Riding a bike for the first time this Saturday.. advice?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Deleted member 40275
  • Start date Start date
D

Deleted member 40275

Guest
Forum Sponsor
I'm planning to hop on a(my) bike for the first time this Saturday in Mississauga. I'm planning to take it over to a parking lot next to my house and ride around on it and get a feel for it.

Can anyone recommend anything I should be doing or being cautious about my first time out? Does anyone have any reason they would recommend me not take the bike out this Saturday by myself?

I'll be alone since I don't have any friends that ride bikes so I'll be teaching myself so any advice would be helpful.

Cheers.
 
Take it slow and be as smooth as possible with the throttle and clutch.
 
I agree just get used to the clutch and throttle. and go slow! If you want someone to help you out just pm me I live in Mississauga as well. Cheers and enjoy!
 
Have you taken the riding course and have your M2 license?
How busy is the parking lot next to your house?

If you indeed have your M2, and the parking lot is empty all day, take it easy on the road and watch out for all kinds of debris that got on the road because of melted snow. Practice everything you've learned in the riding course. Practice shifting, throttle and "riding the clutch".

If you do not have your M2 (have not taken the riding course yet), if I'm you, I would just give the bike a wash on the driveway and wait till you have completed your riding course.
 
Thanks man - I might just take you up on that!!

I have my M1 and my RTI course is on the Apr 6th weekend - figure I would get a little practice so I have a little bit of a head start. The parking lot is literally just a street across from my house. I track a 6 spd so I'm pretty confident in my clutch/throttle knowledge so hopefully putting it into practice will be a little easier than for some. But I'm still very respectful of how easy it could be to F up.
 
Insurance, gear, and a friend to call 911 incase you fall and can't get your bike or yourself up.
 
EC2010 said:
If you do not have your M2 (have not taken the riding course yet), if I'm you, I would just give the bike a wash on the driveway and wait till you have completed your riding course.
Click to expand...

This may be the best thing to do. It's not impossible to learn everything in an afternoon, but it's a Very big change from a 5/6 speed car transmission. Take alot of time practicing starting and stopping.

If you haven't started a bike before to ride, use "F.I.N.E.C.C."
1)Fuel's turned ON (not to reserve)
2)Ignition to ON
3)Neutral-transmission is in neutral
4)Engine "kill-switch" is off
5)Choke-turned all the way on
6)Clutch-pull the clutch all the way in (if I remember correctly, most bikes will not start without the clutch in)
7)Hit the starter!

There's a bunch to learn, you could be the next *insert MotoGP riders name here* and get it very fast, but if not, its still super early in the season, you've got tonnes of time to learn lol.

Good luck dude :D
 
Hey, I'm doing the same this weekend! Along with getting the bike certified; she's temp plated and ready to ride now though! My course is on the 28th, but I'm hoping to have things pretty well down by then. Hope you have a blast!
 
Get comfortable with the friction zone. Unlike cars, motorbikes are okay for riding the clutch a bit. Practice going around at super slow speed, feathering your clutch/rear brake until you get comfy with it. Keep your fingers ready on the front brake because that will be the one that will actually stop the bike when you need to. Learn to stop quickly with going all wobbly and falling over; clutch in, break in, into first in a split second. Learn to go from 1st to 2nd without hitting neutral. Try dragging your knee in tight fast turn.
 
eljay said:
Get comfortable with the friction zone. Unlike cars, motorbikes are okay for riding the clutch a bit. Practice going around at super slow speed, feathering your clutch/rear brake until you get comfy with it. Keep your fingers ready on the front brake because that will be the one that will actually stop the bike when you need to. Learn to stop quickly with going all wobbly and falling over; clutch in, break in, into first in a split second. Learn to go from 1st to 2nd without hitting neutral. Try dragging your knee in tight fast turn.
Click to expand...

Boy.. that escalated quickly
 
Congratulations! Now, I'd recommend you read this book.....
http://www.amazon.com/Total-Control-Performance-Street-Techniques/dp/0760314039
.....and, later in the spring, find a clean & dry parking lot & practice, practice, practice. don't worry about looking stupid! practice before every ride as a beginner. This will help your riding technique. Next, you will still have to learn to not trust any car on the road anywhere in your vicinity. Riding, you'll learn, takes a lot more skill and concentration than driving a car.
Good luck!
 
If I were you, I'd do the same.

Go for it.

Watching "how to ride a motorcycle" videos on youtube should be more than sufficient to get you to parking lot and back home without major issues.

During this attempt, if you think it's too easy, remember there is A LOT to it to master, or if you think it's too hard, remember RTI session is around the corner.
 
Practice some super low speed turns and riding as slowly as humanly possible. This will help with your M1 exit test and the course in general.
 
I'll chime in on the road/weather warning. I've got a thread about my first spill which happened around this time last year in a parking lot. Once the sun starts to go down the temps drop rapidly and re-freeze any moisture on the asphalt that can be hard to see. This makes it real easy to lose traction from bad clutch control, maneuvering or braking. Cold tires, road salt and inexperience increase the likelihood. By all means go for it. Just be cautious while you're out there having fun. It's not quite spring yet.
Forum Sponsor
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom