Flash - First Ride

[FlashFlood]

First ride.

Funny thing about motorcycles… It’s an inspiration. Few people find this in their lives. They rarely, if ever, find their muse. Their Mona Lisa. Their Cistine Chapel. Their <insert inspiration here>.

BILLIONS of people. They walk through life, genetically and hereditarily taught to avoid all risks. To work hard in order to achieve something. A commendable trait, this. And yet a gifted few are taught taking risks will sometimes give you a reward. Some take risks, lose sight of what they can safely lose, and choose unwisely. Others that take risks…

Motorcycling is a tremendous risk. It’s a risk because you may be the world greatest pilot, but at the highest levels when you are risking life or death, each mistake is fatal. But the payoff… MMM the sweet payoff.

So few humans on the planet will never know the feeling of flight. No, not flight on an airplane, encased in thousands of pounds of metal and steel, protected and pampered from the real experience of flight. It’s like saying you’ve driven, while being in a bus – as opposed to driving in a Bugati Veyron.

And motorcycling is that – it is flight. Analogous, if only by relativity.
Today I rode. I piloted. I took… flight. Like that first loved’s touch, her kiss… an intoxicating experience that leaves you wanting to go all the way and yet realizing this is true love. You must take your time!

And like that first flight, or first evening, it was over too quickly. Lessons learned, thankfully not fatal, but perhaps a first step towards true mastery.

And that’s just the emotional content. Here’s the facts now. I pulled out of the parking lot, made a turn -a little too wide to be legal - into my lane and went down my block. I stopped at a stop sign, I flashed my lights and did my silly shoulder checks and went. I turn onto a ‘50’ street (everyone always drives too fast on this since it transitions from a highway) and fly. Was I going at 50 ? Sure. Nudges. Winks.

I missed my turn off, turned wide again, and flew up a 40 zone. Possibly to impress complete strangers.

At the top of the hill, I lost my balance and realized the truth. The game isn’t played at high speed… the real game is played at slow speed. I almost dropped my bike on the first ride. And thus, gravity.

I went back to my home and attempted to find open parking spots, opting to be safe by occupying an entire car slot. The universe chose to forgive me my trespasses on the first ride, I’m sure the people looking for parking spots will do the same.

And that’s my first ride on the ninja 250.

[NevadaWolf]

Interesting writing style. Glad your first ride went well enough.

Welcome to the site.

[FlashFlood]

Wow. I reread what I wrote. First impression - that was froo-froo as fk.

Note to self: whiskey activates emotions. Avoid at all costs.


I rode again this morning. Woke up at 5:30am to avoid traffic, and cops. I checked out the route I had planned previously, but alot of the streets were closed off... I guess google maps hasn't been updated yet. I'll need to scout my own hood even further to avoid going down dead-end streets.

The first thing I did was check my mirrors. Yesterday was a rumbling mess because I didn't fix those things. Once I was able to see behind me, I felt my training kick back in and I felt alot safer on the road.

Daylight also enabled me to feel comfortable enough to merge into traffic.

I always thought the ninja would be incapable on the street... Something comparable to a Toyota yaris or smart car - not so! This thing cranks hard up to 80. That's KPH btw I'm Canadian. That's 50mph.

I was indeed the fastest thing on the streets at 6am.

Interestingly, I found myself hoping to find a fellow rider... I want to do the biker wave... I didn't think it would be important, but there it is.

I stopped at a Tim Horton's, which is like a Canadian version of Starbucks. A cute girl gave me a smile lol. I guess being a biker has that effect. I dont know if I'd typically get automatic approval like that...

"Congratulations Flash! You are pre-approved!" Get your free credit card now!

So I sat at a window, had my coffee and spent a few minutes just looking at the ninja 250. I considered tweeting, and then decided 'nah...' I'm too counter-culture for that sht. I decided to send photos and selfies to some friends and my girl instead.

The game's risky and sometimes you want to hit save every so often. It could be the last thing you communicate to people you know?

And then the damnedest thing happened. It started to snow.

I chugged my coffee, strapped up, and got out there.

Interesting notes:
- Once warm the bike generally stays warm, even in Canadian spring "aka every other country's winter."
- You spend a few minutes playing 'where the hell are my keys' when stopping. You must assign a specific pocket for keys or you're going to look retarded.
- Walking into places dressed for riding is weird as all hell, at least at first. Act cool!
- The helmet will fog up in anything but perfect weather. Must install anti-fog helmet mechanism.


I drove out and I happened to pass by a garage. Long lineup of people at 6:30am happened to be waiting for the place to open. Maybe it's some kind of first come first serve place? I lowered my smoke-tint visor, showed off my counter balance skills as I did a U turn and kicked the bike up to 9k rpm as I got out of there. Seeeeeeyaaaaa!

Drove home and remembered why I'm out there in the first place - to practice.

Gear shifting skills are good, left-right-left head wagging at stops and smooth braking and acceleration skills are good.

