Ya'll Be Careful Out There.....
Well, the holiday has barely started, and there are already two reports of downed riders on the news locally.
I make it a habit of NOT riding on holiday weekends because of the
combination of too much traffic, too much sun, too many folks that start drinking early and too many tired, frazzled people on the road...I've had too many close calls and near misses on these weekends.
That being said, I know that many of you have been looking forward to this weekend and are out there or on your way to doing some weekend holiday riding and backroad strafing. I know this will fall on deaf ears (or closed eyes), but BE CAREFUL OUT THERE FOR THE "OTHER GUY".....I don't want to read any depressing posts on Monday or Tuesday about another member eating it 'acuse they didn't leave themselves an out, or ended up a hood ornament.
I still snow ski with a bunch of other olde fartes, even though my knees have had more work on them than a lot of your bikes; it never failed on the first outing of the season that we'd all try to make up for a long period of downtime with cramming in as many runs as we could that first weekend....and also that one of us would end up on a stretcher being dragged down the mountain to the first aid station on that last day because a couple of us didn't know when to quit....and it was always when we said, "just ONE more run", when we were worn out, tired and a little frazzled, but were having too much fun to stop....and the "fun" turned into a trip the the ER.
We've got all summer...Easy Does It out there: we've got all season. Hopefully, we'll
all still be out there when the first flakes of snow start swirling at the end of the season.
I don't want to lose any of you.
Leigh
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Why Johnny Can't Get It Up.
I read constantly here about "My 110 Hp GuzziZixxer 600 won't wheelie, does it need $2000 worth of engine mods or do I NEED to get a 180hp 1000?".
The reason your bike won't wheelie is the same reason it doesn't handle right: Rider weight is 25-40% of the WHOLE VEHICLE WEIGHT. Riders act like their weight doesn't matter. IT DOES!
If you want your bike to do what you want it to, from carving turns to flappin' that front wheel in the air: GET YOUR AZZ OFF THE SEAT!!!!
Read Twist of the wrist I and II, go take a track day and some instruction, go practice tight stuff in a parking lot.....ANYTHING to help you realize that there is more to riding than squeezing levers and twisting the throttle. Read about weight placement, weighting the pegs (inside or outside, when to and when not to); experiment with weighting placement during hard braking in an empty parking lot, and note how the bike handles when you slide forward on the tank (stoppies) and what happens when you slide backward towards the rear.
Go find your favorite set of turns and experiment at moderate speeds with hanging a cheek off, or rotating around the gas tank, and note the different effects.
Practice "slow racing"; going as slow as you can in a parking lot without putting your feet down; practice balancing at stop signs; see how long you can come to a stop WITHOUT putting your feet down (Body placement is critical for this). Practice pulling your feet up BEFORE you let out the clutch instead of dangling one or both of them through the intersection (a dangerous practice).
All of these exercises will make you a better rider, and get you that much closer to making you and the machine a working unit.
Practice, Practice.