A complete biker newbie

A complete biker newbie

Author
Discussion

carmadgaz

Original Poster:

3,201 posts

182 months

Saturday 19th July 2014
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I have after many years on PH and many vehicles (3 on the road atm) started venturing into the Biker Banter forum as I have liked the idea of a bike but wanted to get my 'youthful exuberance' out of the way with 4 wheels first (only took 8 years or so wink ).

3 Weeks ago I took the plunge and bought a 2002 Suzuki GS125



Today (on the first rainy day in lord knows how long) I took my CBT, despite getting wet and sweaty my friend and I both 'passed' biggrin . It was a cracking day out, even with the weather and a clutch that seemed a real PITA for the first half hour. By the time I got home the weather had dried out so I could take my little Suzi out for a maiden voyage...

... Well once I had flattened the battery by trying to start it without turning the fuel on paperbag . One bumpstart later and we were off pottering down the roads I drive everyday. I needn't of worried about overconfidence, roads confidently dispatched at 60 in the car were quite happily taken at 40 and the GS feels heavier but torquier than the little drum braked CG I did my CBT on.


Nerves aside I really enjoyed my first road rides and I'm hoping to spend a little time getting up to scratch on the 125 before heading out on a DSA (and my quest for more categories on my DL).

Anyone have any tips for the new boy?

Mastodon2

13,818 posts

164 months

Saturday 19th July 2014
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Read Motorcycle Roadcraft and the DSA Guide to Riding, they'll probably answer a lot of the questions you will have, then just enjoy your DAS, listen to the instructor. Look where you want to go, make every input smooth and scan in all directions constantly so you can plan your actions well in advance. Remember, biking is supposed to be fun, so enjoy it.

Nigel Worc's

8,121 posts

187 months

Saturday 19th July 2014
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Welcome to the "hobby", and enjoy.

CaptainMorgan

1,454 posts

158 months

Saturday 19th July 2014
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You've taken a similar route as me, I'm 25 now and also waited 8 years before I felt mature enough to get a bike. I've not got a huge amount of advice as I'm fairly new to it all myself but prep wise, decent kit and decent tyres are a must. Aside from that get out there and enjoy/learn would be my advice, you drive so know the rules of the road and that so you can just crack of with mastering being on 2 wheels. I done a 3 day DAS course but feel like I've learnt more in the past 600 miles on my bike than I did in those 3 days. Not in a bad way but saddle time and experience on the road builds up.

It's a much more physical thing on a bike, your posture, position, weight distribution all makes a different, then every change in tarmac, join in surfaces, bumps and that makes a huge difference on the bike. Hopefully the CBT guys will have given you the basics to get you started the right way then you can just concentrate on the rest.

As the others said, enjoy it!

evil len

4,398 posts

268 months

Sunday 20th July 2014
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1. There's no better way to gain experience than bum-on-seat time (which is fun too). Never stop learning.
2. I found all the various videos on youtube etc very useful, e.g. "Roadcraft Nottingham"
3. The DSA books are okay, but I didn't find them mega-useful
4. Get good kit. Then wear it. All the time. If you are too hot/too cold, you're wearing the wrong kit.
5. I remember sh***ing myself going round 'simple' corners at 50mph at first ... amazing how you get used to the speed ;-)
6. Everyone else on the road's an idiot ... treat them all like they are trying to kill you, and you'll be fine.

kazman

308 posts

166 months

Sunday 20th July 2014
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Hi mate. I'm in a similar position to you. Did my CBT and (after some deliberation) bought a CBF 125 for some bum in seat time on my short quiet daily commute to and from work. That was 5 days ago, now I'm trying to find the best sat nav software for planning long elaborate routes that avoid major roads. It all feels like an adventure smile

Hooli

32,278 posts

199 months

Sunday 20th July 2014
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Mk1 Transit? not seen one in years.

