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Okay, so in about 6 hours me and two of my co-workers will be starting our MSF course...Cool!

We're all pretty excited. One of the guys is an ex-airforce viper (F-16) jock, so he's going to wear his G suit and helmet ... well, okay maybe not, but he brought it anyway.

Will keep you guys posted.

Thomas

Good Luck and Have Fun!

enjoy. Please get pics if he even so much as poses in the helmet and suit on an MSF bike

About to start day 2 ... riding day!

Well, day one went ... well. Didn't do much but watch videos and go over the course literature. Instructor seems really cool.

15 people in the class. 2 women, both I would say in their late 40's. Of the 13 guys there are three younger men (early 20's) who are showing their age and maturity. I just hope they don't make it a tough day for the rest of us.

Oh well, really excited about getting on a bike. Will post tonight when I get back.

Thomas

The smartest thing I did during the riding part of the MSF course was to stay behind the young man in the class that had been riding dirt bikes since he was able to stradle a bike. Watching him downshift in emergency stops showed me (a complete novice) how to shift down fast. Watching him corner showed me proper body position. I thank him mentally every day! Hope you enjoy your class as much as I did.!!

A good instructor who has some 'BTDT' riders in the beginner class will do well to first observe them and make sure their technique is basically good. THEN zero in on them and, in order to keep them from getting bored with the drills, ask them to take it to the next level when they ride drills: Be an example for the 'nevernevers.'

They often find that they improve more than they expected and the others benefit as well.

Good luck to YOU!! Keep us posted.

P

On this MSF thing, would mind listing some of the finer points that the instructors give? I figure that some are different (and some the same) as we've all heard before.

Might be interesting...

Sincerely, Edward

Okay, long day of riding over. Lots of fun.

One of the "kids" came in yesterday wearing full gear and talking like he was the dodo on two wheels. Well, today was a new day and on the very first exercise of just getting a feel for the clutch he went and popped the clutch and dropped the bike. As the morning went on it became more clear that he'd never ridden before, he also got a lot more quiet. Not saying that he was bad ... he was just as good/bad as those of us that admitted to having no experience. He apparently also has an R6 back in his garage.

Other than that ... again had loads of fun. Learning real quick that riding a motorcycle isn't nearly as hard as I thought, but also just as challenging as I expected. My problem is that when things are going well, it's all easy, but when I have to do stuff like braking quickly or avoiding another rider that's just stalled in front of me ... things get ugly real fast. I'm trying to tell my self that squeezing hard on the clutch is okay, but the front brakes need to be slow and deliberate ... not very easy for someone with no motorcycle instincts ... well at least not yet.

I talked with some of the guys that already do have some limited riding experience and they all agree that learning in a controlled environment is the best way to learn/brush up on skills. Needless to say I think this is probably the best thing a new rider can do. Sure you could learn on your own ... but having a trained instructor telling you what's the right technique and getting feedback can't be understated. It's like learning to play guitar ... I learned the basics on my own, but when I finally got an instructor, I learned more in two months than I did in two years on my own.

Anyway, tomorrow is a new day and I can't wait to get back on the bike!

Oh and just if you were wondering ... all the bikes wer eHonda Rebels or Suzuki GZ250(?) ... good bikes overall ... well abused but still trooping on like soldiers.

Thomas

Awesome! Sounds like you're learning a lot and having fun at the same time. My MSF class was the same way. The instructors were great and the bikes were like yours. We had mostly GZ250's. I almost bought one as my first bike.... Seriously! Figured if they could take the msf abuse, they could take mine.

Well I passed! Awesome. Had a great time all in all. The instructors were great and the lessons learned were invaluable. All I need now is a license and a bike ... both of wich I hope to address in the near future. Of course before I actually take to the streets I'll be getting to know parking lots and empty streets real well first.

Remember those three young bloods I told you guys about earlier? Well, one turned out to be a poser who, to his credit, clammed up and did his best to learn ... which he did. THe other two ... got kicked out on the last day because they were smoking their back tires while we were all lined up ... if one of them had popped a clutch by accident the bike would have torn through the entire line. Needless to say the instructors weren't happy and out they went. I'm soo glad I'm not that young and stupid anymore.

Anyhow ... fun was had by everyone else.

Thomas