The wrong first bike

[pinger05]

My first bike was a 78 Honda CBR750k. I bought it off the lemon lot for $250. It was a steal but the guy who owned it could not get it running. So I offered him half price ($250) for it as is. He took it. The only thing wrong was the gas line from the On Off Reserve to the carb had a hole in it. So I got it running for $6 and drove it home. I am a cheap bastrd, that is why I chose that bike.

Do I advocate a large heavy curser to anyone. Heck no. I have two really good reasons to not advocate a large heavy bike to anyone with less than 3 years experience.

My first drop was that first week. I took it to the gas station after cleaning it up. While fueling I put the gas switch to the 'off' position ( Buzz said to do that I thought) . After filling up I got about 1/3 a mile before the carbs ran dry. I pulled the sputtering 500lb monster over to the side of the road where due to the crown of that particular road I dropped it. How forgiving would a brand new curser been? After picking myself up off the ground I kicked the bike out of frustration and strained my big toe. To add to it one of my rider friends saw me drop, kick, and limp. He passed by laughing. Definitely my first Newbee moment.

What could have happened? Imagine a larger or new bike dropping it on the first week before the payment book ever showed up? Imagine falling off the bike on a busy street? A lighter bike like a 250cc Ninja would have gone down, but there is a greater chance I could have figured out which leg to put out and held the bike up.

My second and scariest incident was in a dirt parking lot. The parking lot is raised 4 feet above and 30 feet away from the building and is loose sand. I approached where I wanted to stop the bike and turned the bike to face the right direction. I dont know what happened but I grabbed a hand full of 750cc's. Not sure how my leg got off the pegs either. With one leg down I managed to pivot my weight to the heel of my boot and allow the bike to use my leg as a pivot. The bike spun round in two full circles before I figured out to let go. I let go and the bike went down nearly on my left leg. .

What could have happened? Imagine if I had not moved my weight off of my foot. The force of the bike spinning would have probably at a minimum dislocated my leg from my hip. Worse case I could have totally blown my ancle and knee. Then on top of that the bike would have probably tried to create a new door to the server room.

The third drop and the second scariest moment is when my front tire blew out at 60mph in a hard right turn. I let off the throttle slowly and straightened her out. Once straight I found myself going 35mph on the wrong side of the road. At that moment I had a choice to make, hit a oncoming car or swerve off the road and hit a cactus. So I made a third option, force it off the road and put it down (low side) at 5mph. I slid a little and my gear kept me from hurting. The cager never stopped. I called some friends who helped me get the bike home and got the tire replaced. Later that week I was on it again.

A 250cc Ninja would have been much easier to wrestle down than my 500lb 750cc hunk of metal.

Overall I dropped the bike 4 or 5 times. That bike hated me and wanted me dead but I loved it.

I definitely advocate smaller bikes rather than larger ones. My experiences would have been a lot less scary had I not been such a tight wad. That is my story and I am sticking to it.

[pchast]

Sounds familiar. Mine is a 560 lb monster too. Love it though. You are very right about not new and drops. Got to get new tires soon.

Pete

[zeligman]

I suppose this is what makes the world go round - my first bike was/is a 2002 suzuki volusia 800 - 528 lbs dry. and I LOVE(D) this bike. I've been riding a year and a half or so.

I practiced one thing at a time carefully, learning its ins and outs, good and bad habits.

I NEVER dropped this bike - although it got close while wrestling it out in the snow (roads were dry, backyard was covered in snow - had to get it to the driveway)

It's low seating position allowed me to stand up if balance was an issue (first two weeks). While it is an 800, it won't win any hot off the line speed contests, and it is wonderfully forgiving for a noob learner - plenty of power for highway (when you get there), but easy to balance, gentle to ride, easy around corners, and excellent responsive brakes.

Unfortunately, although I never dropped this bike, it dropped me in a traffic accident in July, and is still in the insurance lot awaiting my visit to determine it's fate (once I am walking again).

I miss it, and riding, enormously, and hope to be back on next season.

-zeligman

[dr_bar]

recovering - waiting to walk - then run - then maybe, just maybe, riding again! -zeligman

What sort of statement is this???? You will be riding again, we all know it and so do you... Now, no more negative thoughts and get that leg over a bike sooner than later... (Okay, you can get better first...)