September 4th, 2011, 09:37 PM | #1 |
ninjette.org member
Name: Alex
Location: Salt Lake City
Join Date: Aug 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2012 Triumph Street Triple R, 2011 250R SE (sold 5/8/13) Posts: 128
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First group ride
I went on my first group (and long) ride today. There were 6 of us in all. We took a twisty ride up East Canyon in Utah, to Morgan. Then back down again, and through emigration canyon. Very pretty scenery and some cool bends.
My MSF instructor took the lead on his Triumph Tiger (we have a mutual friend), then me on my ninja, another guy on his new Triumph Triple Speed (that bike is insane), another noob on a Ninja 500, then a HD (with his radio blaring), and finally Chuck from Wheelnerds.com on his Buell. Having the MSF dude there certainly added some rigor to the ride - a lot of hand signals; though I appreciated the fact that he pointed out a lot of hazards - reduced the stress. My bike had 290 miles on it before today (from generally tooling around in The Salt Lake area), so I'm still on my break in. That went completely out of the window today - hit 75 on the freeway, and 10,000 rpm in various gears. Aah well. There were a few things I noticed today. First off, I was not prepared for the amount of wind buffeting I experienced. I'm going to have to get better at tucking down lower so the air flow goes over my head. On the way up the canyon the ride was slow as we got stuck behind a truck towing jet skis, but there are some tight bends that were fun. Except the first thing my friend says when we stop for a break is that I need to turn my head more. As I watched for this after the break I think that I was nervous through the bends, more intent on watching the road surface and where I was in relation to the verge or the center line, than looking through the corner. Finally - the lean. On some of the bends I felt as if I was leaning so far over that I would be able to touch the road with my hand. When we got off we (me and the other noob) were told that we were hardly leaning, and need to lean a lot more. Apparently perception and reality are a world apart. The thing I'm not doing is shifting my weight over the side of the bike - I'm staying in line with the bikes lean. A lot more practice is required. Anyway, I put 160 miles on the bike today and had a blast. Looking forwards to the next ride |
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September 4th, 2011, 09:44 PM | #2 |
ninjette.org dude
Name: 1 guess :-)
Location: SF Bay Area
Join Date: Jun 2008 Motorcycle(s): '13 Ninja 300 (white, the fastest color!), '13 R1200RT, '14 CRF250L, '12 TT-R125LE Posts: Too much.
Blog Entries: 7
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That doesn't sound so bad! I saw the unhappy face icon on the thread, and thought I was about to read about a crash on your first group ride. I wouldn't worry about trying to lean more and more. The lean angle will come. Focus instead on putting the bike where you want it to be, choosing good lines through corners, managing your speed carefully, and keeping the stress level manageable. As a new rider, you're processing a whole bunch of information that over time will become second nature and require less conscious thought. But until then, everything seems more complicated, faster, and harder than it will ultimately prove to be. Good job on finishing your first group ride on two wheels, and I hope you have thousands more.
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September 4th, 2011, 09:53 PM | #3 |
ninjette.org member
Name: Alex
Location: Salt Lake City
Join Date: Aug 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2012 Triumph Street Triple R, 2011 250R SE (sold 5/8/13) Posts: 128
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I'm not sure where the angry face came from, unless I fat fingered something on my IPad. Thanks for the pep talk though - and I'm sure experience will help a lot.
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September 4th, 2011, 10:07 PM | #4 |
MotoGP Junkie
Name: Ace
Location: San Diego, CA
Join Date: Jul 2009 Motorcycle(s): 250 Ninja Posts: 40
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Congrats! Awesome that you had your MSF Instructor leading. Really helps to have a good smart rider helping you along. It helped me tons and I continue to try to pass it along to friends who are interested in listening
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September 4th, 2011, 10:12 PM | #5 |
New 2-Wheel Addict
Name: Reece
Location: Bardstown
Join Date: Aug 2011 Motorcycle(s): Blue 2009 250r Kawasaki Ninja Posts: 129
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You had fun and are learning. I'd call that pretty successful.
