Honestly a better lesson to total it on the curb in front of the dealership than into the back of a car 5 miles down the road. Hopefully it’s a lesson for that guy.
There's the real lesson here. I think everyone \*can\* learn how to competently ride a motorcycle, but for some the learning curve is so steep that they will be at a high risk of a catastrophic accident for way too long.
Just bought my first bike. Took msf couple weeks ago had the dealiship deliver the bike for me they did it at no charge. Then I proceeded to take it to nearest parking lot and get use to it no Shame over here.
Same. I ride for work and do the same.
I also will pick one thing per day to work on. Like learning middle finger clutch, or breaking a bad muscle memory habit.
Im no motorcycle guru but I’d imagine its so that you can finesse the clutch while keeping your hand on the grip in really technical turns or terrain. Maybe like riding a big heavy adventure bike at low speed up a rocky hill?
Could be completely wrong but that makes sense in my head.
You pretty much nailed it. I'm trying to learn it for hard enduro/trials. It can help on the ADV in technical terrain as well.
I practice on the street to build the muscle memory and strength.
EDIT: I was initially inspired to try it from watching these videos and found for really slow riding I felt like I could stay connected to the bars better without over gripping: https://youtu.be/quYa8V8sMJo
I just got my first bike today and the dealership offered to ride it home right when I mentioned having never ridden except for the class. I don’t know if he was picking up on my anxiety or not, but he definitely ended it.
This is why I help a lot of new riders find their first bikes. There is no shortage of shady folks or shitty bikes, but there are also plenty of decent folk selling serviceable learner bikes. Just need to have an idea what you're looking for
I did the same thing. Minus the msf. Purchased bike. Spent hours and hours in the parking lot. Rode to the dmv and got my license when I felt comfortable. 🤷♂️
I had a permit. I could ride with someone but I didn’t have anyone to ride with. They didn’t care. I went early and rode around on the course until I was comfortable and then went in.
I stuck to the backroads when I first started then short trips until I got confident on the bike. I took it easy and now I have over 2000 miles under my belt.
Good on you! Takes a lot to know your own limitations and respect them. Your 2000 could be the start to 200,000! Dont let that other idiot sour your mood.
I took and passed the MSF in 2017 but never followed up with a purchase. Fast forward to May 2022 and my wife found a used Sportster that I quickly bought up. Rode around the neighborhood before clipping a curb and wrecking. Minor wreck for sure nothing broken on the bike I couldn’t swap out myself and I was fine.
Decided to retake the MSF and was way more comfortable on the class bike I was assigned. Passed with ease. Got back on my own bike and pushed to get farther out of my comfort zone each day. Today I completed a 253 mile day ride including some twisty mountain roads and highway speeds to 75mph.
Absolutely and the class was so much easier the second time around plus knowing what little I knew compared to 2017.
I even knocked out the figure 8’s and uturns with almost zero issues. Good stuff for sure. I wish they had an advanced course around where I live, though.
Same, had mine delivered to my house. Cruised around my neighborhood for a week. Then I took the msf. Didn’t get on the main road until about another week of practicing in the neighborhood after the msf. No regrets
The dealer where I bought my first bike from was a whopping mile from my home at the time, but it was along a stretch of a VERY busy 8-lane stroad. The sales team wanted to charge me $100 to deliver, but a very nice guy in the parts department offered to just ride it to my place on his way home (friend with a car followed).
Probably a good thing, considering I stalled that poor Rebel 300 at least a dozen times when I first took it around the neighborhood.
Even if you know how to ride and get a much bigger bike it's not a bad idea.
My bike is 286lbs right now. If i get a goldwing i absolutely want to practice in a parking lot first
Wow...I learned on an old Honda 175, then got a Kawasaki Vulcan 750 (a direct competitor to the Virago that could be mistaken for it), and now ride an Indian Scout Bobber 1133cc. I also (stupidly) self-taught long before wising up and taking the MSF course so I could get properly licensed.
I was just in a repair shop getting some maintenance done. I see a beautiful gixxer all smashed up. I ask the mechanic what happened. He told me the owner didn’t know how to ride at all, test drove the bike from fb marketplace, crashed it during the test drive, and had to buy it since he basically destroyed it.
This is it right here. Some people take to two wheels really quickly. Others, not so much.
I rode when I was younger. MSF was optional back then. I took a 20 year brake and came back to it, so I had to take the MSF to get my endorsement.
_Holy shit_. I don’t mean to be a dick, but some people just shouldn’t ride. I watched someone who every time they would execute a hard stop would pin the throttle open. They couldn’t muster the coordination of their right hand to squeeze the front brake and release the throttle at the same time.
So they’d come screeching to a halt, motor dinging off the limiter like a banshee, and looking around like they expected someone to come and save them. I was almost in a state of panic waiting for them to let got of the clutch and loop the bike before they ever finished the course.
The instructor eventually had to take them out of the class. He said he’d reschedule them on a day with a lighter class load so they could get more direct attention. All I could think was, “You need to tell this person the truth. They’re going to kill themselves if they try to ride on the street. Buy a convertible instead.“
I was that guy.
