I have gone to quite a few places online to read up on motorcycles. I wanted to see all the rookie mistakes not to make, the wrecks, the aftermaths of wrecks, general maintenance, 0-60 times, 1/4 mile times, mpg....and mainly beginner advice from you guys that have been riding for awhile....

As I fill up yesterday, I'm admiring my new(to me) ride and first bike. Some girls pull up in a civic and strike up a friendly conversation while filling up on the opposite side. I'm thinking to myself, "ah, the power of the bike." As I finish up the conversation, I throw on my helmet and get on the bike. I secure my gas tank and put the key in the ignition. I make sure i'm in neutral as I crank up. I can see the girl at the corner of my vision watching. I grab the clutch and shift into first. My bike dies. I'm mortified. The coolness factor has left the building. I shift back into neutral and crank back up. I listen for anything that sounds off...valves, any backfire, SOMETHING that would explain what just happened so that it didn't happen again. I assumed it was some safety feature that had been put on the bike. Was the oil low? The light wasn't on while cranked. Maybe the clutch wasn't engaging properly? Well, I try to put it in gear again. The bike dies again. By this time the girl was through pumping gas, and they were all looking at me and my dead bike as she drove off. WTF. I look on my right side; maybe there is some fluid that I'm leaking. Nope. Nothing. I look on the left side.

KICKSTAND. Yes, I felt very, very foolish. I cursed the motorcycle veterans that didn't add this small piece of advice on any forum I went to. So here it is, for beginners with less experience with me(very few as of now).

 

LOL, seems to me you just got nervous, it has happened to everyone at least once.

When I was learning how to drive I was at a stoplight, and I couldnt get my car into first gear no matter what, I'm thinking "**** I've had this car for a couple of weeks and I already ruined it". Yeah well, turns out I had forgotten to press the clutch due to the nerves of everybody honking horns and trying to get by.

 

last thing on your mind when riding is the coolness factor OR for that mater, girls.

lesson learned... keep your focus, particularly as a new rider. Riding, technique and anticipation should be the only thing on your mind young skywalker...

as a matter of practice, try and do most of your riding outside of populated areas for a while if possible.

 

girls or no girls, it could have happened. i just didn't know what had happened because i didn't know that the bike would do that when the kickstand is down.

that was my point

 

you made it central to your post that a female was somehow important to this incident... she did fluster you, she did make you loose concentration.

New guys always think they are supermen and somehow are impervious to influence. We've all tried to be cool and suffered the consequence, you are not unique in this matter.

Here:

I remember one time I was going to Carl's Jr for some grub one evening. It's only about a mile from my house and when I am turning into the parking lot I see a bit a water so I think to myself, I am going to flat track this baby right in there... No one was around but I just had to do it.

the bike immediately kicks completely sideways and I plant my inside foot... big mistake because that pulls me reward on the saddle and my hand pulls the throttle wide open. The bike is now tank slapping big time as I am trying to just hang on with both feet hanging off the back of the bike... 2 seconds later I am down.
Trying to be cool...

 

my point in adding the girls was that it was even more embarrassing. my actual point was that i didn't know that the kickstand would keep the bike from starting. of course, i'm not unique with this, and that's why i was pointing out that nobody has posted this to save us new guys from the issue. if i had been at home, i would have called a bike friend to help me get the bike going because i didn't realize why it wouldn't continue running once i put it into gear.

omg, that must have sucked.

 

trying to be cool....suffer the consequences...plain and simple. Couldve been worse...at least u didnt drop ur baby

 

Oh you're okay, stuff happens... Live and learn

the reason you haven;t seen that posted on here before(lately) is because we all know about it already...

At least you haven't suffered this one... yet

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HO1CYd6ghRw

 

exactly what i was trying to get across.

by the reaction, i don't think that the person riding was the owner. i doubt i'll let some newb ride my bike.

 

what bike?

 

that one

 

Did you take msf?

 

Taking it this Friday and Saturday. I had a friend that ran me through the beginners riding skills. When he was explaining everything for me to do, it sounded really stupid, but I can see how it helps now.

In other news, I haven't honked my horn while trying to use my turn signal since the first day.

 

im thinking about getting a bike sometime this year, im glad u posted this cuz i will know that the kickstand down will cause the bike not to start. so thnx!

 

Not all bikes have a tip sensor or kickstand sensor.

 

Well... isnt that one reason most males get bikes, to get attention from females? ;P heh

But whats really worse is when the kickstand is half way so that its not down and its not up either, so its still killing the engine. Took me a while to figure that out when my pant leg pushed it down a bit at traffic lights :D

 

tuck your pants you nuts....

 

I cant, got low cut boots, like this

 

Always remember to gear up fully. Shorts are not your friend when you fall doing 80 miles an hour.

 

what many folks fail to realize is that a boot is much more than abrasion resistance. A good boot is mainly about ankle support... which a low cut CAN NOT give you. most shoes and boots will simply be torn off your foot when you go down, even at a moderate speed.

 

Yup - I've disabled the clutch and kickstand safeties on my enduro.

Here's a tip for the noobies -

No matter how long you've been riding, how many miles you've put on, or how many bikes you've owned, getting out there and practicing some basic drills like figure 8's and emergency braking quickly show how much room you have to improve.

I spent the day up in the mountains practicing those two drills and the first attempt was a disaster! I got better throughout the day but considering I ride in the mountains weekly using these very skills, the first attempt should have been a slam dunk.

 

that's a tip for non-noobies

every time i pass the motorcycle course, i go do the figure 8. i'm sure all the people that don't ride and are walking past are wondering what in the world i'm doing, but i don't care. i sucked the first time i did it, but i've pretty much mastered it now. i use the cruiser lines to do my turns instead of the street bike lines.

MSF is well worth the time, and if i had to pay, it would be well worth the money.

 

This past weekend I was riding some tight singletrack, I was having trouble with a pretty big step-up that had a branch halfway up, so I backup, and hit it at a considerable rate of speed, when I got over it I landed kinda crooked and I had to put my foot down, front of my boot got caught on a rock, back of it on the peg, I tilted the bike and it go, it slid out from under me and I kind spinned with my boot.

I got away without even a sprained ankle, and without a doubt it was the boot that kept my ankle from spinning around it self.

Good boots is second only to a helmet when riding IMO, even more if its off road.

 

So go get some cones and make a tighter 8.

 

haha...the lines for the cruiser bikes is at my limit. i don't always make the 8 inside those.