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spookyfruit · 06-15-2003, 06:08 AM

My experience has been pretty good, and I recommend a similar path to anyone. I took the Motorcycle Safety Foundation riding course, which was taught on Buell Blasts (I took it through the dealer I was going to buy my own bike from). The Blast is a great bike for learning on - small, comfortable, highly maneuverable. 500cc engine, not too much oomph, difficult to get in trouble with, but enough power to get out of a jam if you need to. I bought a Blast after the course and rode that for a year before moving to a bigger bike. There are plenty of used Blasts out there, since loads of people use them the same way and then move up to a bigger bike.

After a year I moved up to a Ducati, but I kept the Blast to ride when the weather is bad, or for short city trips - the Duc is a blast, but it's not really what I would call a 'commuter bike'.

Riding a smaller bike for a year was the smartest thing I ever did - I didn't dump it, although I dropped one once during the safety course. When I moved up to the bigger bike there were a few times when I got the bike unstable, or accelerated a little too damn quickly without intending to (or with intending to, for that matter) and having ridden long enough to have some instincts kept me from putting it down.

I wear, on every single ride, a full-face helmet, kevlar-lined gloves, sidi full calf leather boots, and a jacket with hard inserts to protect my shoulders, elbows, and spine. I often wear a full-body suit with hardpoints at the knees in addition - particularly for aggressive riding.

If you are going to ride, and particularly if you are going to ride at all aggressively, it is my honest opinion that you are a fool or suicidal if you wear anything less than a full-face helmet, gloves, and a jacket at all times, regardless of weather. There are plenty of good jackets even for warm weather. Joe Rocket, for example, makes one with perforated leather and the hardpoints, it's quite cool. Not going to save your skin as nicely as a full leather, depending on how or if you slide, but better than no jacket by far.

There are a lot of great books about motorcycling. The ones I particularly like are:

The Motorcycle Safety Foundation's Guide to Motorcycling Excellence: Skills, Knowledge, and Strategies for Riding Right, Nate Rauba and the MSF
This is the basic reference. You need to ride safe, and its not always obvious how to do so. This book basically covers the same material you cover in the safety class, in a little more detail. Don't use it as a substitute for the class though - the class has lots of feedback on your particular riding, and actual practice on a bike.

Proficient Motorcycling, David L. Hough
This book is a collection of Hough's columns, organized in a pretty good manner, and contains numerous practical and not-necessarily-intuitive tips.

Street Strategies: A Survival Guide for Motorcyclists, David L. Hough
More of the same, also excellent reference. This time directed to the situations you can get into on the street.

Motorcycle Owner's Manual, Hugo Wilson
Guide to the machine for the basics. It's good to know something about the bike, particularly for minor repairs and maintenance. It's an expensive enough hobby without paying the shop to do everything.

The following books are great, but are not directed at the lowest-risk riding. If you start racing, or riding near the limits of roadways, machines, or your abilities, you really need to go with a full body suit. It will keep you with skin and joints if you dump the bike. Mind you, my assumption is I will someday dump the bike - either because I took a turn too aggressively, or because some driver in a box puts me in a situation where it is dump or be hit. I do everything I can to avoid those, but it's always possible.

These books all deal with riding aggressively:

A Twist of the Wrist: The Motorcycle Road Racers Handbook, Keith Code
A Twist of the Wrist 2, Keith Code
The Soft Science of Road Racing Motorcycles, Keith Code
All three of these deal with squeezing the most out of your bike, and focus on how to use your attention, how to maximize speed in and through turns, and the like. They are great books, Code is an excellent writer on the topic of motorcycles. I hope someday to take his superbike course, but California is a long way from Chicago.

Sportbiking: The Real World, Gary Jaehne
This is more of a pamphlet, but it has a lot of great tips, acknowledges the reality that riders will not always ride in the most cautious manner, will ride on regular roads at speeds that might be considered excessive by some, and may, from time to time, attempt to replicate the covers of the various cycling magazines in real world situations. Few, if any, other books do as much.

A final note - sorry for the length. Other posters have mentioned 'you will fall', or 'you will be at risk.' You might not fall - my experiences have been pretty good, as have some of the other posters. But -- and the MSF course is great about this -- it is not possible to eliminate risk from riding a motorcycle. Every time you get on it you are taking a risk that you might fall, or be hit by someone else. You need to acknowledge that risk. I liken it to the Zen thinking of a ronin, who assumes he is already dead in order to not fear death. I assume I will fall in order not to fear it. Riding a motorcycle with fear is neither fun nor safe. Instead, ride with a healthy respect for the machine, your environment, and the risks you are taking. Be ready to fall - but don't go out looking for it.

Riding a motorcycle is not for everyone. One of the guys in our MSF course was a great guy, but he dumped the bike once, and never got his nerves back. He dropped out of the course. Not because he was hurt, or a coward or anything - but he couldn't get over his fear that he might do it again. Other people dumped, got right back on, and kept at it. If riding is for you, you will know it by the end of the course - and you won't own a bike yet.

All of that said, learning to ride and buying bikes is something that has made me inordinately happy. I love riding. I ride 12 months a year, in Chicago. The only time I won't ride is if there is snow or ice on the ground. Riding a bike is nothing like riding a car - you are part of the environment, not moving through it as a spectator. Everything is closer and more present. It's just a blast. If you like it, you will love it, and you will never want to go back to the box.

To summarize:
Take the MSF course.
Wear safety gear.
Ride smart.
Have a great time.