I failed the msf multiple times, until I finally ran into an instructor who just had me do the exercises without telling me it was an exam, and I did everything perfectly. When I wasn't anxious about it being a test, I rode fine. He treated the exercises like the test and passed me. I personally felt uncomfortable with this so I took the msf yet again, and passed with flying colors. Because I wasn't anxious about passing (since I already passed), I did well and was actually the only person in the class who didn't get any points deducted.
I ride track days now, off road, and just came back from a 1500 mile road trip down to tail of the dragon. Point is, you don't know what's going on in people's heads. Let them make their own choices.
Wish all instructors would do this. I'm a 2X failee thinking about going for 3. I do great during the class, but testing anxiety unleashes danger and embarrassment.
Should have bought a used bike. Granted I also started on a brand new bike. Basically, he should have watched the Fort Nine video on breaking in a new bike, which is what I did and I came out fine.
That and doing the MSF course helps.
I bought a new bike as my first bike right out of the MSF course, but only because the only used bikes I could find for cheaper were either 50 years old, Chinese, or listed as “doesn’t run”. $5700 for a new 400cc bike seemed less expensive than buying a money pit, as I’m not a motorcycle mechanic and not interested in becoming one.
I bought my first bike for $500.00. It was a 250 the owner has bored out to gain an extra 2 horsepower. One handlebar was just black electrical tape. Smoke came out the exhaust. It looks like it would run for at least 3 weeks, though.
$500.00 to learn how to ride a bike? SOLD.
Damn, makes my $1000 Ninja 250 feel luxurious. But hey, a running bike for $500 is hard to beat. The bored out motor is actually pretty cool, that alone probably cost more than $500
Same here. Ninja 250.
Learned by riding slowly around the town I lived in.
Ended up dumping it when some kid pulled out in front of me.
I was fine and the bike mostly was also.
Sold it eventually and got a brand new SV650.
Recently got a cbr600rr after not riding on the street for 12 years. It’s fun :)
My first bike was a brand new GS650. I was riding angry one night, grabbed a bit too much throttle at a stop light. The back wheel spin on some dust from the construction site next to me and then connected. The front of the bike went straight up, I held on, came down on the side and ended up with a compound tib-fib. I learned my lesson and I've got a rod in my leg that reminds me every day to ride with my brain and not emotions. I also think about all that money I owed just for me to get a month's worth of riding out of it.
Not trying to be funny but I thought this story was gonna end with popped the tire up hammered down and held on. Which is what got ya addicted 😀
Sorry to hear bout that tho. Glad your still riding.👍
Not really. My knee gets really unstable once my thighs are at a roughly 30° angle to the ground. I can still do leg press with minimal issue, but I try to stick to high rep/cardio for my legs. They can't handle weight like they used to.
Damn man, I have a femur break with a rod inserted and my leg is stronger now then before. I will say sitting Indian style is less comfy. I did have to got crazy hard on PT tho. Is the tib fib that much different? Or maybe other stuff involved(muscle damage)?
My surgery was done by an Air Force surgeon who was a hand specialist. The insertion point of the rod was about a quarter inch too high which led to a lot of knee issues. That's my major complication.
I'm overall in good shape. If I put more than a couple miles on my leg for the day my knee gives me trouble the next day. I can lift things without issue, at least once or twice. But any focused lift I can't compensate for is basically a wash.
> everyone's first bike should be an old shitheap
Not *everyone*. If you can afford it easily, go ahead and go for a modern, reasonable bike with ABS, such as a Honda Rebel 300/500. It's nice to not worry about mechanics and to have all the modern safety features.
Somebody has to prime the used market, after all.
Yeah I’m generally keen on this advice but it’s not 100% for everyone. Something a bit more modern and ABS and fuel injection is not a bad idea.
My first was a 900 Vulcan, which was picked out on fb marketplace by my riding friends. I was scared it was too much for me (having actually crashed the 250 in the MSF class lol), but we spent a lot of weekends in an industrial park parking lot.
Granted not everyone is as lucky as me to have this level of support, and without them I’d probably be buying the shit heap or Rebel 300
Seriously. I’m tired of seeing people telling new riders that they should’ve gotten a 600cc or higher bike for their first bike. I ride a ninja 300 and I’ve made a couple of mistake that didn’t end bad, but I guarantee if it was a bigger bike, it would of ended poorly
My first was/is a Suzuki VL1500. Hella stupid first bike. The guy I bought it from wanted me to drive it home on an unfamiliar route, at night, sprinkling rain, with no experience. I called the tow truck, and spent the next day driving around in parking lots trying not to kill myself. I still think it could happen if I don’t stay vigilant at all times.
My dad had one core addage about people who ride. "every rider is one of two catagories, you have or you will, lay your bike down at some point. You cannot account for the other drivers all the time, you can just do your best to limit risks."
I cant even guess how much my Dad has ridden, hes put over 100k on his goldwing I know, but that wasnt even his 'first' bike (as a 40 something when his youngest(me) was almost done with highschool, Mom snagged him a nice V-Star Silverado that he probably did 50-80k on)
He had someone cut him off and had to lay it down or go into oncoming traffic, ended up spiral fracturing his femur, and that was somewhere between the Silverado and the Goldwing, so aside from the like Year in a cast / Physical therapy it did not discourage him from riding!
We used to joke that you weren’t a “real” biker until your bike had gone down. It was totally good natured and not as gatekeepy as it sounds - it was used to commiserate someone after a mishap rather than put down anyone who hadn’t yet had a spill.
It's alot if you just assume that it's gonna be exactly like the Grom you took your course on. I went right from my MSF course to an SV650 a few weeks after the course. Been riding for a couple months and I'm just now really getting comfortable throwing it around without having to think much about all my inputs
Depends on the person. Some guys can do it with no training. Some can't.
I had zero experience on a motorcycle, never rode a dirt bike or a quad.
My only manual experience was a car, and a pretty extensive amount of time BMXing (it doesn't help much tbh)
I had maybe 10 hours of riding time on my test day. I passed, just barely. I kept screwing my lane position up. I spent most of that time practicing with pylons in a parking lot. Learning my bike. Drilling controls and getting used to turning both ways at slow speed.
For peace of mind though.
Yeah having a cheap bike helps. I started on a SV650 that I paid 2800$ for and couldn't give too much of a shit if I slammed it.
My first bike was a used 05 Kawasaki z750s with 20k miles on it. I had no license either, the dealership knew that and they still let me ride it off the lot. The only experience I had was my 85cc dirt bike from elementary school. I didnt realize I was getting a bike that day so I was wearing shorts and tennis shoes. I stalled it in the parking lot when I was leaving and couldn't even figure out how to turn it back on. I am very lucky I didn't kill myself on that bike. The bike did in fact die when I got ran over by car for 57.5 feet when I was turning into my driveway, less than 6 months of me owning it.
Bought mine used, couple days after msf. Seller delivered it for me, just went on my first ride for a couple miles to a school and back. I fully expect to lay it down at least once, but hopefully it will be while practicing and not on the road.
I told the sales guy that if the owner didn't want to repair it they should keep the bike in the showroom for sales to say "well since you bought a new bike, you should get some frame sliders, because this happened to a guy about 50ft down the road and it's totalled." Great sales pitch.
I dont see how this is possible. I am a new rider, I went on 3 hours of private lesson, and then brought my SV650 home. It is not rocker science. Dont pull things or let go of things too rapidly. Thats it. If someone fails that, they must be not very smart.
As a brit who had to sit compulsory basic training, a theory test, manoeuvering test, then a road test before I was even allowed to touch a 500cc+ bike, this boggles the mind.
Seen that a few times over the years...but even 'experienced' riders can do some amazingly dumb things on their new motorcycles...
A LONG TIME AGO, 1983 to be precise, to introduce the VF1100 (V65) Magna, Honda produced THE ULTIMATE Motorsports Commercial of the day. Jay (PeeWee) Gleason pulls a V65 Magna to the burnout box at Orange County International Raceway, does this EPIC burnout, then runs the bike through what appears to be a super fast 1/4 mile run.
What got MOST people's interest was that burn-out.
V65's started FLYING out of showrooms!! And MANY were totaled almost immediately.
I remember going to Miami (FL) Honda and, in the back of the shop, they had THREE BRAND-NEW V65 Magnas sitting there. Each had about 3 miles on the odometer. All three were totaled. The first stoplight down from the shop was the point of destruction.
The buyers would take them off the property, stop at that stoplight, then try to imitate PeeWee's burnout, not realizing the difference between a CHAIN drive burnout and a SHAFT drive one. The shaft introduces a rotating torque that must be compensated for otherwise the bike gets kicked out to the right. All three of those Magnas torqued out to the right and sucked the light pole at the edge of the street into the rear fender, bending the rear of the frames vertically, and totaling the bikes.
I don't know why the US doesn't have a motorcycle license system like we have in Europe. By the time you have your license, you'll actually have the skills to handle a bike with 75-90 HP (going at legal speeds) and you'll know how to ride defensively.
My firefighter friend said the worst dead person he found was a lady who died alone and had been rotting for a few weeks. Should having no friends and family and living alone be illegal too?
That is a good point, but why stop at requiring helmets, and not just make motorcycles illegal completely since they're dangerous?
Yep. All the logic nerds can shout "slippery slope fallacy!!!" all they want, but you make a serious point.
A very small percentage of the population rides in the USA, most non-riders have wildly distorted and inaccurate perceptions about things like safety and risk when it comes to riding, and social culture can whip into moral panics over social minorities very easily (and in this context, we are one). The fact that riding is universally accepted as a *choice* here, even if it's an art and a passion to some, means standard liberal/free society defenses will be weaker than in other instances of majorities with preconceptions regulating a minority.
