Novice Motorcycle question

[Jsick7x]

I am very new to riding! I just got my bike the other day and when I ride it I tend to go forward and hit my ...stuff.. . Anything I can do to help my situation?

[Snake]

Put a tank pad on the tank which will help your legs hug the tank and keep from sliding foward.

[Flashmonkey]

Originally Posted by Snake

Put a tank pad on the tank which will help your legs hug the tank and keep from sliding foward.

Rick is specifically referring to the techspec/stomp-grip pads that you put on the sides of the tank....not the tank protector thing.

Also squeeze the tank with your knees...and ride with the balls of your foot on the pegs, with your heels resting on the heel guards (this should help with the squeezing).

Oh and don't armor-all your seat.

[komohana]

who was it that answerd:
"put um in your back pocket!" last time someone askd that???

[noche_caliente]

Can't say I have that problem, but the baby growing in my belly has become an issue... any advice for that

[Greg_E]

Originally Posted by noche_caliente

Can't say I have that problem, but the baby growing in my belly has become an issue... any advice for that

Yes, take the car!

[rceezy]

LOL @ Greg...

[Yoda]

If your nailing the tank under braking my 2 cents start braking/down shifting earlier. The earlier you start your slow down the less brake force you have to use and that helps keep the bike from nose diving and throwing you forward.

You can always power out of a curve slow spot but its a whole world harder to get rid of speed in a bad spot.

Find a nice empty parking lot and practice in 1st/2nd gear getting up to 15-20 mph and slowing down till you got it nice and smooth.

And the obligatory if you havent taken the MSF course please do.

[GeorgiaHooligan]

Tuck it to the left, thats what I do

[OldGuy]

Originally Posted by GeorgiaHooligan

Tuck it to the left, thats what I do

Hmmm - sounds like a whole new thread; dress left or dress right?

[adouglas]

Originally Posted by Yoda

If your nailing the tank under braking my 2 cents start braking/down shifting earlier. The earlier you start your slow down the less brake force you have to use and that helps keep the bike from nose diving and throwing you forward.

You can always power out of a curve slow spot but its a whole world harder to get rid of speed in a bad spot.

Find a nice empty parking lot and practice in 1st/2nd gear getting up to 15-20 mph and slowing down till you got it nice and smooth.

And the obligatory if you havent taken the MSF course please do.

This is all very good advice.

You really don't need to hurry to the stop light or the next corner... slow in, fast out, smooth smooth smooth means you're faster overall anyway.

I've been having a lot of fun lately practicing smooth downshifts, because they feel good and with my new AreaP exhaust they sound really good too. Getting off the highway I'll blip the throttle to match revs, downshift through the gears and let engine braking slow the bike down. Compared to hauling on the brakes to slow down, the bike stays a lot more stable, doesn't jerk at all if I do it right and I actually don't even need to touch the brakes until I'm going way less than 30 mph.

And because it's a smooth, steady, mild deceleration I don't slide forward.

Here's something else to think about. Lean forward, so your forearms are parallel with the ground. This is good riding posture, and it lets you use your arms to keep yourself from sliding forward under braking.

Way too many people stiff-arm the bike IMHO. The other day I saw some nimnart on a beautiful retro Kawasaki ZRX1200. No gear at all aside from sunglasses, sitting bolt upright with elbows locked. Not the way to control the bike.

[komohana]

Originally Posted by OldGuy

Hmmm - sounds like a whole new thread; dress left or dress right?

active duty, retired or prior servicemen you KNOW are gonna "DRRRESSS RIIIGHT...DRESS!!

[TrueFaith]

The stock seat slopes annoyingly towards the tank. A Corbin saddle is wider and flatter and doesn't do that as much. Or you can just add padding and re-staple the seat cover on. There are several threads on sculpting the seat to your liking already. Do a bit of searching and you'll get a lot of options.

[mrlmd]

Rest your feet on the pegs on the balls of your feet (haha) (or closer to the toes), rather than on the midsole (or closer to the heel). This may help you hold yourself in the right position instead of sliding forward.

