Rules of riding

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PDWeyand

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Steering:
That is, unless you keep pushing the right bar all the way, then you will probably go left while the bike swaps ends.

Crashing:
Remember riding isn't inherently dangerous...crashing is.

The Sidelines:
It's always better to be on the sidelines wishing you were on the track than on the track wishing you were on the sidelines.

Fuel:
The ONLY time you have too much fuel is when you're on fire.

The Rear Wheel:
The rear wheel is just a big fan used to keep the rider cool and his butt relaxed. If in doubt... watch. When it locks up or slides out you can actually see the rider start sweating and pucker marks are left on the seat.

Too Slow:
No one has ever hit something too slow.

Rides:
A 'good' ride is one you can walk away from.
A 'great' ride is one you can walk away from and use the bike again.

Getting Hit:
They can't hit you if you're not there.

Mistakes:
Learn from the mistakes of others. You won't live long enough to make all of them yourself.

Traction:
When traction is sparse, the probability of survival is inversely proportional to the angle of lean. Large angle of lean, small probability of survival and vice versa.

Your Brain:
Never let a motorcycle take you somewhere your brain didn't go five seconds earlier.

Fog:
Stay out of fog. The single red taillight you think is another rider ahead that you can catch, might be the red starboard light of a docked boat.

Parking:
Always try to keep the number of times you park the bike equal to the number of times you've ridden it.

Luck & Experience:
You start with a bag full of luck and an empty bag of experience. The trick is to fill the bag of experience before you empty the bag of luck

Mirrors:
If all you can see in your mirrors is the direction you were previously traveling intermingled with sparks, and all you can hear is commotion from the passenger riding pillion; things are not at all as they should be.

Other Objects:
In the ongoing battle between objects made of metal, rubber and plastic going dozens of miles per hour, and the ground going zero miles per hour, the ground has yet to lose. Same holds for cars, trucks, walls and most animals. Draws don't count.

Judgment:
Good judgment comes from experience. Unfortunately, experience usually comes from bad judgment.

Going Forward:
It's always a good idea to keep the headlight end going forward as much as possible.

Looking:
Keep looking around. There's always something you've missed.

Laws:
Remember, gravity and centrifugal force are not just good ideas. They're laws not subject to repeal.

Drinking:
Better to slither drunk off a bar stool than your custom Vmax seat

Experience:
Inexperience riding is like B.O., claiming not to have it but having it, something still smells
 
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I ran across them somewhere and shared them with someone, forgot about them and ran up on them again so decided to share here with everyone. I too felt that they need to be shared.
 
I ran across them somewhere and shared them with someone, forgot about them and ran up on them again so decided to share here with everyone. I too felt that they need to be shared.
A big thanks for sharing that with us.
clapping.gif
I'll bet we can add to that. "Better to slither drunk off a bar stool than your custom Vmax seat"
When I first started riding, I rode with a club whose main activity was getting plastered(not recommended) and riding to the next watering hole. Booze always made people too brave. Too many horror shows to list. When the kids came along the booze went away along with some friends. The good old days are now!
Steve-o
 
A big thanks for sharing that with us.
clapping.gif
I'll bet we can add to that. "Better to slither drunk off a bar stool than your custom Vmax seat"
When I first started riding, I rode with a club whose main activity was getting plastered(not recommended) and riding to the next watering hole. Booze always made people too brave. Too many horror shows to list. When the kids came along the booze went away along with some friends. The good old days are now!
Steve-o
Going to add it too the list - thanks Steve.
 
I talked to FireMedic about a friend of mine and he broke a few rules yesterday. He was not hurt nor the bike but after what he did it made me think about this list and I had to share it with him and he had a good laugh about it. So please if you can think of anything to add I would love to add them.
 
Paul, you could consider telling that story here if your friend didn't mind. As you said, he's game, most people would have just called someone to come get them and abandoned the sport then & there.

I firmly believe that anyone who wants to learn to ride should learn on a small-displacement dirtbike first before they ever set-foot onto a roadbike. There's no comparison between someone who learns riding on an offroad bike and someone who becomes an 'asphalt-only' rider. The MSF is a great organization, but if you learn to ride offroad and then take the Experienced Rider course from MSF, you will transition to road riding much more easily than someone who never rode offroad and maybe has a season or two of riding, and wants to learn more.

I have another one to add:
"Inexperience riding is like B.O., claiming not to have it but having it, something still smells."
 
Paul, you could consider telling that story here if your friend didn't mind. As you said, he's game, most people would have just called someone to come get them and abandoned the sport then & there.

I firmly believe that anyone who wants to learn to ride should learn on a small-displacement dirtbike first before they ever set-foot onto a roadbike. There's no comparison between someone who learns riding on an offroad bike and someone who becomes an 'asphalt-only' rider. The MSF is a great organization, but if you learn to ride offroad and then take the Experienced Rider course from MSF, you will transition to road riding much more easily than someone who never rode offroad and maybe has a season or two of riding, and wants to learn more.
As per your request this is the story that Fire-Medic is talking about, I sent this to him in a PM and Bobby is my friend and he will not mind. Now keep in mind Bobby just turned 60 a few days ago. He wanted to buy the 85 Honda Magna from the person I bought it from. He was told it was for sale and never did anything for a year and I was told about the bike and six months later I bought the bike. I fixed it up and rode it all winter here. He was upset with me for a while over the fact I bought the bike, but cash talks and B.S. walks. Well bobby goes gets his permit a few days back. It has been about 40 years since he has been on a bike. So I had been helping him ride and get used to riding. Well here is the story told to Fire-Medic from this past weekend. please enjoy and laugh.