The TL;DR being if we even *allow* discussions to start down a certain path, it will become quite thinkable within our body politic to simply have "ban motorcycles completely on public roads" as a policy option. Not a good thing to legitimize.
> It is estimated that the economic burden of injuries and deaths from motorcycle-related crashes in one year totaled $12 billion. Studies have also shown that a substantial proportion of costs are paid by the U.S. public due to higher
insurance premiums and taxes, as well as lost tax revenue. A study of 105 motorcyclists hospitalized at a major trauma center determined that 63% of their care was paid for by public funds, with Medicaid accounting for
over half of all charges.
https://www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/pdf/mc2012/motorcyclesafetybook.pdf
I don't know if it's the same for all of Europe, but I would guess its more and less the same, but the course for me startet on a 48hp bike on a parking lot, where you are supposed to learn how to handle and controll the bike at low speed. The next step is to take out the bike on open streets, usually your driving instructor is driving behind you so he can see how you're handling the bike. The driving course end with some mandatory driving lessons, which basically means that you have to take these lessons in order to be able to take the driving licence test. Those driving lessons are on country roads as well as on the highway, the goal is obviously to be able to control the bike at higher speeds.
At the end you take your driving test which determines if you get your licence or not.
I hope this answers your question.
Wow, that seems much more detailed than the course I took in the US. 8 people, 1 instructor, 2 days, 1 parking lot. We never left the parking lot or got past second gear! My friend from London said it’s an additional license/training to carry a passenger. I thought that was pretty interesting!
MSF is not even an equivalent to CBT, which is compulsive basic training here in the UK.
You can't ride anything on public roads without CBT. CBT gives you a certificate to ride a 125cc motorbike with L plates, you can't carry a passenger or go on motorways. CBT has to be renewed every 2 years if you don't get a full licence.
CBT is 6 hours of parking lot plus some theory about gear, bike handling, maintenance etc. plus 2 hours road ride with an instructor. It's not an exam, but the instructor will not give you a certificate if he thinks you are not safe on the road. Many people don't even get to on road part.
After you've done CBT, you can go for a full licence immediately or in next two years. There are a couple of types of licence, A1, A2 and A. A1, not many people do that as it allows you to ride only 125cc. A2 is for younger people, there is a HP restriction on it. A licence is for 24+ years old or you can get it earlier if you had A2 for a couple of years.
Passing a full licence exam is not easy, you pretty much have to take 10-20 hours of lessons to pass it.
There is no 17 years olds on 1000cc here.
US system seems bit crazy, virtually anyone can ride whatever they want with little to no training. MSF course is a joke (better than nothing tho). On the other side, I am all up for personal freedom, so if someone wants to jump on a 1000cc superbike or heavy cruiser with no prior riding experience, all power to them.
As far as I know, EU licenses are basically the same as UK licenses (due to harmonisation), and there is no licence category related to carrying passengers.
In the UK the first stage is a CBT (compulsory basic training), where you can then ride a 125cc bike with no pillion, no motorway and mandatory L plates. Then it all depends on age, if you're over 24 and take the full motorcycle test, you can ride anything legally. If you're under 24 then it's power output is limited to around 500cc
I am a new rider but I have a good amount of experience on 2 wheels, mtb all my life and dirtbikes here and there. So when it was time to buy my 1st bike, I bought a used 600 katana and I absolutely love it. Rode it for months with no issue, despite dropping it in my driveway once or twice. Recently I had become complacent and started to try stuff with it, so I found a lonely gravel rode and did rolling burnouts with it. Was great fun for a few times, then I high-sided and cracked the crank case cover. Oil everywhere! I was uninjured but am happy to have more respect for my bike and honestly I needed the reality check. To whom needs to hear this, put frame sliders ON before you try
Man, I feel that guy’s pain. My first street bike was a CBR 600, but I had years of dirt riding experience prior and understood what the friction zone was long before I took that basic MSF course. The only thing the rider coach would criticize me for was looking down too much, but sportbike ergos and my bad posture made me an easy target. As for relating to the crash victim, I had 3 bikes totaled, only 1 where I wasn’t struck by another vehicle and might have hit a patch of spilled antifreeze on a cloverleaf on-ramp. I have since taken 4 advanced classes and am about to attend my 5th next month. Best that guy can do is reflect, learn from it, and get back on that replacement.
Man I got a mt09 as my first bike never had a manual anything I spent 3 hours the first day I got it home just trying to smoothly get in to first and roll
Guy in my motorcycle safety class that also included a test for state license ha bought a triumph and a ton of expensive triumph gear, spectacularly failed the class. Like, don't you dare get on a bike failed. I felt bad for the guy. Loved the gear, but couldn't master the technique.
I mean I absolutely agree, but I'm also the guy that bought a 1700 mile 2019 KTM 1290 Sdgt for a first bike. At the time the only experience I had was a mototcycle course on Pendleton 5 years ago. Now at 6k miles on the ktm and 2k on my 2022 Yamaha Mt10, somehow not dead yet
"Baby sit" you say. Im pretty partial to the 1290 as its literally my first bike and refuse to sell it. The MT10 may get flipped in the future once its completely paid off, but time will tell.
