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She just wants the tatts and lifestyle.

oatmeal wrote:

I'm also trying to figure out basic maintenance stuff.  How often to change the oil (and how to change the oil, for that matter),

That'll be easier to figure out once you have a bike in front of you (with an owner's manual)! I can't even see where the oil filter is in the pictures on Suzuki's web site. It's bound to be pretty darn simple.

how the somewhat cryptic numbering scheme for tires works.

Heh, width/profile/diameter! As in, my rear tire is a 160/60/17.

How to get the "Boulevard!" marquee off the side without damaging the paint.

I can't even remove a Virginia inspection sticker without making a mess... good luck!

.

Last edited by MrJ in OZ (2005-09-19 4:04 pm)

Wear your skins and helmet!  I cannot overstate this point.  I knew a guy in CA (my buddy's brother) who hit the pavement at 80 mph wearing shorts, short sleaved shirt, and no helmet.  Amazingly he came out of it with no broken bones or brain damage, but his skin!  All the staples in his body just looked really rerally bad.  He looked like a MJ jacket.  I learned from seeing him and always wear jeans, leather jacket, and full helmet when I ride.  Some say I look like a geek, but at least I will still look like a geek at 60 and not a freak.  Remember... skins and helmet.

It's at the dealership... AAAH!!! 

I've got my insurance lined up, I've got my loan lined up, I've got everything I need taken care of... if only I could get out of work sooner.

Come on! It's time to go! 
I don't care that it's only 11:30 AM!

Okay, so I'll soon be working for Fedex, so you guys can zip it.

debbiedowner wrote:

http://wcco.com/topstories/local_story_224081649.html

I was glad to see here that motorcycle fatalities are only 2.5 times that of auto fatalities, even though the avg. age of killed riders (40) and incidence of accidents is rising.

Yeah, and I meant it's one thing for a childless person to die, quite another for a parent to take unnecessary abd urresponsible risks.

It's unfortunate to me that so many people equate riding motorcycles as being irresponsible when the majority of the accidents are caused by 4 wheeled vehicles.  As a motorcycle rider, I have only once been at risk for accident on my own, and it was on a mountain curve where there was no way to evade an animal that crossed my path.  I hit it, but kept the bike upright.  Every other near accident or bad situation has been exclusively the fault of other drivers, and not all of them are because they couldn't see me.  The majority of these will be visibility or attention problems on the part of the other driver, such as pulling out in front of you, but there are an increasing number of drivers who simply abuse motorcyclists.  This has happened to me alot.  A good example is someone passing me despite oncomming traffic because they assume I can move over without issue.  Cars will often pull up next to you on turn lanes/on ramps/etc.  I know several people who have actually had their foot run over from a squid wanting to share the same spot at a stoplight. 

My best advice for any motorcyclist is to get the best gear they can and completely focus on defensive driving.  You must become a defensively minded rider if you want to avoid injury at the hands of the infinite number of moronic squids behind the wheels of cars out there.  Give lots of space to everyone and watch your mirrors like a hawk.  Always assume the person at the next intersection is going to pull out in front of you.  Make yourself as visible as possible with your gear selection.

Lastly, a good way to improve your skills on a bike is to get on a dirt bike.  A CRF250X is a great starter off-road machine.  It will teach you tremendous lessons on balance, power application, obstacle tackling, and how to handle slick surfaces.

dvpierce wrote:

Okay, so I'll soon be working for Fedex, so you guys can zip it.

Sorry, sorry.    

I just had a bad FedEx experience this week, so I'm miffed at them.  Still being nice as I can to the employees on my end - it's not like THEY lost my package for a day or two.

Dunkin' wrote:

I ride everyday I can.  To work, for pleasure, for relaxation, for thrills.  I may die on a motorcycle but it will be from old age.

I just read about that happening recently.  There was some group ride going on and this 60-70 year old dude had a heart attack on his bike, died instantly (they determined later).  He and the bike did a slow arc out of the formation and off the side of the road.

Not old age, to be sure.  But certainly not the motorcycle that did it either.

I called my friend - the one who had gone with me to the dealerships the first time - and I told him that it was ready.  Unfortunately, he wasn't available today.

I wasn't about to wait, though.  Enough waiting!

I got out of work at about 5:30 PM - earlier than I thought I would.  I got home around six, and my wife drove me.  We got to the dealer around 6:45.  They close at 8, so we were pressed for time. 

On the way there I noticed that the sun was going down.  I didn't really want my first ride to be at dusk or after dark, but it looked like that's exactly how it was going to go down.

I filled out most of the paperwork when I ordered it, so it was just a few final things this time - most of which I had read over the last time I was in.  Once that was done he showed me back to the rear of the shop and introduced me to my bike.  He got me all set up with the minute ins and outs of controling it - I guess I looked like a n00b.

Going in, I had every intention of buying a jacket and gloves before I left the place.  So I did; I got this riding jacket (all black). and these gloves (also black).

After another quick once over of the bike with me, he put me on a small, suburb type road behind the shop, just to give me enough practice (twice up and down the road) to get me on my way.

I rode back to the parking lot, and waited for my wife to catch up on foot.  She did quickly, and it was time to drive home.  My wife followed... with her hazard lights on the entire way. 

So my first ride was well after dark, and I wearing mostly black.

It was great.

(Sorry for the bad lighting in some of the pictures - it was well after dark.)










(Yes, I'm bald this week.)

Problems I encountered:
-  I need to work on accelerating from a stop.  At first, I kept stalling.   At one (back on the residential road) the smurfs behind me went around on my right, giving me the oportunity to stall three more times.    I got better as I  went along, but the most harrowing moments were definitely based around stalling out at intersections.
- It was far too short.  Probably that's best for a first go, but I wanted to keep going.
- U turns on tight roads.  Eek.
- I need to learn not to crank the throttle hard while I'm breaking.  It's counterproductive and startling - the way I'm holding my hand it's cranking while breaking.

Thrills I encountered:
- Being able to corner.  And LEAN while cornering - wow, that was great.  I took to turns at-speed like a fish takes to water.  If I was countersteering, I don't know it - it was so intuitive. 
- Actually being able to put what I've read to use.  It's nice to see that I didn't just buy those books for nothing.
- Passing other motorcycles (or more accurately, them passing me).  Stopping at a light, looking over, and getting a nod or a wave.
- Coming out of the dealership and finding a group of people standing around my bike, admiring it.  That was a weird one, walking up to it while they looked on.  Sort of a "oh yeah, it's mine!" moment.
- Feeling myself improve the further I rode.  Figuring out how to shift more and more smoothly - including when to downshift. 

I can't wait to get out there again.

That motorcycle puts that trailer to shame.

I prefer the Dodge Tomahawk

Holy smurf.

oatmeal wrote:

<the story of getting my first bike.>  I can't wait to get out there again.

Brought back the memories of my first bike.  In a few more rides you will have the coordination of throttle and clutch control just right.  Practice your countersteering.

Congrats again!!  (love those pix of you with Max's head.  Not that there is anything wrong with your head just as it is.)