Returning Riders
Posted: Wed May 24, 2006 3:09 am
I suppose "New Riders" is as good a place as any for this post.
I'm a newly returned rider. After about a twelve year hiatus, I've come back to the world of bikes. I purchased my new (to me) bike on Monday, picked it up and rode about 150km on Tuesday, and am headed back out for a longer ride today (Wednesday).
I bought a 1985 Yamaha XJ750 Maxim X. For those of you that don't know the bike, it's a fairly run-of-the-mill 80's Japanese cruiser with a I-4 DOHC 5-valve engine. The suspension is a wee bit stiffer (and the brakes beefed up a bit as well), but other than those three differences, it's a lot like one the smaller Shadows, Viragos, or Marauders.
I know, that's not a bike for a first time rider, but I learned to ride a bike before I could drive a car. It's also not my first street bike.
My Impressions:
#1. Bike clothing has come a long way in the past 12 years. Flip-up full-face helmets are common now. Jeans with special abrasion-resistant patches. Gore-tex. Armour built into something other than a one-piece racing suit. This is great stuff!
#2. Skills need to be refreshed, but they do come back. When I started my ride yesterday, I felt like rank novice. I spent an hour tooling around the suburbs at 50kph before I felt comfortable enough to get onto a major street. My mind remembered most of the MSF skills (SIPDE, countersteering, avoidance, emergency braking), but it took the body a little bit to get all my muscles working in concert to carry them out. By the time I finished that 150km, I once again felt confident and securely planted on the bike's seat. I won't be pushing the limits until I get a lot more mileage under my belt, but I once again feel connected to the bike.
#3. That's a great engine. Not more than I'm prepared to handle (after all, I learned to ride at 14 on the same bike that my uncle raced Class A Enduro on), but I doubt that it'll leave me wishing for more when I get the throttle. I just wish that the bike had a 6th gear.
#4. I think that I'll be strapping on one of the aftermarket Plexi windsheilds that came with the bike before I go riding today. The upright riding position makes for some pretty good buffeting if you're riding into a headwind, and it's almost always windy next to the mountains.
That's all that I have to say for now, because it's just about time to go for a ride!
I'm a newly returned rider. After about a twelve year hiatus, I've come back to the world of bikes. I purchased my new (to me) bike on Monday, picked it up and rode about 150km on Tuesday, and am headed back out for a longer ride today (Wednesday).
I bought a 1985 Yamaha XJ750 Maxim X. For those of you that don't know the bike, it's a fairly run-of-the-mill 80's Japanese cruiser with a I-4 DOHC 5-valve engine. The suspension is a wee bit stiffer (and the brakes beefed up a bit as well), but other than those three differences, it's a lot like one the smaller Shadows, Viragos, or Marauders.
I know, that's not a bike for a first time rider, but I learned to ride a bike before I could drive a car. It's also not my first street bike.
My Impressions:
#1. Bike clothing has come a long way in the past 12 years. Flip-up full-face helmets are common now. Jeans with special abrasion-resistant patches. Gore-tex. Armour built into something other than a one-piece racing suit. This is great stuff!
#2. Skills need to be refreshed, but they do come back. When I started my ride yesterday, I felt like rank novice. I spent an hour tooling around the suburbs at 50kph before I felt comfortable enough to get onto a major street. My mind remembered most of the MSF skills (SIPDE, countersteering, avoidance, emergency braking), but it took the body a little bit to get all my muscles working in concert to carry them out. By the time I finished that 150km, I once again felt confident and securely planted on the bike's seat. I won't be pushing the limits until I get a lot more mileage under my belt, but I once again feel connected to the bike.
#3. That's a great engine. Not more than I'm prepared to handle (after all, I learned to ride at 14 on the same bike that my uncle raced Class A Enduro on), but I doubt that it'll leave me wishing for more when I get the throttle. I just wish that the bike had a 6th gear.
#4. I think that I'll be strapping on one of the aftermarket Plexi windsheilds that came with the bike before I go riding today. The upright riding position makes for some pretty good buffeting if you're riding into a headwind, and it's almost always windy next to the mountains.
That's all that I have to say for now, because it's just about time to go for a ride!