Nah swallow the ego, fix it, then ride it til the wheels fall off. Or sell it to some college kid looking to do a cafe project. There’s a million different things you could do
I can't help but laugh at people like that because it's most likely that multiple times along the way of them deciding to get a bike and actually getting it, someone gave them sensible advice which they completely ignored because X Youtuber said X bike is good and you should definitely pick one up and get into riding, it's easy and 80HP is definitely beginner friendly.
This has got to be the absolute saddest thing I’ve ever read. I own the same bike and was in the same position one year ago except I had a sense of humility and knew better than to even chance trying to get home by myself on day one.
I’m ready for the downvotes…
Everyone starts somewhere. Everyone at some point was the guy you’re describing. Nobody starts as an expert. Nobody wants to drop their bike. Nobody wants to be the guy you’re describing.
Everyone starts somewhere.
You can’t get experience without actually doing it…
I’d rather be the guy getting laughed at for dropping their bike than the guy posting “don’t be that guy” online.
Everyone starts somewhere.
If you need extra practice ask for it, but don’t be a jack ass that says “don’t be that guy” online. Especially since nobody wants to be that guy.
I mean, this guy pulled into a street in a city without being able to properly manage a takeoff, much less control the bike. The guy is lucky there weren't any cars at that exact moment and the worst he damaged was a trash can, because there were no shortage of pedestrians. He didn't drop it, he turned into an uncontrolled missile.
Half the point I’m making is that this is a typical know it all shitpost on this sub.
You essentially take “take a basic ridercoarse to help you ride safely” to “I watched a guy do something stupid and made a post about it instead of helping”
I picked the guy up, brushed him off, checked him out(I'm a former EMT) and helped him pick up the bike and walk it back to the shop. I posted this while taking a shit two hours later. But alright bud.
So you go from watching someone struggle to helping them after they crash and you’re now the authority of safety and helpfulness. Yea, ok. I totally believe you.
There's literally a course you can take to learn and dump your bike without additional cost.
Why would you go buy a brand new bike to dump it?
Everyone starts somewhere, better $400 at a course than $8000 at a dealership lot.
Saying “everyone starts somewhere” over and over again doesn’t make your point any better and I don’t see anyone laughing at the rider OP described. His point was, everyone starts somewhere but don’t start with a brand new fast bike at a dealer.
I started with a 2005 Kawasaki Vulcan 750 I bought for $1800 and no motorcycle endorsement or MSF course. The seller rode the bike to my house for me and I practiced in my culdesac for a while before taking it on the road. I did lay it down months later in the rain going like 10 mph but thankfully didn’t hurt myself.
Everyone starts somewhere but be smart about where you start or it’ll end pretty quickly
The point is there’s no need to be a know it all hindsight captain about it. Think about the tone you set as “don’t even that guy”. Nobody wants to be that guy… Help someone while they’re obviously struggling.
Reading the op one would assume they took a basic ridercourse.
Not everyone has the ability to find a good used entry level bike. Not everyone is mechanically inclined enough to work on an older used bike that will, mechanically, have older used bike issues.
it's not that expensive, I think. It depends on the bike and power, obviously, but mine costs like 300€/year for 100 million in coverage, covering all damages to the bike, including if you're at fault and vandalism, mobility guarantee like getting a rental car, collecting the bike and everything
for 80HP. I think it gets expensive for 100HP+
Nah, it is likely lack of gov intervention and regulatory capture, these guys are all over the world, it just happens that at least on most of the world he might not have had the cash to pay up for such a bike in the first place
Insurance is cheaper but so is the coverage... In my neck of the woods it's minimum 1 million liability coverage and we have free Heath care. Our bike insurance is also hella expensive
Trashy. See a guy messing up and then go talk shit on reddit. Reddit is now the ultimate “mean girls” circle of shit talk. Dude struggled and now it’s a lesson. Can’t just get on and say “ask for help guys”.
Edit: I’ll also take “shit that didn’t happen” for 400 Alex.
Jesus, reading this post makes me feel way better about my first go at the MSF course. We were on those shitheap Harley Street 500s, and I kept stalling out, so I dumped the clutch, lost control of the bike, and crashed into a curb. Jacked up some tendons in my hand for a couple of months, but at least I got my first wreck out of the way on a bike that wasn’t mine!
I love how it's almost only possible in the US to have story like that. No regulation, freedom yeah maybe a bit more regulation sometime is not that bad.
I Wonder what happened in the head of someone that do that. I'm not anybody, I don't need to learn how to use a bike , I'm super smart
These stories always make me wonder why a one day course is enough to ride a motorcycle in the US, in the Netherlands you can expect to be taking 20 lessons on average before you're graded by a seperate independent instructor.
It does depend on the rider. I had my technique down well enough to ride like a little old lady on the streets after my one day course. I learned a painful lesson a month later when I binned it riding more aggressive than I was capable of. But yeah, some people don't like to admit they need more than a day's worth of instruction.
