MSF class, yay..
 

So, riding a motorcycle is fun. Learning how to is kind of fun, but partially aggravating. I keep forgetting to let off the clutch easy when just starting to move forward in 1st and as a result stall the bike. I know what the problem is, however I can't break the habit..

Another thing I'm particularly bad at is sharp corner turns. I either go in too fast or slow down too much. Swerving without displacement or roomy displacement I can do decently, but with 8' displacement I usually miss a few cones.

I talked to the instructors and they're both very helpful, however, it would be nice to hear some other voices too. Not to mention with only one more day left in the class, time is running short. And although I'd say it wasn't a wasted $240 and hour long drives to get there if I don't pass, I'd really like to walk away saying I did it and not have to drop another $240. Any and all help is appreciated.

practice practice practice.

goodluck.....

like cutty said... practice.

with the clutch try letting the clutch out FIRST before giving it gas... let the clutch out just enough till the bike starts to roll... then roll on the throttle. on my ZZR the throttle response was horrible under 20mph... so I'd use verry little to 0 throttle and just slip the clutch to stop the jerky rock'n that would happen if I just let the clutch out and controlled my speed with the throttle.

with the cones... try not to look at the cones... look UP... you look down you will either miss cones or put a foot down. run through it looking at an imaginary point straight ahead over each cone. you should have an idea if you missed them, but shouldn't know for sure until you stop and look back... if you do miss them... it's not the end of the world...


but don't get too worked up about it... even if you have to drop another $250... it's worth it.

and to be honest... in my class, there was only one girl who failed... and she couldn't do a single move with out putting her foot down or forgetting something.

I'm sure you'll be fine...

GOOD LUCK!!!

lots of practice.

Just do circle wheelies around the cone, but don't get advise from ebbs on wheelies :lol:

oh I can tell him how to wheelie... it's keeping the wheelie going I have trouble with... :lol:

THese guys are right. It takes practice. Not everyone can do it. Stick with it and be safe.

Practice, practice, practice. Keep your head up while you're riding it.

Like Ebbs said, control the clutch until the bike starts to roll forward, then roll into the gas.

My RC is a lot like Ebbs bike, doesn't like going less than 20 without slipping the clutch. I had trouble when I was going through MSF to ride on base. My Shadow HATED the slalom, and then before the second day, the lights broke and I had to use a loaner bike for the practical test.

I never did manage to weave through every single cone successfully in the class and still passed. Like they say when you do pass, Congratulations! You are now qualified to ride around at 35 mph in a parking lot. It's just about giving you the fundamental skills and knowledge that you'll need to work on and continue to practice to be a safe and skilled rider. Relax and realize that this weekend is the beginning, not the final destination.

I had 2 girls in my class crash and they both passed. Scary sorta.

Yeah basically. I only had one girl in my class that didnt pass and thats cuz she didnt show up after the first day of riding when she crashed. I was worried about passing because I wasnt very smooth with the damn figure 8s but I made it through the class.

I shifted the loaner bike into second to make the figure 8, little did I know that the damn thing didn't like to shift into second. Ran out of speed in neutral while trying to flip it from left to right and had to put a foot down. Only mark down I had, but it still should not have happened.

I think I was in second for mine as well and had about the same thing happen.

did my whole MSF class in 2nd. way easier.

:dthumb:

The easiest way to perform all the slow speed manuevers is hold the throttle at a certain point and control the speed of the bike with the clutch. They call it the friction zone. Makes it alot easier.

And drag the rear brake...

I did everything right except braking...I braked late and got marked off otherwise i was perfecy...But those figure 8's were definatly a bitch.

As stated, Practice is the best thing to do.

i got marked down for doing the two finger mcgillicutty... don't need 4 fingers to stop my bike... bitch will stand on end with just two.

the instructor who rode a old fireblade said she understood but had to mark me down because of it.

I would put my feet down before i came to a full stop...Instructor was like Stop ddoing that...I was like sorry it happens without me even realizing it. And I loved when we were sitting therer you HAD to have both hands on the bars...I got yelled at like 5 times for not doing it.

I passed! I fucked up on the cone swerving though. I tried doing it in 1st because I couldn't get to 2nd in time, and I suck riding around in 1st. My U-turns blew too, but I wasn't expecting much going into that part anyway. I didn't put my foot down, but made a fucked up 8 lol. Clutch issues dissapeared on the plus side. Thanks for the advice on that btw.

All in all, I'm glad I took the class. It was fun, and having the practice bike was nice too. Many lessons both big and small were learned.. including to check and make sure the kickstand is down.. This shit should definetly be required to get a license. The instructors also said they'd be happy to give one on one lessons free of charge as well for everyone wishing to follow up on what they've learned. Something I'm definetly gonna take advantage of.

Now I need a bike.. and an emptly parking lot.

I'm not sure if you guys know, but they updated the policy reguarding licensing. You can now get licensed to ride just from taking the beginer course. We weren't even told they updated that either, so that was a nice surprise.

congrats! yeah get a bike and hit the lot!! be safe and HAVE FUN!!!

Woot! Congrats on passing! :rockwoot:

Congrats.

ND has the same rules. Get your license by passing the MSF and your permit test.

congrats!!!!

Thanks!! :rockout:

Congratulations! :dthumb:

Florida's the same way, you can get a license from taking the MSF. To pass MSF you've got to take a written test and a practical, same as at the DMV.

Congrats on passing, now get a bike and some gear, be safe and most of all, have fun

Congrats! Keep practicing.