Things to improve:
- Lost my balance.
- Lane dominance.
- Must get more comfortable among cagers, enough to merge and stay in traffic.
- Slow maneuvers and counter-balance
- Attempt more counter-steering at speed
- Helmet fog, as already mentioned

[broken neck]

Hey Flash,

Where are you located in Montreal? What year/color is your 250? Any distinctive marks on it?

I'm in Villeray, own a 2011 Special Edition, now it's a full white 250 (hated the white front and the black rear), most distinctive mark on it; my Area P exhaust system...

Welcome to the streets of Montreal, if you want a nice place to ride, I love going up and down Camilien-Houde, once on the other side plenty of nice streets: chemin du Belvédère, Summit circle and Summit crescent, chemin Côte des Neiges, etc... You can always end up at Orange Julep.

If you want, I can recommend you some nice routes up north...

Watch those potholes, it can unsettle the bike easily.

[Motofool]

Originally Posted by FlashFlood

........... At the top of the hill, I lost my balance and realized the truth. The game isn’t played at high speed… the real game is played at slow speed. I almost dropped my bike on the first ride. And thus, gravity.
..........
And that’s my first ride on the ninja 250.

Welcome, Flash !!!

Speed is irrelevant, stay within your comfort zone to make your rides enjoyable.
If you enjoy your rides, you are learning and speed naturally will follow.

https://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=122007

Originally Posted by FlashFlood

.........Gear shifting skills are good, left-right-left head wagging at stops and smooth braking and acceleration skills are good.

Things to improve:
- Lost my balance.
- Lane dominance.
- Must get more comfortable among cagers, enough to merge and stay in traffic.
- Slow maneuvers and counter-balance
- Attempt more counter-steering at speed
- Helmet fog, as already mentioned

Taking risks may be exciting, but motorcycling is much more than that.
You can discover that universe by getting proper training and theoretical education and by practicing every day.

Please visit our Riding Skill section.
You will find great tips and advise regarding those things that you want to improve.

[verboten1]

Welcome, I think it would be fun to go up the mountain, I had fun for a few minutes in the car...

I bet this looks familiar....

[broken neck]

That landscape looks pretty familiar. Hehehe.

[FlashFlood]

Hey dudes. Thought I'd chime in so nobody thought anything bad happened to me... I'm 300+ kms into this adventure and things are really getting comfortable for me on the street.

My initial rides were just for me, consisting of going down to the local grocery store after-hours so I could spend a good couple hours doing counter-balance exercises. I must have weaved a couple hundred figure 8s into that Loblaws parking lot lol.

For any new riders, I highly recommend it... It's a great exercise because it teaches you where to lock the handlebars and just how far you need to lean and where to look. I can easily do a U-turn with just two parking space widths now.

Emergency stops, rolling stops, hard stops, hard launches, stopping in a curve... I just drilled over and over for that first 2 weeks and it translated into superior confidence and skill on the road.

In fact, I went riding with a friend who's had his Ninja 300 for 2 years and I noticed I knew just how tight I could make my turns, just where my power band is, and just generally noticed how much sharper I was in relation to someone who might not have been drilling every day for a few weeks.

My rides these days are characterized by taking my normal route through city streets, eventually merging into a highway, and blasting my way back to get that adrenaline rush.

I've managed to check out the Orange Julep, several motorcycle shops, and the new royal victoria hospital.

I've had a few people attempt to kill me along the way... cagers merging into traffic without checking mirrors, blind spots or not caring... Standard fare I suppose, I imagine everyone has stories of cars that risked everything for a .5 second advantage. I just gave them the dreaded biker stare, or flash your beams, or let the bike scream for you.

Spending the time training is paying off... and I highly recommend checking out the rider skills section like Motofool mentioned.

I'm actually hesitant to ID my location and bike... I'm usually found near NDG or westmount, trundling along random side streets in a special edition 2010 ninja 250... If you can find me, that's cool But I cant make it too easy.

I'm loving this bike. It's forgiven me twice so far. Once I failed launching into a right-facing intersection and nearly dropped her on a parked car. Thank god I had the strength to keep her up.

The second time, up-hill right-hand turn... I had to stop due to pedestrians and again I had to spend my strength to prevent the drop. If I had a 600c bike or a similar size cruiser, I just don't know if I'd be driving a mint bike right now.

So that's where I'm at and where my skills are going... Things to improve:
- Turn signals MUST be deactivated as soon as the turn is completed. You look like a loser trying to get up to speed with it on.
- Merging into the highway - What the hell is wrong with cagers? Match the speed of traffic so that when you merge you dont cause a line of cars to slow down! It's even sketchier when you got a rider behind you... You can survive a rear-ender but I cant!
- Avoid succumbing to the sweet sweet call of speed. The sound barrier will be there when your skills have caught up.

BTW I picked up a gopro and am slowly cobbling together a motovlogging set. Maybe one day I'll stand next to 6ft4honda and snowcat as Canadian motovloggers. Stay tuned!

[snapshot]

Good reading and stream of consciousness stuff!