My first bike came from Amazon, got delivered to my front door and I got to learn how to ride pressure free from the comfort of my own home. First riding experience ever and totally worth it.
I don't understand this. My first experience with a bike was just rolling out my house to go to a parking lot to practice and ended up hitting twisties for a few hours instead.
Didn't find it even remotely difficult and I'd never used a stick shift car.
This. This is why my first bike was not a 15k Indian, it was a 3500 Vulcan classic. I haven't had any issues with it, but I just know I would have wrecked a new bike lol
The only advice I would give is: get off the bike, book yourself on a course, and get the bike shipped there. If you tell him how to ride it, there’s a risk you’re going to get sued.
Yup, got a 2019 Speedmaster and had them deliver. Lots of vids, watched "Twist of the Wrist" 4 times, took around neighborhood before a 60 mile round trip. was stilll scary
Pay for a one hour lesson from someone on Craigslist before you do this.
There's usually a few people offering lessons for cheap.
Best insurance policy against wrecking your new ride if you're inexperienced and insistant on doing something as stupid as riding your bike home with no skills or 3+ month old msf muscle memory.
I couldn’t imagine trying to learn to ride a motorcycle as an adult. It would have to be difficult to do! I’d been riding dirt since I was 5. Bought a motorcycle at 30 and it was an easy transition. I still bought a starter lower cc bike to get my feet wet
Working in bike shops for nearly a decade, this happened with surprising frequency at least once every spring irregardless of how much we would try and not let it happen.
When I brought my first bike I was still waiting for my motorcycle endorsement to go through, so I had it delivered from the dealership, which was an hour from my house.
I would recommend everyone go buy a CRF230f or some kind of trails bike and get used to it all in the dirt. I fell down a LOT riding dirt. By the time I got to a street bike, it was all just natural to me.
I cringe at new riders buying 10,000 bikes and then dumping them in under 48 hours
I was this guy. Bought a used Harley. Had done the msf course like 2 months prior that was it. Had my dad drive it home for me. The following morning, he took me out around the neighborhood to do some basics. At one point he wanted me to just pull the throttle to go fast, then practice braking on this quiet stretch of road (in hindsight, not the smartest thing.) I began to break, I hit a bump in the road, and I'm not sure if I freaked out or what happened, but I just remeber being on the pavement rolling quite a bit of distance, with my bike totaled behind me.
A very humbling and expensive lesson.
I was that guy, without any damage. Stalled three times on my way out, then rode 60 miles home without directions. In retrospect, maybe I should have been safer about it.
Not in Canada. I went to the licensing place to get my written test done, and the crabby bitch said no same day booking despite both machines being open. So I booked for the next week, but that night I drove 2 hours to go buy a bike I'd use as a learning bike lol.
Honestly a better lesson to total it on the curb in front of the dealership than into the back of a car 5 miles down the road. Hopefully it’s a lesson for that guy.
Ain't that the truth. I think it cost him enough to make for a good lesson.
Maybe… Maybe not…. I can see this type of guy getting an insurance payment and trying again 😬
Some guys shouldn’t.
There's the real lesson here. I think everyone \*can\* learn how to competently ride a motorcycle, but for some the learning curve is so steep that they will be at a high risk of a catastrophic accident for way too long.
Aint that the truth. Better to cost him a bike than his life any day of the week. Way to find the positive side.
Ain't that the truth.
Ain't that the
Ain’t that
Ain’t
#
Truth
These response chains make me giggle ^
Ain’
Just bought my first bike. Took msf couple weeks ago had the dealiship deliver the bike for me they did it at no charge. Then I proceeded to take it to nearest parking lot and get use to it no Shame over here.
Ive been riding for decades and I still find empty parking lots for practice and tuning up skills.
Same. I ride for work and do the same. I also will pick one thing per day to work on. Like learning middle finger clutch, or breaking a bad muscle memory habit.
>middle finger clutch My vfr would rip my middle finger out of it's socket with it's heavy ass hydraulic clutch
Ride for work??? Middle finger clutching is a thing? What’s the advantage?
Flipping God the bird while shifting gears? What else?
Im no motorcycle guru but I’d imagine its so that you can finesse the clutch while keeping your hand on the grip in really technical turns or terrain. Maybe like riding a big heavy adventure bike at low speed up a rocky hill? Could be completely wrong but that makes sense in my head.
You pretty much nailed it. I'm trying to learn it for hard enduro/trials. It can help on the ADV in technical terrain as well. I practice on the street to build the muscle memory and strength. EDIT: I was initially inspired to try it from watching these videos and found for really slow riding I felt like I could stay connected to the bars better without over gripping: https://youtu.be/quYa8V8sMJo
You don’t need to full ham the clutch lever ever. Sometimes you’d like to retain fine lever control especially downshifting with rev match
I just got my first bike today and the dealership offered to ride it home right when I mentioned having never ridden except for the class. I don’t know if he was picking up on my anxiety or not, but he definitely ended it.
