Total Motorcycle Community Forums

follow wrote:But who's to say how skilled one is. We all make mistakes even in a panick situation a skilled rider may or may not make an error/mistake.

I really dont know too many, actually none....people that have a license that say professional MC rider.

I confess I make some, even write some down...I too can be a dork..(hehe)

I think that self-evaluation is the hardest thing to do. In part, I think that's why learning at the MSF is slightly better than learning from a friend. Your friend/family isn't exactly a disinterested party. So they might say you are doing good when actually, you are more just ok and maybe a little bit bad, but good enough to get by on the streets.

I'd like to think I'm a good rider after over 5K miles in less than a year. But I know I still slow way the hell down for some of the off-ramps. I also find it hard to gauge my speed in the on/off ramps as I can't see my speedo while turning because the bar is in the way.

I do know on some double laned ramps in NYC on the way up to the GWB, I have cars pass me.

But sometimes I think that is because these car drivers are punch drunk on how stable their cars are as they throw their cars in to the turn...

Or I could still just suck.
RhadamYgg

This is also why I take the advance class every few years.
I have been riding for over 40+ years put on over 20k miles a year, but I can always learn something new.

Ok RhadamYgg, I put a couple of pics in just for you, The ST is on the right, what do you think?

follow wrote:This is also why I take the advance class every few years.
I have been riding for over 40+ years put on over 20k miles a year, but I can always learn something new.

Ok RhadamYgg, I put a couple of pics in just for you, The ST is on the right, what do you think?

It looks great. Probably the kind of ride I'd like to get. What I really end up on.... At this point who knows. So you ride both types of bike. A large cruiser/tourer and a large sport-tourer. Do you commute on either or both? Which do you find better for commuting?

RhadamYgg

Prefer the cruiser...everyone sees me, use to have a white helmet and they always thought I was a LEO...hehe. I can park it easier too, I use the backrest for leverage.
Honda is mostly for LDR's.
I am only 5'3" and can control both pretty good, actually on the cruiser I can make her crawl real slow, but not on ST, too top heavy, however the ST is awesome on these twistie mountain roads.
Two completly different bikes.

follow wrote:Prefer the cruiser...everyone sees me, use to have a white helmet and they always thought I was a LEO...hehe. I can park it easier too, I use the backrest for leverage.
Honda is mostly for LDR's.
I am only 5'3" and can control both pretty good, actually on the cruiser I can make her crawl real slow, but not on ST, too top heavy, however the ST is awesome on these twistie mountain roads.
Two completly different bikes.

Hmmm, I do a lot of slow speed riding stuck in traffic. Something to think about anyway, I suppose. Sometimes it is so bad I turned off the bike and just duck walked it on the approach to the GWB.

BTW, can you flat foot the ST1300?

RhadamYgg

RhadamYgg wrote:

follow wrote:Prefer the cruiser...everyone sees me, use to have a white helmet and they always thought I was a LEO...hehe. I can park it easier too, I use the backrest for leverage.
Honda is mostly for LDR's.
I am only 5'3" and can control both pretty good, actually on the cruiser I can make her crawl real slow, but not on ST, too top heavy, however the ST is awesome on these twistie mountain roads.
Two completly different bikes.

Hmmm, I do a lot of slow speed riding stuck in traffic. Something to think about anyway, I suppose. Sometimes it is so bad I turned off the bike and just duck walked it on the approach to the GWB.

BTW, can you flat foot the ST1300?

RhadamYgg

That should teach you to use the GWB

I just discovered something I can do on my bike. I can pop it into 1st gear and the bike pulls itself once the brakes are off and clutch engaged. This made slow speed traffic easier to bear, and all this time I kept pulling in the clutch then release and repeat.

Time after time I see ABS made in the last decade out brake even professional riders on the street on clean pavement.

That's enough for me to get ABS on my next street bike if it's an option.

Also the Institute for Highway Safety in the US recently released some numbers showing ABS-equipped bikes being in fewer accidents than their non-ABS equivalents.

JC Viper wrote:

RhadamYgg wrote:

follow wrote:Prefer the cruiser...everyone sees me, use to have a white helmet and they always thought I was a LEO...hehe. I can park it easier too, I use the backrest for leverage.
Honda is mostly for LDR's.
I am only 5'3" and can control both pretty good, actually on the cruiser I can make her crawl real slow, but not on ST, too top heavy, however the ST is awesome on these twistie mountain roads.
Two completly different bikes.

Hmmm, I do a lot of slow speed riding stuck in traffic. Something to think about anyway, I suppose. Sometimes it is so bad I turned off the bike and just duck walked it on the approach to the GWB.

BTW, can you flat foot the ST1300?

RhadamYgg

That should teach you to use the GWB

I just discovered something I can do on my bike. I can pop it into 1st gear and the bike pulls itself once the brakes are off and clutch engaged. This made slow speed traffic easier to bear, and all this time I kept pulling in the clutch then release and repeat.

Hahaha... Yeah, got no choice about the GWB... I could ride an extra 14 or 20 miles and take the Tappan Zee. But the Tap is much worse to ride across than the GWB.

I'll have to try that - popping it in to first with no clutch. I know that works because I did it accidentally at the MSF course... ahem - mostly because I'm a doofus. But when I did it at the MSF course, I'd have the brake on at the same time and I'd stall out. Jerk, stop, look around embarrassed to see if anyone noticed... Oh yeah, the instructor is standing right next to me...

RhadamYgg

Skier wrote:Time after time I see ABS made in the last decade out brake even professional riders on the street on clean pavement.

That's enough for me to get ABS on my next street bike if it's an option.

Also the Institute for Highway Safety in the US recently released some numbers showing ABS-equipped bikes being in fewer accidents than their non-ABS equivalents.

That's awesome information. It probably means my lead bike for my next purchase will be the SV650SF ABS. I think it is the lowest cost bike (aside from the naked version) that I can get ABS on.

If you can find that IHS study that would be a great thing to post and maybe sticky for the new bikers section.

RhadamYgg

IHS report: http://www.iihs.org/sr/pdfs/sr4309.pdf

MSN article about the report.