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Four wheels move the body. Two wheels move the soul. |
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September 5th, 2011, 12:32 AM | #6 | |
shaol1n ninja stuntman
Name: Jae
Location: Philly
Join Date: May 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2006 Yamaha YZF R6 Anniversary "Yoshiko" 2007 Honda CBR600RR "Katsumi"(SOLD) 2010 Ninja ZX-2R "JADE" (RIP) Posts: 726
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Quote:
congrats on the first group ride! theres a bunch of good videos on youtube and this site for learning lean angles and body position for cornering. search superbike school or keith code. i also heghly recommend keith codes twist of the wrist 2 dvd, i learned alot form it and will still go back and watch again to learn more.
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September 5th, 2011, 08:05 PM | #7 |
Blue Shell magnet
Name: Nolan
Location: Northwest Washington
Join Date: Aug 2011 Motorcycle(s): 1997 Ninja 250 Posts: 816
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Wow that was a lot of criticism your friends gave you for one of your first rides... just take it easy at first
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September 5th, 2011, 08:18 PM | #8 |
ninjette.org certified postwhore
Name: Eric
Location: Murfreesboro, TN
Join Date: Jun 2011 Motorcycle(s): '13 300 Posts: A lot.
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Glad you had a good group ride, Glad to see your exp wasn't like mine....and to have a MSF Instructor to give guidance would be good.
as a noob also and being on 3 GR's now... I won't go anymore, at least till I'm a lot better on the bike. I find the more experienced ppl are just to fast, esp on my last group ride. I find myself trying to follow them more, and just adding to my worries by me worrying I am holding up the group. Glad to see my exp isn't always the case w/ groups. |
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September 14th, 2011, 01:08 PM | #9 | ||
Mr. 988
Name: Jeff
Location: Sandy, Utah
Join Date: Aug 2009 Motorcycle(s): One Posts: A lot.
Blog Entries: 1
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Quote:
Quote:
Just my Jeff
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"I'm the one that's got to die when it's time for me to die, so let me live my life, the way I want to" - Jimi Hendrix Cancer |
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September 14th, 2011, 05:07 PM | #10 |
vampire
Name: A
Location: IT
Join Date: Feb 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2 many 2 list Posts: A lot.
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At 75 mph, you're likely to experience significant wind buffering on most bikes, I hope you had earplugs on.
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September 14th, 2011, 05:32 PM | #11 |
ninjette.org member
Name: Alex
Location: Salt Lake City
Join Date: Aug 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2012 Triumph Street Triple R, 2011 250R SE (sold 5/8/13) Posts: 128
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Hey Jeff, I also live in Sandy, off 94th and 23rd. I'll be looking out for you out there.
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September 14th, 2011, 05:34 PM | #12 |
ninjette.org member
Name: Alex
Location: Salt Lake City
Join Date: Aug 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2012 Triumph Street Triple R, 2011 250R SE (sold 5/8/13) Posts: 128
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It was my first ride with ear plugs and I'll never ride without them now. I also took another freeway ride and tucked down a lot more - a world of difference, though still looking at double bubbles
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September 14th, 2011, 06:45 PM | #13 |
ninjette.org member
Name: CJ
Location: Las Vegas NV
Join Date: Sep 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2009 Ninja 250R, 2009 CRF230L, 1998 Honda VT1100c, 1974 Honda XL100, 07 Yamaha Wolverine 350, 06 ArticCat 250 Posts: 43
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GR
Congrats on getting your license and taking the class. Welcome to the a new adventure in life riding. Be easy on your self it is a learning experience.
I am not a big fan of large group rides. I find one or two people is enjoyable. I agree with stay focused learn what you can from experienced riders but ride your ride at your pace never theirs. So do what you feel is comfortable. Seat time will get you better every time. If speeds are to much slow down. Remember you will make mistakes and the Ninja 250 will let you and get you back out of them as well. It is a great bike for any level rider. You will get use to wind. Here in Vegas Valley we get winds all the time. Ride fast feels better. But a good windscreen helps I have two zero gravity. One DB and one touring. Depends on where I am going as to which I place on. Again be safe, have fun, enjoy and ride how you feel and listen to the advice but take it at your level. |
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September 15th, 2011, 10:45 AM | #14 |
Mr. 988
Name: Jeff
Location: Sandy, Utah
Join Date: Aug 2009 Motorcycle(s): One Posts: A lot.
Blog Entries: 1
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Howdy neighbor.
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"I'm the one that's got to die when it's time for me to die, so let me live my life, the way I want to" - Jimi Hendrix Cancer |
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