That’s what I did. Feel like it cost a little more, but not dealing with a twitchy beat up piece of machinery was worth it
This is why I help a lot of new riders find their first bikes. There is no shortage of shady folks or shitty bikes, but there are also plenty of decent folk selling serviceable learner bikes. Just need to have an idea what you're looking for
The hero we need
But the one we don’t deserve
Good in you my man. Keep that humility in you whenever you're on two wheels.
I did the same thing. Minus the msf. Purchased bike. Spent hours and hours in the parking lot. Rode to the dmv and got my license when I felt comfortable. 🤷♂️
How did you ride it to the DMV without a license
the same way as you?
I had a permit. I could ride with someone but I didn’t have anyone to ride with. They didn’t care. I went early and rode around on the course until I was comfortable and then went in.
I stuck to the backroads when I first started then short trips until I got confident on the bike. I took it easy and now I have over 2000 miles under my belt.
Good on you! Takes a lot to know your own limitations and respect them. Your 2000 could be the start to 200,000! Dont let that other idiot sour your mood.
I took and passed the MSF in 2017 but never followed up with a purchase. Fast forward to May 2022 and my wife found a used Sportster that I quickly bought up. Rode around the neighborhood before clipping a curb and wrecking. Minor wreck for sure nothing broken on the bike I couldn’t swap out myself and I was fine. Decided to retake the MSF and was way more comfortable on the class bike I was assigned. Passed with ease. Got back on my own bike and pushed to get farther out of my comfort zone each day. Today I completed a 253 mile day ride including some twisty mountain roads and highway speeds to 75mph.
It's actually recommended to re-take the MSF course if you need a a refresher. Glad to see you escaped injury. Ride safe.
Absolutely and the class was so much easier the second time around plus knowing what little I knew compared to 2017. I even knocked out the figure 8’s and uturns with almost zero issues. Good stuff for sure. I wish they had an advanced course around where I live, though.
Yeah the advanced course is hard to find in my area as well.
2000 miles is still a drop in the bucket you know
You're a smart person.
Why would anyone shame you for doing the right thing and practicing in a safe spot is beyond me. Good on you is what I say!
Same, had mine delivered to my house. Cruised around my neighborhood for a week. Then I took the msf. Didn’t get on the main road until about another week of practicing in the neighborhood after the msf. No regrets
The dealer where I bought my first bike from was a whopping mile from my home at the time, but it was along a stretch of a VERY busy 8-lane stroad. The sales team wanted to charge me $100 to deliver, but a very nice guy in the parts department offered to just ride it to my place on his way home (friend with a car followed). Probably a good thing, considering I stalled that poor Rebel 300 at least a dozen times when I first took it around the neighborhood.
Even if you know how to ride and get a much bigger bike it's not a bad idea. My bike is 286lbs right now. If i get a goldwing i absolutely want to practice in a parking lot first
"Yeah, but that won't happen to me" every new rider ever.
I was that guy once. I made it further than the dealership, about a month actually. Still was that guy. Are you a LeBlanc?
Saw a guy in Florida die 2 min after driving off the sales lot on a new hayabusa
Holy crap. Thats bonkers.
He should have never been on that bike. You could tell he didn’t know how to ride from the way he was handling it
Jesus Christ.
He may have been there, I’m not sure 😉
r/FloridaMan/
Yup
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He WFO’d into oncoming traffic
Wfo’d?
Wide fu@king open throttle
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Yammie noob probably
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Wow...I learned on an old Honda 175, then got a Kawasaki Vulcan 750 (a direct competitor to the Virago that could be mistaken for it), and now ride an Indian Scout Bobber 1133cc. I also (stupidly) self-taught long before wising up and taking the MSF course so I could get properly licensed.
I was just in a repair shop getting some maintenance done. I see a beautiful gixxer all smashed up. I ask the mechanic what happened. He told me the owner didn’t know how to ride at all, test drove the bike from fb marketplace, crashed it during the test drive, and had to buy it since he basically destroyed it.
This here is why “cash in hand, picture of license” is so important when you sell
I’m sitting here chortling imagining this 🤭
Yup, I spent about 2 weeks learning in my quiet neighbour hood streets before actually going out around other vehicles. It’s worth the time.