davegreg

1,099 posts

188 months

Sunday 20th July 2014
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I'm a complete novice at 50 years old, just returned from a road trip in The States where most of the guys were on Harleys, so I decided to do my CBT last week with a view to doing Direct Access after that. To be honest I found the CBT a bit traumatic - no way did I feel confident enough to go out on the road for a 2 hour ride, and it's kinda tainted my view of taking it any further. I've been driving for 30 years and always had fast cars....but I dunno, I may see how my next lesson goes and take it from there. My original aim after my Direct Access was to borrow a Harley Sporster off a mate and see how I get on with it. smile

evil len

4,398 posts

268 months

Sunday 20th July 2014
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Poor instructors IMO ... you shouldn't be pressured into doing anything you're not comfortable with, and there's no pressure to complete the CBT in one day. When we did our CBT, of the 5 of us 2 had to come back on another day to continue/complete the CBT as they only ended up going out on the road very late in the day (as they weren't ready for the road before then)

GTIR

24,741 posts

265 months

Sunday 20th July 2014
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Hooli said:
Mk1 Transit? not seen one in years.
That's because they are all parked up rotting away at peoples houses.

Nels0n

235 posts

180 months

Sunday 20th July 2014
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Imagine that everyone waiting to emerge from a side road will pull out in front of you, then you'll never be a victim of a SMIDSY.


carmadgaz

Original Poster:

3,201 posts

182 months

Sunday 20th July 2014
quotequote all
GTIR said:
Hooli said:
Mk1 Transit? not seen one in years.
That's because they are all parked up rotting away at peoples houses.
It is indeed and it's not funny cos it's true. Damn thing doesn't need much doing to it but as it's a 'luxury' to have the camper on the road other things get funds priority frown

Nels0n said:
Imagine that everyone waiting to emerge from a side road will pull out in front of you, then you'll never be a victim of a SMIDSY.
That assumption is a safe one after years on a push bike and some numpty side swiping my car by not checking his mirrors before a lane change

Thanks for all the tips guys, been out on it again today so I could take it for some new front fork seals...

...when we took it apart we realised the stanchions were both bent so the bike is still in bits, I had to make alternate arrangements to get home and I'm on e-bay looking for replacement forks frown . My mate doing the task wouldn't even toy with putting them back together so I could toddle home.

Not that I would argue with the guy who rides this V8 monster

Hooli

32,278 posts

199 months

Sunday 20th July 2014
quotequote all
Bent forks aren't good, I hope the internals are ok? or that's more expense.

carmadgaz

Original Poster:

3,201 posts

182 months

Sunday 20th July 2014
quotequote all
Hooli said:
Bent forks aren't good, I hope the internals are ok? or that's more expense.
Internals aren't too bad but a 2nd hand pair of complete forks aren't a massive expense (aside from one wanting an extortionate amount for postage, I could drive there cheaper!)

Hooli

32,278 posts

199 months

Sunday 20th July 2014
quotequote all
carmadgaz said:
Hooli said:
Bent forks aren't good, I hope the internals are ok? or that's more expense.
Internals aren't too bad but a 2nd hand pair of complete forks aren't a massive expense (aside from one wanting an extortionate amount for postage, I could drive there cheaper!)
Just service the new ones before they are fitted - ie new seals & fresh oil.

One of Mrs Hooli's bikes came back from a garage who'd rebuilt it with bent fork internals, it was very odd to ride as the suspension was nearly jam in a few positions over bumps.

Joey Ramone

2,150 posts

124 months

Sunday 20th July 2014
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For a start, don't listen to people who tell you to ride as if every other road user is trying to kill you. Logically, if that were the case, then as a human being of even basic intelligence you simply wouldn't get on a motorbike.