[zenrush]

Deceleration through down shifting and riding with the balls of my feet on the pegs works extremely well for me. I also read somewhere (these forums?) that sitting so that the weight of your body is maintained by your abs and back instead of your arms is a better riding position for a number of reasons. I have been trying this and I find my arms are very relaxed, I do not ride on the tank and I am quite comfortable in the seat.

[HotWheels]

In conjunction to what some other people have suggested, I also suggest that when you are riding, that you simply sit with your stuff already up against the tank. This will aid in not only a little more weight covering the front tire which of coarse is good but this will also help you out when braking so that you won't get hurt anymore.

Also in response too aduglas's recommendation to use your arms to help stop from sliding, that's all good and well, how ever the only thing that would concern me with that is perhaps unnecessary steering inputs that could present themselves. And as aduglas had stated, there are so many people riding stiff armed when braking. This is actually not only very poor riding technique, but it can also be out right unsafe. I happen to have Keith Code's A Twist Of The Wrist 2. One of the best motorcycling instruction/material I have ever read and has made me light years a better rider than before. According to his suggestion, it states that you always want to keep your arms slightly bent under braking and not rely on them to help you from, sliding around etc. You always want to make sure that you are sitting right up against the tank and also using your legs hugging the tank to help you as well.

One of the biggest reasons for not wanting to use your rigid arms to help you is to A) not upset the bike steering when braking which is very possible and B) not transferring excess unnecessary weight to the front tire. It is VERY easy to transfer an extra 30-40 lbs of weight to the front tire by keeping your arms rigid. And that is A LOT! Also make sure to keep your grip on the handlebars nice and loose as well to avoid unnecessary steering inputs.

[karlosdajackal]

Originally Posted by HotWheels

In conjunction to what some other people have suggested, I also suggest that when you are riding, that you simply sit with your stuff already up against the tank. This will aid in not only a little more weight covering the front tire which of coarse is good but this will also help you out when braking so that you won't get hurt anymore.

Also in response too aduglas's recommendation to use your arms to help stop from sliding, that's all good and well, how ever the only thing that would concern me with that is perhaps unnecessary steering inputs that could present themselves. And as aduglas had stated, there are so many people riding stiff armed when braking. This is actually not only very poor riding technique, but it can also be out right unsafe. I happen to have Keith Code's A Twist Of The Wrist 2. One of the best motorcycling instruction/material I have ever read and has made me light years a better rider than before. According to his suggestion, it states that you always want to keep your arms slightly bent under braking and not rely on them to help you from, sliding around etc. You always want to make sure that you are sitting right up against the tank and also using your legs hugging the tank to help you as well.

One of the biggest reasons for not wanting to use your rigid arms to help you is to A) not upset the bike steering when braking which is very possible and B) not transferring excess unnecessary weight to the front tire. It is VERY easy to transfer an extra 30-40 lbs of weight to the front tire by keeping your arms rigid. And that is A LOT! Also make sure to keep your grip on the handlebars nice and loose as well to avoid unnecessary steering inputs.

Same book, similar advice, according to the book keep your elbows bent so they are steering and not holding you up.

Basically grip the bike with everything below your belt, and keep everything above the belt loose and relaxed. Novices tend to do the opposite which leads to sliding in the seat and stiff steering and throttle inputs. Start practicing the correct way now....





Why are you still reading this, I said get out and practice

[Davidb1986]

tighty whities!!! thats my solution it keeps the boys close plus a tank pad helps from sliding as mentioned by others earlier in the thread!!!

[Sound Wave]

Originally Posted by TrueFaith

The stock seat slopes annoyingly towards the tank. A Corbin saddle is wider and flatter and doesn't do that as much. Or you can just add padding and re-staple the seat cover on. There are several threads on sculpting the seat to your liking already. Do a bit of searching and you'll get a lot of options.

the corbin helped me too.

[Flashmonkey]

Originally Posted by Davidb1986

tighty whities!!! thats my solution it keeps the boys close plus a tank pad helps from sliding as mentioned by others earlier in the thread!!!

Modifying underwear habits? Brutal haha. Might as well get him to wear a cup.

I go commando FYI.