-sf-

06-15-2003, 06:08 AM	#38 (permalink)
spookyfruit Upright	My experience has been pretty good, and I recommend a similar path to anyone. I took the Motorcycle Safety Foundation riding course, which was taught on Buell Blasts (I took it through the dealer I was going to buy my own bike from). The Blast is a great bike for learning on - small, comfortable, highly maneuverable. 500cc engine, not too much oomph, difficult to get in trouble with, but enough power to get out of a jam if you need to. I bought a Blast after the course and rode that for a year before moving to a bigger bike. There are plenty of used Blasts out there, since loads of people use them the same way and then move up to a bigger bike. After a year I moved up to a Ducati, but I kept the Blast to ride when the weather is bad, or for short city trips - the Duc is a blast, but it's not really what I would call a 'commuter bike'. Riding a smaller bike for a year was the smartest thing I ever did - I didn't dump it, although I dropped one once during the safety course. When I moved up to the bigger bike there were a few times when I got the bike unstable, or accelerated a little too damn quickly without intending to (or with intending to, for that matter) and having ridden long enough to have some instincts kept me from putting it down. I wear, on every single ride, a full-face helmet, kevlar-lined gloves, sidi full calf leather boots, and a jacket with hard inserts to protect my shoulders, elbows, and spine. I often wear a full-body suit with hardpoints at the knees in addition - particularly for aggressive riding. If you are going to ride, and particularly if you are going to ride at all aggressively, it is my honest opinion that you are a fool or suicidal if you wear anything less than a full-face helmet, gloves, and a jacket at all times, regardless of weather. There are plenty of good jackets even for warm weather. Joe Rocket, for example, makes one with perforated leather and the hardpoints, it's quite cool. Not going to save your skin as nicely as a full leather, depending on how or if you slide, but better than no jacket by far. There are a lot of great books about motorcycling. The ones I particularly like are: The Motorcycle Safety Foundation's Guide to Motorcycling Excellence: Skills, Knowledge, and Strategies for Riding Right, Nate Rauba and the MSF This is the basic reference. You need to ride safe, and its not always obvious how to do so. This book basically covers the same material you cover in the safety class, in a little more detail. Don't use it as a substitute for the class though - the class has lots of feedback on your particular riding, and actual practice on a bike. Proficient Motorcycling, David L. Hough This book is a collection of Hough's columns, organized in a pretty good manner, and contains numerous practical and not-necessarily-intuitive tips. Street Strategies: A Survival Guide for Motorcyclists, David L. Hough More of the same, also excellent reference. This time directed to the situations you can get into on the street. Motorcycle Owner's Manual, Hugo Wilson Guide to the machine for the basics. It's good to know something about the bike, particularly for minor repairs and maintenance. It's an expensive enough hobby without paying the shop to do everything. The following books are great, but are not directed at the lowest-risk riding. If you start racing, or riding near the limits of roadways, machines, or your abilities, you really need to go with a full body suit. It will keep you with skin and joints if you dump the bike. Mind you, my assumption is I will someday dump the bike - either because I took a turn too aggressively, or because some driver in a box puts me in a situation where it is dump or be hit. I do everything I can to avoid those, but it's always possible. These books all deal with riding aggressively: A Twist of the Wrist: The Motorcycle Road Racers Handbook, Keith Code A Twist of the Wrist 2, Keith Code The Soft Science of Road Racing Motorcycles, Keith Code All three of these deal with squeezing the most out of your bike, and focus on how to use your attention, how to maximize speed in and through turns, and the like. They are great books, Code is an excellent writer on the topic of motorcycles. I hope someday to take his superbike course, but California is a long way from Chicago. Sportbiking: The Real World, Gary Jaehne This is more of a pamphlet, but it has a lot of great tips, acknowledges the reality that riders will not always ride in the most cautious manner, will ride on regular roads at speeds that might be considered excessive by some, and may, from time to time, attempt to replicate the covers of the various cycling magazines in real world situations. Few, if any, other books do as much. A final note - sorry for the length. Other posters have mentioned 'you will fall', or 'you will be at risk.' You might not fall - my experiences have been pretty good, as have some of the other posters. But -- and the MSF course is great about this -- it is not possible to eliminate risk from riding a motorcycle. Every time you get on it you are taking a risk that you might fall, or be hit by someone else. You need to acknowledge that risk. I liken it to the Zen thinking of a ronin, who assumes he is already dead in order to not fear death. I assume I will fall in order not to fear it. Riding a motorcycle with fear is neither fun nor safe. Instead, ride with a healthy respect for the machine, your environment, and the risks you are taking. Be ready to fall - but don't go out looking for it. Riding a motorcycle is not for everyone. One of the guys in our MSF course was a great guy, but he dumped the bike once, and never got his nerves back. He dropped out of the course. Not because he was hurt, or a coward or anything - but he couldn't get over his fear that he might do it again. Other people dumped, got right back on, and kept at it. If riding is for you, you will know it by the end of the course - and you won't own a bike yet. All of that said, learning to ride and buying bikes is something that has made me inordinately happy. I love riding. I ride 12 months a year, in Chicago. The only time I won't ride is if there is snow or ice on the ground. Riding a bike is nothing like riding a car - you are part of the environment, not moving through it as a spectator. Everything is closer and more present. It's just a blast. If you like it, you will love it, and you will never want to go back to the box. To summarize: Take the MSF course. Wear safety gear. Ride smart. Have a great time. -sf- Last edited by spookyfruit; 06-15-2003 at 06:11 AM..