They key is to understand, quickly and subconsciously, which road users present a threat (about 1%) and which do not (the remainder). That's a combination of instinct and observation. And a lot of it is down to eye contact. When I'm behind a car I'm looking at their rear view and drivers side mirrors. I like to see eye contact if possible. If not, you can sort of tell quite quickly whether they are competent/predictable just by the way they drive. At junctions, eye contact again.I want to see them looking right at me (and even then I'm prepared for the possibility they've actually looked right through me). Overtaking is what being on a bike is all about, but never into a closing gap. On that note, you need a firm understanding of precisely what your bike can do in what gear. I'm on a Blackbird so overtakes are a piece of piss - muchos power and heavy engine braking make it easy. But I got given a 750cc Deauville as a courtesy bike one day and utterly overestimated its capabilities in that respect, causing myself a few jitters in the process. Never buy a Deauville.

Watch out for road surfaces. Wet metal (manhole covers) and wet paint (road markings) will have you off if you brake hard on them. Gravel too. Fog is an absolute bh. Ice is a no-no. Filtering is great, and should be done when possible, but at a sensible speed, and watch out for turning front wheels indicating that a driver is about to swing out in front of you. When filtering along a packed motorway or dual carriageway, when cars are jammed side by side, you can relax. When gaps start opening up however, that's when people decide that they simply must change lanes instantaneously and without looking. So if you're filtering and see a car with a gap to one side, watch out.

Cornering is a piece of piss. If it doesn't come naturally then you shouldn't be on a bike. As others will say, just look where you want to go.

More tips to follow, I suspect.

carmadgaz

Original Poster:

3,201 posts

182 months

Sunday 20th July 2014
quotequote all
Hooli said:
Just service the new ones before they are fitted - ie new seals & fresh oil.

One of Mrs Hooli's bikes came back from a garage who'd rebuilt it with bent fork internals, it was very odd to ride as the suspension was nearly jam in a few positions over bumps.
We have a seal kit to rebuild the old ones and the oil to go with it so that's easy. Though we fitted one new seal before we concluded we couldn't straighten the old stanchion so we may well use the base of the old one on a new stanchion (if it is safe to do so).

vonuber

17,868 posts

164 months

Monday 21st July 2014
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Welcome to the club! Soon you'll have the delight of merrily discussing potential reasons for traffic jams with a fellow biker on the M40 at 25mph, before zipping off past all the lines of frustrated stuck motorists and thinking 'that used to be me!'

(That was a nice 675 btw, whoever you were!)

Wedg1e

26,760 posts

264 months

Monday 21st July 2014
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Nels0n said:
Imagine that everyone waiting to emerge from a side road will pull out in front of you, then you'll never be a victim of a SMIDSY.
Not just that: ride around permanently asking yourself 'What if?' about everything you can see and most things you can't. Because one day there will be something around that blind bend, or a parked car door will suddenly open and some hound come flying out... etc. etc. Of course you do it in a car wink but the repercussions may be rather different...

evil len

4,398 posts

268 months

Monday 21st July 2014
quotequote all
Joey Ramone said:
For a start, don't listen to people who tell you to ride as if every other road user is trying to kill you. Logically, if that were the case, then as a human being of even basic intelligence you simply wouldn't get on a motorbike.

They key is to understand, quickly and subconsciously, which road users present a threat (about 1%) and which do not (the remainder). That's a combination of instinct and observation. And a lot of it is down to eye contact. When I'm behind a car I'm looking at their rear view and drivers side mirrors. I like to see eye contact if possible. If not, you can sort of tell quite quickly whether they are competent/predictable just by the way they drive. At junctions, eye contact again.I want to see them looking right at me (and even then I'm prepared for the possibility they've actually looked right through me).
But that comes with years of experience and instinct. You cannot expect a newbie to have level of observation when at first they are nowhere near subconsciously competent in riding the vehicle, and the majority on their concentration is on the pure mechanics of riding the bike itself, changing gear, not falling off, and getting round the next corner. Therefore it's safer to tell a newbie to be overly cautious ... with time they'll develop the skills you speak of, but not straight after doing their CBT.