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I finally finished my MSF and got the license. Now I am totally legal. Few days ago I went on the freeway for the first time. I admit it; It was a little scary since my bike was really light.

The bike was shaking due to gusty wind and got worse when I lift my head up. I had to keep my head under the wind shield. Also when I was making turns at Posted speeds I felt like I was going to slide off because the bike was so light. I did not feel like the bike was very stable on the freeway. May be it is all in my head.

Anyways I was able to get to freeway speeds pretty quickly and engine wasn’t whining much. However, I think I am going to need a bigger bike if I want to ride on the freeway.





ITS TIME FOR AN R6

I think it pretty much feels that way to everyone the first few times - I felt like I was going to fly off the road at any minute when I first went on the highway. And my bike weighs 600 lbs. But if that's your justification..

Just keep in mind the new bike will probably feel the same for the first while until you get used to freeway riding.

Nalian wrote:I think it pretty much feels that way to everyone the first few times - I felt like I was going to fly off the road at any minute .

Thats exactly how i felt. I felt like the next gust of wind just gonna knock me over or push me off side ways to the next lane.

By the way my bike is about 300 lb

Until you get to 600 or 700 lbs any extra weight that you add isn't going to make that much difference. A lot more of it is control and experience then anything else.

Sometimes on windy days we feel like feeathers on the Vulcan on the road. Just take some time to get use to teh road and trust the bike.

Congrats on completeing MSF!

you will get used to the shaking and soon never notice it.
also try to shift the front of the helmet down on your face more, like this


i had the feeling of my helmet trying to lift off of my head when i looked strait, soo much wind resistance. I didn't know how other riders could stand this so i played with the position and shifted it downwards and there was almost no feeling of wind resistance and was smooth riding thereafter.

ninja 250 is very light and very succeptible to crosswind.

SV650S is only 80lbs heavier, so theoretically it shouldn't make a difference, but it did feel more stable. It still gets shaky at high speeds and heavy crosswind, but for some reason 80lbs made noticeable difference. It could also be that the seating position is more forward-leaning.

SV650 doesn't have a big sail-like fairing to blow around.

Congrats on finishing the course & getting licensed and legal.

Freeways and wind... you'll get used to it as you spend more time on it, in it. Know what you mean - it can still be rather a shocker at times. Stick with it and keep riding.

Lol, I remember my first time on the highway on my 250. I was scared to death. I stayed in the slow lane the whole time (huge mistake, too many cars merging on the freeway). I had to take a left exit to get to where I wanted to go and was too scared to try and merge left in traffic. I had to talk myself through it with the old, "if you don't face it now, you'll never do it" speech. After the third or fourth time riding on the highway it gets completely natural. Around the sixth time on the highway, I was looking for a long open stretch of road to see if that ninjette would actually do 100 mph . Having since moved up to a much bigger bike, with a much better windscreen to tuck behind, I can tell you that it only gets better.