad idea.

ride your own pace.

repitition is the best way to improve.

and you can try to increase your corner entry speed little by little. be careful of blind turns though. even if you knew that corner by heart, you still can't see if there's hazards on it.

VermilionX wrote: yeah, even i would say that's a bad idea.

and you can try to increase your corner entry speed little by little. be careful of blind turns though. even if you knew that corner by heart, you still can't see if there's hazards on it.

What an admission, but followed by good advice. Doesn't matter how often you've been there, if you can't see it ride like it's the first time.

1. Keep your clutch in the friction zone.

2. Give it a little throttle to keep your RPM's up, this helps the bike want to stand up in the lean.

3. Lightly drag the rear brake. This helps a lot.

4. Turn your head and look where you want to go.

Works every time.

If you look down that's where you'll end up.