PA is the same....license is issued after completion.

I wonder why SC wasn't doing that until now. I would have been pissed if I took the class a couple weeks ago and found out I could have had my license if I just waited. I'd still be in the parking lot either way so it doesn't really matter, but ya see what I'm saying.

Edit: I also already have basic riding gear. I wish I had rain gear though since it was raining during all of Sunday.

Also, what kind of shit should I get for the garage (or closet since I lack a garage now)? I mean fluids for maintenance and the like. I probably won't be doing much myself at first, but I might know someone that can show me how and I'd like to be prepared.

chain lube if you get a chain drive bike (most are)
engine oil
coolant

you'll get more as you get into it and know what you are going to be doing on your bike.

Don't feel bad, I've been riding for almost 20 years (good God that makes me sound old) and I still don't have proper rain gear. It may just be that I don't mind riding in the rain:idk:

Stuff to keep on hand at the house (at least I've always had this stuff):
chain lube
WD40 (for use when cleaning the chain)
engine oil
coolant
some shop rags (for cleaning the chain)
an inexpensive rear stand (makes cleaning the chain a lot easier)

Congrats on passing the MSF basic course. Now, do don't some stupid shit like buying a Hayabusa. You're barely competent enough to ride a light, weak motorbike in a parking lot, just to keep things in perspective. So becareful in what you get and practice, practice, practice and then practice some more before hitting the streets. Get your starting, stopping and gearshifting until it's natural. The streets are not the place to stall out or drop bikes.

BTW, don't forget to buy a tire pressure gauge. Get a good analog one (the digital ones tend to die when you need them the most) with a hose and an air release button so that if you were to overinflate your tire, you can deflate the tire while monitoring the pressure. Check the pressure at least once very two weeks, preferrably once every week. Keep the pressures to factory recommendations for now until you learn more about your bike's handling. Then you can experiment with tire pressures.

This gauge has all the features that I suggested. Also make sure that you get the gauge that goes up to 60-psi. A street bike's tire pressure can go up to 40-PSI or more. http://www.getagauge.com/MotorcycleTireGauges.cfm

I'm pretty sure my dad has a pressure guage, but I'll keep that in mind if he doesn't.

I plan on spending plenty of time in a parking lot, however I can't help but notice most bikes I can afford are about an hour drive from me.. :panic: So I think a little travel is going to have to take place..

Congrats!

Did they say "Congratulations, you're now certified to ride around in a parking lot" when you graduated? :)

PRACTICE. I think I rode around a parking lot for 250 miles before I got my license.

No, but they implied it. The thing is, to get to the parking lot I have to get comfortable turning, downshifting and all that crazy shit. The closest parking lot isn't around the corner like home. :panic: I just been riding around this circle where I live at when I have spare time.

Thanks btw.

Better than nothin! Keep up the good work :)

Go through your Rider Handbook a couple more times... Lotta good info in there.

Another great purchase is Riding In the Zone by Ken Condon. It's got a supplementary DVD that goes along w/ the book that's really helpful. The "acting" is pretty dry, but the material is great :)

clutch play is a very common issue for newbies, but you will get it.

Yea, it's coming along. I don't stall nearly as often as I used to anymore. Turns from a stop are getting better too.

I must have had atleast 2 hours to practice today before all the kiddies started getting out of school, but I only ended up using 30-60 minutes of it. I focused on left turns and braking at stop signs. Next time out is right turns. I'm getting a good feel for looking through turns, but I still gotta work on turning in general. I did notice, however, that I subconsiously made the bike move where I wanted it to go when I looked all the way through. All in all, good day.

I did take a while to start moving from stops though, but I guess I'll work on that after I get a solid feel for turning.

Yeah dude, head turn is KEY!!!

Take this pic for example... this was taken last weekend when I was out on the MSF range with my fellow RiderCoach wannabe's.

Your chin should be damn near your shoulder when turning.

Remember.... SLOW, LOOK, PRESS, ROLL!!! Each is just as important as the other.

http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/c...stuff/pete.jpg

I took a small ride today, and this is the first time I wanted to go right back out. That looking where you want to go shit is no lie. I used to look at the ground or straight ahead and then looking toward where I wanted to go. Today I just looked where I wanted to go from the get-go. It makes a hell of a lot of difference. I was too worried about stalling or dropping the bike that I was hurting myself more than helping. Thanks to all for pushing that. Now I'm more focused on the riding rather than fucking up.

That was the part that made the box so tough for me... Having to turn and look almost behind me just didn't feel natural and I kept looking at where I was instead of where I wanted to be...

Took my first ride to class today, and it felt great. I thought I was going to have a few problems with a bend in the road and a sharpish turn, but everything was smooth. Thanks again for everyone that helped me get through the learning curve. Not to say that the curve is over, but you know what I mean. Next I'd like to tackle U-turns.

Shit. Looking back at the beginning of this thread I accomplished a lot.. :rockout:

Aren't those little bikes a blast? I loved 'em when I took my BRC

Hehe, yup... spent the last four weekends dinkin around on em. They're fun little shits. Terrible suspension, bad brakes, noodle chassis, hampster motors..... but fun! :p

btw, got my MSF RiderCoach certification this past weekend & helped coach a class of 12 students... 10 had NEVER been on a bike before & all 12 passed. Woot!


NJChopper, glad to hear that things are quite literally turning in the right direction :p

Grats on the certification. It must feel very rewarding watching them all walk away successfull.