This is the PM:

Well I know you love hearing from me (maybe or maybe not). I put in about 50 miles with my friend, his name is Bobby on Saturday, and all was good for the most part. Well he calls me up and asked me if we could go out again. Since he is buying the fuel why not, he ask for a bit longer of a ride, so I know the route I want him to ride. If you did not the lay of the land around Louisville, we live in a bowl, from town it is about up hill in any direction you go. So we head south east and out about 10 miles of four lane rode, I keep him near me in a two man stagger formation, to keep an eye on him and keep the traffic off him. We turn left heading north west, onto a long road that will have some nice twisting turns and rolling hills, nothing too sharp or steep. We follow this road about 30 miles. Everything is fine, smooth sailing. We get to the point we are going to turn left again head west back towards home. He waits to turn for the road to be clear and takes off and leans too hard left and gives the Honda too much gas, you can start to guess, he lays the bike down, but he does it about the best way you could, the bike does not touch down on the road way until it hits the shoulder and is in lose rock and old black top. The fall does not harm the bike in any way, and he only gets a little rash on his ankle and leg, not hurt really, other than his pride. Well a fellow in a pick up stops with is four way flashers on to block any traffic from getting near us. As I pick the bike off him and get him off the street. Now we came off a two lane with little traffic onto another road that was two lane with more traffic. But like said he is ok and we are about 25 miles from home. So off we go to the next little town. We stop at a filling station, to take brake and double check him and the bike out. After a 30 minute rest, a cup of coffee or two and smoke we take back off. We finish the up the ride, he pulls in the drive way and ends up on the edge in the grass, he is still moving and headed back on the drive, but you can guess what happens again. The ground is soft and the bike is moving too slow to carry him back up onto the drive way which is about 4 inches taller than the grass, he loses all his forward motion and can't get his legs off the pegs and falls over again. I just came to a stop myself and stopped the motor and placed the kickstand, when he goes over, I jump off the Max and run over to him 5 steps away to pick the Honda Magna off him for the second time today. And again he is not hurt and neither is the bike. I get the Honda up on it's kickstand, turn to pick him up and he is rubbing his back side of his thigh telling me he has a cramp and can not get up and tells me "let me lay here for a while" So I go put both bikes up and come back to him and he is still rubbing his leg. He tells me that he is ok and would I get him a cup of coffee. I come back out with his coffee and asked him what happen, that is when he explains when we pulled into the neighbourhood that he was getting a cramp, and he did not want to fall on the my driveway and figured that the grass would be softer, lol. I ask him why did not he say something before falling off the the bike. He only reply was, I could not think that far and the cramp was getting worst by the second, I laughed at him and picked him up and got him in to a chair in the house. I cooked us some dinner and we talked about the ride and what had happen, how felt about the ride and everything. He tells me that the first fall he was not trying to do anything silly he just sorta froze up and could not let off the gas as he was turning. He said it was like he was moving in slow motion and was helpless to correct it. He even said that was not really bad over all. The ride was fun but the cramp he had gotten he was clueless once the bike stopped and he could not get his legs under himself fast enough to stop the fall. Now I know you are thinking what in the world was I doing taking him out on a long ride like that. Well he thought he was up for it. And we talked about the first fall at the break right after it, he claimed he was ok and felt fine, a little hurt pride that was all. I told him not to ask to ride the bike on Monday or even Tuesday. I will not be home for Wednesday, I am taken a bike ride to Chicago, I am riding up to Indianapolis, loading the V-max into a box truck, driving the box truck on up to Chicago ( my favourite city) unloading the Max out the back and riding home after meeting up with one of the VMF members to buy a kickstand from him. Then off to visit another friend if time allows if not return home. So I am going to have a nice ride. I am going to haul ass to Indy , so I will be running up on the Highway to the box truck and the trip home will be via back roads, I figure something like 450 miles or so on the bike. Well after dinner he was still cramping in the leg so, I drive his tow truck to his home and had my wife follow us. About half way there his looks at me and said I sure glad you talked me into driving me home, his truck is a stick and the left leg took the hits in both falls. I will be checking in with in a few hours from now. Well I hope hope you enjoyed the fresh story of the day. I think that I was told if you meet a rider that has never fallen off his bike he has not rode it far enough. Well I have dropped 3 bikes over the years never hurt, one of them I was dam lucky, I killed the bike, I was going way too fast the light changed and this is one of those lights you do not dare to run, the cross traffic is way to heavy, I could not stop the bike in time so I aimed for the ditch and jumped off, the bike hits the ditch bends the forks in flips a few times and sides to a stop after plowing up 50 feet of grass. But that was my fault for going so fast and not having the bike under control. The bike costed me just under 3k to replace. Oh well, have a great day and smile.
Paul

P.S.
I did check in with Bobby a few hours later and then later today I stopped over to see him and laugh at him. He was still having cramps and both is ankles where swollen from getting a little twisted in the falls. I asked if he was ready to hang his riding hat up or not. I get a reply of " I was having a lot of fun till I fell the first time, and then the second fall was softer but dam if it did not still hurt, but in a week or so I hope to take another ride" I love bobby like an older brother but I really hope to sell the Honda before he either kills the bike or himself.
 

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