Just finished first ride, tips to be safe?  By  an1m3n00b (Read 2,727 times)

howdy, i am impressed with the content and attitude of your advisors' comments. if you follow thier advice you will stand a good chance of living old enough to have a grey beard like i do. there is one thing i'd like to suggest that they have already alluded to and that is. watch some video of a race such as isle of mann racing and note the techniques you see of the successful racers. then find a large, large empty lot or wide empty road and practice some of those techniques for cornering because, some day you will be riding along doing something important in you mind such as calculating the odds that the seahawks will win the super bowl and you'll find yourself entering a 30 mph corner at 70 or so. about halfway through you will adopt that good technique you were learning or find yourself as a roadside ornament. i think you have already experienced some of that.

lotsa miles and smiles to ya
ken

Very good advice. It is always a good idea to see what the pros are doing. The isle of Mann tt is an excellently appropriate race as well. They do race scooters too I'd watch both.

Another new rider here... I took the MSF course but it doesn't prepare you for highway driving. I can maneuver around a parking lot though...

Yeah, tire pressure. I got my scooter (250cc YY250T) and the front tire pressure was right. Rear tire, different story. My pressure gauge goes up to 50psi. The rear tire pegged the gauge. I had to let a lot of air out before it would make any difference on the gauge. I haven't ridden it since correcting but I'm assuming that will make a difference in how the bike feels.

A few days ago, I had my first Uh-Oh moment... My brand-new still shiny scooter... Rounding a curve, I lost track of my path of travel and ended up on my side in the dirt beside the road. A lot of things there...

• I wasn't driving too fast for the bike and curve, but definitely exceeded my experience level.
  
• I was taking the curve to the left and forgot to look where I was going.
  
• I looked down at the ground (where I didn't want to be) and that is where I ended up.
  
• I took the curve way too wide and went off the pavement into the dirt.
  
• I straightened the scoot up in time and tried to avoid obstacles on the shoulder.
  
• Attempting to brake and inadvertently locking the wheels while trying to move around obstacles in loose dirt doesn't work well.
  
• I ended up in a low-speed low-side fall in loose dirt/dust.
  

Dirt went everywhere. I got up immediately (mad) and checked the bike for damage... My brand new (previously shiny) scoot now has scratches on the front fairing and rear body swell. I ended up with a minor bruise on my leg and some lingering soreness in my leg and shoulder, but no lasting damage. I had just received the plates and was making my first legal highway ride. I had travelled on about a 20-mile round trip and was almost home. My shiny new helmet was unscathed!

Odd observation about riding: Cruising around the neighborhood at about 25-30mph feels like you are flying! Getting out on the highway at about 55-60mph doesn't feel any different. It actually feels slower...

Hello, an1m3n00b

Just wondering how your learning progress is going? Being new myself I found this video to be most helpful. I practice it's counter steering tips every time I go out. I even pretend that there's a hazard in front of me that I want to avoid in a hurry.

I've done a little bit of riding, again below 40MPH, I figured going on a perfectly straight highway at WOT around 50-60MPH isn't the way to learn how the bike handles. I went in a parking lot and found the "leaning limit" (Or rather that point where the centerstand scrapes). Given that it's a scooter with wide cowls and such it isn't exactly a knee-dragger, which is fine by me. As far as braking goes I've only locked up the rear wheel once. and I was stomping on that brake pedal. If anything the brakes on the stella are squishy. By far the hardest part for me is starting out. I'm still getting used to the manual transmission and I either stall the engine, or bring the front wheel off the ground. Also as it turns out, these things are fine for getting groceries, just don't be an idiot like me and buy a case of soda. I did make it home with the case, but it fell off twice when starting.