Nissan 370Z Forum - View Single Post

Togo · 08-27-2009, 08:01 PM

There has been a lot of great info posted.

#1 - Take the MSF (Motorcycle Safety and Fundementals course). It is worth it 1000x over. It will save your life if you ride long enough.

#2 - GEAR!!! WEAR GEAR!!! I cannot stress that enough. IT WILL SAVE YOUR LIFE!!! Never think to yourself, "oh I'm not planning on going down!". I hear people say that all the time and I'm just like who the **** plans on going down, no one does! Get some good leather gloves, leather jacket, possibly a second one that is mesh with padding if you ride in weather that is 90+ if you wish. Riding in shorts is in my opinion not a smart idea, take what you want from that. I recommend pants. Try to always have boots that at the very least cover your ankles. Sweating sucks and stinks but let me tell you, ROAD RASH HURTS! I've had it, it sucks. I've personally had to scrub fresh road rash on my buddy, clean him with peroxide, and rub ointment on him and bandage him for 3 weeks straight because he looped his bike at 60 in shorts, sandals, and a T-Shirt and had rash on 80% of his body.

#3 - Buy a used bike first. It's a fact of riding but you will go down. Only about 1% of riders can say they rode and never went down. (This is also considering how many years/miles they've ridden for) If you go down in your brand new baby, it's gonna suck. If you go down on a beater then **** it, get up, learn from your mistake and go again!

As for what bike to go with, start small. Don't get a 1K (1000cc). 600cc is ok to learn on, I did but I rode dirt for 3 years prior, as long as you respect her. A 600cc will kick your *** if you don't respect that throttle. It's not exactly and on/off switch but she will be no slouch either. A 250cc or 500cc isn't a bad idea either. I have a few friends with ZERO bike time and they started 250cc and were very thankful they did.

There is a thread for those of us who rock 2 wheels... Calling all Bikers!!!, so be sure to post up your ride.

Some of the guys here have way more years of riding than I, I've only been riding for nearly 5 years, but in that time I have over 30,000 miles on two wheels. A lot of it was in FL as well, and I routinely got cut off or over looked by people on the road there. It turns out us NYers are better at looking out for bikers, go figure.

Some simple advice that has served me well is this: Always ride as if any car on the road is going to try to kill you, this way you'll never be shocked when one actually does try.

Oh FYI, I ride with my brights on 24/7/365. I know it blinds people but my closest close calls have been at dusk with my brights off. Since I left them on at night, no one has EVER not seen me or cut me off at night.

Keep the sticky side down and remember, KAWASAKI RULES. GO GREEN OR GO HOME!

08-27-2009, 08:01 PM	#32 (permalink)
Togo A True Z Fanatic Join Date: May 2009 Location: E. Northport, NY Posts: 7,597 Drives: Stuff Rep Power: 657	There has been a lot of great info posted. #1 - Take the MSF (Motorcycle Safety and Fundementals course). It is worth it 1000x over. It will save your life if you ride long enough. #2 - GEAR!!! WEAR GEAR!!! I cannot stress that enough. IT WILL SAVE YOUR LIFE!!! Never think to yourself, "oh I'm not planning on going down!". I hear people say that all the time and I'm just like who the ** plans on going down, no one does! Get some good leather gloves, leather jacket, possibly a second one that is mesh with padding if you ride in weather that is 90+ if you wish. Riding in shorts is in my opinion not a smart idea, take what you want from that. I recommend pants. Try to always have boots that at the very least cover your ankles. Sweating sucks and stinks but let me tell you, ROAD RASH HURTS! I've had it, it sucks. I've personally had to scrub fresh road rash on my buddy, clean him with peroxide, and rub ointment on him and bandage him for 3 weeks straight because he looped his bike at 60 in shorts, sandals, and a T-Shirt and had rash on 80% of his body. #3 - Buy a used bike first. It's a fact of riding but you will go down. Only about 1% of riders can say they rode and never went down. (This is also considering how many years/miles they've ridden for) If you go down in your brand new baby, it's gonna suck. If you go down on a beater then it, get up, learn from your mistake and go again! As for what bike to go with, start small. Don't get a 1K (1000cc). 600cc is ok to learn on, I did but I rode dirt for 3 years prior, as long as you respect her. A 600cc will kick your * if you don't respect that throttle. It's not exactly and on/off switch but she will be no slouch either. A 250cc or 500cc isn't a bad idea either. I have a few friends with ZERO bike time and they started 250cc and were very thankful they did. There is a thread for those of us who rock 2 wheels... Calling all Bikers!!!, so be sure to post up your ride. Some of the guys here have way more years of riding than I, I've only been riding for nearly 5 years, but in that time I have over 30,000 miles on two wheels. A lot of it was in FL as well, and I routinely got cut off or over looked by people on the road there. It turns out us NYers are better at looking out for bikers, go figure. Some simple advice that has served me well is this: Always ride as if any car on the road is going to try to kill you, this way you'll never be shocked when one actually does try. Oh FYI, I ride with my brights on 24/7/365. I know it blinds people but my closest close calls have been at dusk with my brights off. Since I left them on at night, no one has EVER not seen me or cut me off at night. Keep the sticky side down and remember, KAWASAKI RULES. GO GREEN OR GO HOME! Last edited by Togo; 08-27-2009 at 08:03 PM.