The Blog of Blues

[blues2cruise]

I never knew becoming a motorcyclist would mean so many trips to the motorcycle shop. It’s disheartening.

I thought that buying a new out of the showroom bike, would give me trouble free biking for a few years. But is has not proven to be true.

First there was the squeaking in the rear end which took three trips to the dealer to get them to fix it. Then the front end started squeaking. In I went again.

Then the signal bulbs and running lights started burning out. The lenses were letting in water and not draining. That caused corrosion in there.

The rear fender was getting dimpled…..more and more all the time. Yamaha replaced it.

Then a heat shield broke off and had to be replaced.

Then I had to replace the exhaust gasket.

Then after I had the big expensive service done which included the steering bearing, a couple of the bolts were coming loose.

I just had new tires installed on Saturday. On Sunday when I rode it….oh so carefully because of the slippery coating on the tires, I noticed the bike was hard to handle. I though it was just me……or the crummy roads I was on.
I took my bike to work on Monday morning and was once again it was hard to handle. Well, it turned out there was no air left. I called the dealer to arrange to try to get the bike there after work. I used a bicycle foot pump to pump up the tire so that I could ride it to the dealer. It had lost a couple of pounds by the time I got there.

It turned out to be a defective valve. Now, it would seem to me that should have been tested before the bike was let go to me. So, they replace the valve core and sent me on my way.

Today I noticed that the paint is scratched on the front fender. I know I didn’t make that scratch…and I know it wasn’t there before.

And now something is rubbing in the front end….

It is very discouraging to say the least. I think my bike must have been built on a Monday.
I saw a Kawasaki for sale at the Yamaha dealer. He didn’t want to sell it to me because he figured I would be better off with a Yamaha….Yamaha is supposedly known for their fit and finish.
So far I haven’t seen evidence of that. If I can swing a new bike next year, it will probably be a Kawasaki.

[Scoutmedic]

Very disheartening. Almost sounds like you got a lemon. A couple friends of mine have the same bike but haven't experienced the problems you have.

[blues2cruise]

Very disheartening. Almost sounds like you got a lemon. A couple friends of mine have the same bike but haven't experienced the problems you have.

The engine and the transmission have been good.

[blues2cruise]

Motorcycle coaching March 31 and April 3, 2007

I mentioned some time ago that my future plans were to become a motorcycle instructor. I am in the process of making it happen. Although I can’t take the course or get licensed until next February, I am working in the field.

At the motorcycle show in January I met the owner of a motorcycle school. After we chatted for a few minutes, he asked me to give him a call after the bike show was over.
A few weeks later I called him. He has become sort of a mentor….for want of a better word…..
I spent a couple of parking lot sessions with him learning the ropes. He then hired me on to do some casual “lot supervising” and “coaching”.
I attended his theory class and maintenance class. I wanted to make sure I was on the same page as he when it came to dispensing information.

He had a woman who was so nervous he was ready to tell her to give it up. She seemed like a hopeless case. The owner asked me to work with her.
We had a one on one three hour session in the parking lot a week ago and then another 2 hour session last Tuesday evening.
During the first session I managed to get her to stop riding like Fred Flintstone drives. Lol

She went home feeling a bit more positive and the owner was pleasantly surprised at her progress.
Tuesday evening we worked together for about an hour and a half before the owner dropped by. I had managed to get this woman slaloming through the cones, doing u-turns, sudden braking, slow speed and fast speed riding and shifting up and down. When the owner saw what we had accomplished, he asked me if I thought she could pass her skills test. I said she was darn close to it.

So, he set up the cones in the official format for the test. He let her go through the course to practice it for a few minutes and told her he would test her. She only made 2 errors.
arrives, I should be good and ready for the train the trainer course that ICBC requires potential instructors to take. Once I get licensed I will be officially allowed to instruct. Right now
She passed her skills test and is now able to take the next step. Traffic school….

She was so happy to have overcome her trepidation about winding up the throttle. The owner was happy to see that she had come so far and was happy with me for getting her there. He told me, “She would never have done this without you.”
That made me feel good. There will more opportunities as the season gets under swing.

Until next February, I am “coaching”.

[blues2cruise]

Precision Riding April 1, 2007

Another thing I thought sounded interesting when I was at the bike show, was Precision riding. Although this group is touring bikes, they let me put my name and email down anyway.

I received an email from them 2 weeks ago. They invited me to come out and watch, learn and practice.

I went there after the group ride. I watched for a while and then one of them came over and asked if I would like to give it a go.

He first wanted to be sure I could handle my bike, so he asked me to do some u-turns on the parking stall lines. 3 parking stalls. Then I had to narrow it down to 2-1/2 parking stalls.
He then invited me to the lot where they were practicing. They kept it simple because a couple of us were new. We walked the course and then after a few instructions, we followed the leader.

I must have done ok, because they asked me to come back. As much as I would like to, I don’t have the time right now to attend practices nor do I have the extra money to buy the radio I would need. They gave me their business cards before I left.

I later sent a message declining for now. I put their cards in my bike file though. Maybe next season I will have time. This year, I am working towards being an instructor and getting prepared for my trip.

I need a benefactor. lol

[NorthernPete]

Sorry to hear about the bike problems Blues, I know the feeling. just know that it isnt just Yamaha, I had some "issues" with the front brakes on my Kawi, that took 3 trips to the dealer to fix.

[Shorts]

Blues, awesome to hear about the opportunities! Way to go on helping that lady get to riding better

[Scoutmedic]

You rock! Keep up the great work!

[blues2cruise]

Thanks, everyone.

I'm glad it's not just my bike or my dealer.

As for the m/c coaching. This is probably the first time in my life that I have made a concsious decision to forge out a "career" choice. Most of my life has been just falling into a job so to speak.

With my professional drving experience with the buses and the last several years of also doing driver training, I found that I liked doing the training and am quite good at it. At least that is the feedback that I have received.

So, with the need for licensed motorcycle instructors every year, I decided to move toward that. Not that I don't like the job I have, but I am so sick and tired of the constant construction. I want to wind down the full time job into being a spare there so the bus driving part will only be part time.

[jstark47]

Blues- very interesting to read about your coaching experience. From reading your blog, I think you'll be very good at instructing and coaching. You understand and will teach perseverence in a way that will inspire everyone, but especially folks who have to work at learning motorcycling. (I'm one of those people with two left feet that has to work hard to acquire any skill- there are days I still don't believe I actually learned to ride these two-wheel contraptions!)