[quote]Learn to ride in the dirt[/quote]
Best advice ever.
Years ago, the NTSB did a study on why airline pilots had accidents,
and the only conclusion they reached is that [b]the earlier a pilot learned
to fly, the less likely he was to have an accident[/b]. The NTSB theorized
that pilots that learned to fly earlier, flew the airplane more automatially
and had more time to think about what was going on and were more likely
to better deal with a challenging situation.
The above is [b]not[/b] a non sequitur with respect to riding a motorcycle.
To the great dismay of my first ex-wife, my son spent 10 years riding his
cherished Honda dirtbike - I got a great deal on it, it was new and dropped
once - before he turned 16 and got his street learner's permits for driving
and riding on the street.
Here's the thing.
[b]Riding in traffic, you need to spent 95% of your brain power on threat analysis, leaving 5% of your brain to operate the motorcycle.[/b]
When you start riding, 95% of your brain will be used to operate the
motorcycle. Over time, that percentage will drop as it becomes more
automatic and ingrained - shifting gears, maneuvering the bike.
To safely ride a motorcycle on the street, you need to do the following:
1) [b]Look[/b]. Chin up, head on a swivel. Look as far ahead as you can to
stay ahead of the bike. Keep your head on a swivel so that you are
very aware of what is around you.
2) [b]Think[/b]. Do not relax, do not daydream. In traffic, you cannot relax.
Andy Grove says only the paranoid survive. Perform [b]constant threat
analysis[/b] - what are those guys going to do? If they do it, what will
I do? Do not commit the error of target fixation. More than one
person wants to kill you. Assume that no one can see you, and
everyone wants to kill you. Try to make yourself visible. Flash
your headlight. Weave back and forth. Have fun lane splitting
at night in the rain.
3) Be an [b]expert rider.[/b] See above. You must automatically and
expertly operate the motorcycle using 5% of your brain, because
you need to spend 95% of your brain power looking around and
trying to figure out what other people are going to do. Spend as
much time in the dirt as you can, then learn about counter-steering
which if you know what a metal prop is, will come naturally.
Free advice:
A) [b]slow in, fast out[/b]. Always enter a corner slower than you think
you need to. Learn what the racing line is. A = V^^2/R. Try not
to brake in a corner because your tires are already working hard.
Do your braking hard, in a straight line, before the corner. On a
sport bike, become comfortable getting the rear tire in the air
during hard braking at over 100 mph. Lean the bike over, learn
body positioning. Accelerate out of the corner after the apex,
which stands the bike up.
B) [b]The left turning car or SUV will kill you[/b]. They will not see you.
These left turners are either opposite direction, or on a side street
and they do not see bicycles or motorcycles and even if they do,
they are happy to kill you. A car or truck hits you, they need to
call a tow truck, you need a hearse.
C) Keep your bike in perfect condition, either by doing your own
maintenance or contracting it out. You must have complete
confidence in your hardware. I buy the most expensive tires
legal for the street, and I am always aware of their temperature
and the pavement temperature. That tiny contact patch, smaller
than your hand, is all you have. I carefully monitor tire pressure -
front tire pressure makes a huge difference in turning, and riding
two up I really bump up the rear tire pressure, and after I stop, I
put my hand on the rear tire to monitor the temperature - I don't
want too much sidewall deflection.
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tl;dr
Motorcycle riding is like flying. It's great fun and can be vastly
rewarding, but ride within your limits and remember that both can
be terribly unforgiving of newbie mistakes.
If your circumstances permit, get a dirtbike - nothing bigger than
150cc four stroke is required - and spend at least a year riding it
without any traffic. A nice light bike. If nothing else you will learn
to ride without perfect traction (dirt, gravel). Many street riders
panic when they are on anything but dry pavement.
http://powersports.honda.com/2018/crf12 ... ngine.aspx
If you're into crotch rockets, consider taking a track day course.
Like aviation, motorcycling is applied physics. Learn the systems
(what is a false neutral?), develop your skill.
Oh yeah, take the MSF course. I've taken it twice - once in Canada,
and once in the US - and while the differences were amusing, both
were worthwhile. Like flying, you will learn that much of riding is
quite subjective and silly. Lot of style silliness. Learn to look past
that irrelevant crap and figure out what's important.
In my experience, motorcycle riding is very similar to flying. You
will spend many years learning and developing skills and collecting
tools. It is greatly satisfying, if you are in it for the long haul.
Unfortunately 99.9% of the human race is into instant gratification
with no concern for long-term consequences, which is why they
like to shove cocaine up their noses and sovereign debt.