Quote:
Originally Posted by ducatiman
before I comment further....some prerequisite questions:
Have you been cleared to ride by your Doc(s) from a medical viewpoint?
Any actual physical impediments?
Do you drive a car? Have a driving licence?
Experience in dealing with traffic situations?
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Yes I am cleared, no physical impediments, and Yes I do drive a car and have experience dealing with traffic. I actually have both defensive and offensive driving training from my time in security, and have never had a speeding ticket, and one accident in twenty years of driving that I was not at fault for. After my last crash I did extensive research and taught myself how to ride, as I already had experience riding a dirt bike. What I did not learn were two key areas: rev matching and throttle control.
Specifically, I did not know that while riding, you could ease back on the throttle to decrease your speed without downshifting, as each gear has a specific range to operate in both for the RPMs and speed. Due to that I refused to get out on the open road and risk my safety or anyone else's. Though I am Autistic, I am not stupid (not implying that you thought that). My issues mostly deal with sensory overload with certain sounds. It's why I said I learn better when it's a one on one thing where I don't feel pressured or rush; an example being like when you work in a production setting.
I also do better when I'm alone. I have always been introverted, and that is due in large part to the abuse that I have endured as a child. That in turn created insecurity, which affects everything that I do like a job, ext. I guess that same insecurity is present in learning to ride, but I feel like I made steps to overcome that by making a level headed decision to get up and get back on it. I read Proficient Motorcycling over and over, then took the bike in my driveway and learned to feel the throttle, while watching the RPM's.
Next I learned the friction zone on the clutch so that it would not stall. after a week of doing that, I practiced accelerating from stand still to the end of the driveway, and stopping the bike at a pre determine spot. I did that for two weeks before going down the street. I learned how the tires react when they're cold and hot, and I practiced counter steering. Then I began doing emergency braking. I got the bike up to 60 and stopped it using both the front and rear brakes. That taught me how and when I could use them.
I'm sharing this because I do not want you to think that I am completely ignorant, nor do I want you to think that I just saw MotoGP and decided that a ZX10r should be my goal. I like being and feeling safe, and after two months of what I just described, I felt safe on the 250. I liked how stable it felt, and though I did not do any extreme cornering, when I did corner I felt in control of the bike instead of like I did when I crashed. I realized that I hit the gravel that was spilled on the road, the tires lost traction, and that was that. I do not regret that happening, because it taught me a valuable lesson.
I also don't have an ego like some folks you see that give riding a bad rap. I want to use the bike to commute in town, and get at least six months of experience doing that before I attempt to ride on the highway. Even as a driver in a car we all see how crazy some folks are, always in a hurry, and they always think that they deserve or have a right to place their own interests above someone else's safety.
This time around my goal is to buy a bike from a dealership rather than a private seller, in order to avoid the same mistakes as before. I also have no intention of riding the bike in the rain, or if I feel bad. Riding as far as I have experienced is a whole other sensory experience, but in a good way. You have to constantly be aware of your surroundings, while maintain control of the bike. I learned that if I don't look downrange several hundred meters, that I could miss something that could get me killed. You can't do that if you're sleepy, tired, or feeling bad.