Takes me back to the beginning. Keep it (and the practicing) up!

Ride on,

J~

[csmith12]

ikr!!! I wish from time to time, we all could go back to when we were new riders to re-enjoy some of those feelings. It's truly one of the best times to be a rider.

[dcj13]

I like KingWizard's writing style, perspective, and his dedication to productive parking lot practice!

Nice work, all the way around. Glad you're here and sharing your thoughts!

[broken neck]

Nice to know that you haven't been swallowed by one of our nice potholes...

Or serving as a hood ornament...

Glad to read you're still having fun wandering the streets of Montréal...

[FlashFlood]

I was riding this week, emboldened by some recent solo highway experiences. I had been exploring the beautiful city of Montreal, getting lost on purpose and finding my way back. I believe I'm becoming quite proficient at life above 100 kph.

Yesterday, the universe chose to punish me for my hubris. She sent two assassins after me...

I was riding down Monkland, a short street that is littered with bars, restaurants, ice cream parlors, fauna and flora. On this particular day, the street happened to be as busy on the road as it was on the sidewalk with a long line of cars going the opposite direction, but my road in-land was empty.

I'm going at speed limit and my first pucker moment occurred: A fcking cabbie was trundling into my lane to turn left. I immediately reverted to my training, locked arms to brace myself, straighten the bike, gently and firmly squeeze. I scrubbed off as much speed as I could and thankfully was able to avoid an accident as I squeezed behind the guy.

I was so upset I couldn't figure out where my horn was... The cabbie's head never turned towards me. I'll never forget the back of that gray haired bastard's head.

He was completely hidden by oncoming traffic, which had parted to allow the cabbie to cross the street. But how do you not check for oncoming traffic ??

Enraging.


The second time came this morning. Again, emboldened from my increasing experience level, I opted to take the bike to work this morning. A Saturday, early, no traffic, it was going to be cake.

No way! On the way down Cote Ste Antoine, a non-highway route downtown, slow moving and residential, I see this riced out hatchback in matte black and tinted windows at an intersection hesitating.

It's a two-lane one-way road, and I'm in the far right lane.

In my head, it clicks that he is hesitating and about to do something unorthodox. I could *feel* that an unknown variable was about to be placed onto my playing field. In my head, I'm like 'I'm a lane over, i've maximized my margin for safety!'

HAH. dumb@ass.

The dude pulls out, enters his lane in a diagonal, and next thing I know, he's entering my lane too! At this point, due to my previous experience, I know *exactly* where my horn is. I do a quick juke to the right to avoid his monkey @ss and start peppering him with the world's most ineffectual sounding horn. bip bip bip bip !!!

I fly past and do the 180 with one hand on the throttle, the other in the air "wtf???"

Shrugged it off and flew away.

Tricks learned:
- When stopping, you can glide to slow speed and then squeeze the rear brake. When done smoothly, the left leg can come down in the most pro-looking stop at lights. An old trick, but once practised, it is boss.
- When wearing sunglasses, note that they do fog up. Take that into account when riding visor up or down.
- Do not stare directly at people. They find it extremely uncomfortable when a pilot in full riding gear and visor down does it.
- Interestingly, some girls like it ;-)
- When stopping, pay attention to the shape of the road coming up. Account for potholes, inclines, and other issues which might cause you to alter yoru usual resting stop stance.

[Motofool]

You were navigating in the most hostile environment for motorcycles: city intersections and commercial areas.

Copied from the findings in the Hurt Report:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...he_Hurt_Report

1. Approximately three-fourths of these motorcycle accidents involved collision with another vehicle, which was most usually a passenger automobile.
.......
6. In the multiple vehicle accidents, the driver of the other vehicle violated the motorcycle right-of-way and caused the accident in two-thirds of those accidents.
7. The failure of motorists to detect and recognize motorcycles in traffic is the predominating cause of motorcycle accidents. The driver of the other vehicle involved in collision with the motorcycle did not see the motorcycle before the collision, or did not see the motorcycle until too late to avoid the collision.
8. Deliberate hostile action by a motorist against a motorcycle rider is a rare accident cause.
.......
10. Intersections are the most likely place for the motorcycle accident, with the other vehicle violating the motorcycle right-of-way, and often violating traffic controls.
.......
13. The view of the motorcycle or the other vehicle involved in the accident is limited by glare or obstructed by other vehicles in almost half of the multiple vehicle accidents.
.......
16. The median pre-crash speed was 29.8 mph, and the median crash speed was 21.5 mph, and the one-in-a-thousand crash speed is approximately 86 mph.
.......
28. Motorcycle riders in these accidents showed significant collision avoidance problems. Most riders would overbrake and skid the rear wheel, and underbrake the front wheel greatly reducing collision avoidance deceleration. The ability to countersteer and swerve was essentially absent.
29. The typical motorcycle accident allows the motorcyclist just less than 2 seconds to complete all collision avoidance action.

You did well.
Your intense parking lot practice, eliminated cause #28 from the list.