Anything worth doing...
Posted: Wed Mar 09, 2011 11:42 am
...is worth doing badly, provided you don't kill yourself in the process. Not a total green, but still a relative novice. Mainly registering here because I'm going to ask a question in another section, but I thought it wouldn't hurt to dump a hi-how-are-you in this section.
Bought a 2002 GSX750F less than two months ago; it's my first bike. No need for dire warnings about not killing myself with 92.5HP; I tend to ride a tad on the slow side. So much so, in fact, that I average 48MPG with the thing. I use it to commute a 70mi round-trip, so I figured a 750cc bike would be smoother than a 250cc. The last thing I need is a twice-daily ride up the freeway at 9000RPM. After taking the MSF beginner course and getting my license, I hunted down the best deal I could find. It's not in great shape (or even in good shape), but it runs, gets good fuel mileage, and hasn't exploded yet.
To generate a sense of commiseration, I'll share the two times I nearly dropped my bike. Incidentally, both were turning onto the street I live on and both at 20MPH, tops. First time, I failed to pay attention to what I was doing and pressed my foot on the rear brake while cornering. It was kinda neat, in retrospect, sliding sideways and stopping on my left foot, but probably something to avoid. Second time, I grossly under-cornered (yes, at that slow speed I could probably have turned donuts in a 10-ft diameter, but hey, what's a noob to do?). I came SO wide that I just straightened up and came to a stop in about 7ft, just a foot or so from the curb. I'd say I learned some kind of lesson there, but I still can't figure out how I screwed that up so badly.
Bought a 2002 GSX750F less than two months ago; it's my first bike. No need for dire warnings about not killing myself with 92.5HP; I tend to ride a tad on the slow side. So much so, in fact, that I average 48MPG with the thing. I use it to commute a 70mi round-trip, so I figured a 750cc bike would be smoother than a 250cc. The last thing I need is a twice-daily ride up the freeway at 9000RPM. After taking the MSF beginner course and getting my license, I hunted down the best deal I could find. It's not in great shape (or even in good shape), but it runs, gets good fuel mileage, and hasn't exploded yet.
To generate a sense of commiseration, I'll share the two times I nearly dropped my bike. Incidentally, both were turning onto the street I live on and both at 20MPH, tops. First time, I failed to pay attention to what I was doing and pressed my foot on the rear brake while cornering. It was kinda neat, in retrospect, sliding sideways and stopping on my left foot, but probably something to avoid. Second time, I grossly under-cornered (yes, at that slow speed I could probably have turned donuts in a 10-ft diameter, but hey, what's a noob to do?). I came SO wide that I just straightened up and came to a stop in about 7ft, just a foot or so from the curb. I'd say I learned some kind of lesson there, but I still can't figure out how I screwed that up so badly.