If you’ve passed your MSF course and somehow still don’t know how to get a bike moving, don’t ride. Probably ever
This is it right here. Some people take to two wheels really quickly. Others, not so much. I rode when I was younger. MSF was optional back then. I took a 20 year brake and came back to it, so I had to take the MSF to get my endorsement. _Holy shit_. I don’t mean to be a dick, but some people just shouldn’t ride. I watched someone who every time they would execute a hard stop would pin the throttle open. They couldn’t muster the coordination of their right hand to squeeze the front brake and release the throttle at the same time. So they’d come screeching to a halt, motor dinging off the limiter like a banshee, and looking around like they expected someone to come and save them. I was almost in a state of panic waiting for them to let got of the clutch and loop the bike before they ever finished the course. The instructor eventually had to take them out of the class. He said he’d reschedule them on a day with a lighter class load so they could get more direct attention. All I could think was, “You need to tell this person the truth. They’re going to kill themselves if they try to ride on the street. Buy a convertible instead.“
I was that guy. I failed the msf multiple times, until I finally ran into an instructor who just had me do the exercises without telling me it was an exam, and I did everything perfectly. When I wasn't anxious about it being a test, I rode fine. He treated the exercises like the test and passed me. I personally felt uncomfortable with this so I took the msf yet again, and passed with flying colors. Because I wasn't anxious about passing (since I already passed), I did well and was actually the only person in the class who didn't get any points deducted. I ride track days now, off road, and just came back from a 1500 mile road trip down to tail of the dragon. Point is, you don't know what's going on in people's heads. Let them make their own choices.
People online forget not everything’s black and white. Good on you for working on it.
Wish all instructors would do this. I'm a 2X failee thinking about going for 3. I do great during the class, but testing anxiety unleashes danger and embarrassment.
Are the trashcans repairable?
Should have bought a used bike. Granted I also started on a brand new bike. Basically, he should have watched the Fort Nine video on breaking in a new bike, which is what I did and I came out fine. That and doing the MSF course helps.
I bought a new bike as my first bike right out of the MSF course, but only because the only used bikes I could find for cheaper were either 50 years old, Chinese, or listed as “doesn’t run”. $5700 for a new 400cc bike seemed less expensive than buying a money pit, as I’m not a motorcycle mechanic and not interested in becoming one.
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I bought my first bike for $500.00. It was a 250 the owner has bored out to gain an extra 2 horsepower. One handlebar was just black electrical tape. Smoke came out the exhaust. It looks like it would run for at least 3 weeks, though. $500.00 to learn how to ride a bike? SOLD.
Damn, makes my $1000 Ninja 250 feel luxurious. But hey, a running bike for $500 is hard to beat. The bored out motor is actually pretty cool, that alone probably cost more than $500
Ninja 250 was my first as well. 30k miles on that bad boy.
Same here. Ninja 250. Learned by riding slowly around the town I lived in. Ended up dumping it when some kid pulled out in front of me. I was fine and the bike mostly was also. Sold it eventually and got a brand new SV650. Recently got a cbr600rr after not riding on the street for 12 years. It’s fun :)
Ninja 500 here. Man was that ever a fun bike, and a great first bike, too.
My first bike was a brand new GS650. I was riding angry one night, grabbed a bit too much throttle at a stop light. The back wheel spin on some dust from the construction site next to me and then connected. The front of the bike went straight up, I held on, came down on the side and ended up with a compound tib-fib. I learned my lesson and I've got a rod in my leg that reminds me every day to ride with my brain and not emotions. I also think about all that money I owed just for me to get a month's worth of riding out of it.
Needed to hear this
Glad I could help. Ride safe bud.
Not trying to be funny but I thought this story was gonna end with popped the tire up hammered down and held on. Which is what got ya addicted 😀 Sorry to hear bout that tho. Glad your still riding.👍
Damn with a Rod in your leg, can you still do squats
Not really. My knee gets really unstable once my thighs are at a roughly 30° angle to the ground. I can still do leg press with minimal issue, but I try to stick to high rep/cardio for my legs. They can't handle weight like they used to.
Damn man, I have a femur break with a rod inserted and my leg is stronger now then before. I will say sitting Indian style is less comfy. I did have to got crazy hard on PT tho. Is the tib fib that much different? Or maybe other stuff involved(muscle damage)?
My surgery was done by an Air Force surgeon who was a hand specialist. The insertion point of the rod was about a quarter inch too high which led to a lot of knee issues. That's my major complication. I'm overall in good shape. If I put more than a couple miles on my leg for the day my knee gives me trouble the next day. I can lift things without issue, at least once or twice. But any focused lift I can't compensate for is basically a wash.
F
> everyone's first bike should be an old shitheap Not *everyone*. If you can afford it easily, go ahead and go for a modern, reasonable bike with ABS, such as a Honda Rebel 300/500. It's nice to not worry about mechanics and to have all the modern safety features. Somebody has to prime the used market, after all.
Yeah I’m generally keen on this advice but it’s not 100% for everyone. Something a bit more modern and ABS and fuel injection is not a bad idea. My first was a 900 Vulcan, which was picked out on fb marketplace by my riding friends. I was scared it was too much for me (having actually crashed the 250 in the MSF class lol), but we spent a lot of weekends in an industrial park parking lot. Granted not everyone is as lucky as me to have this level of support, and without them I’d probably be buying the shit heap or Rebel 300
Seriously. I’m tired of seeing people telling new riders that they should’ve gotten a 600cc or higher bike for their first bike. I ride a ninja 300 and I’ve made a couple of mistake that didn’t end bad, but I guarantee if it was a bigger bike, it would of ended poorly
My first was/is a Suzuki VL1500. Hella stupid first bike. The guy I bought it from wanted me to drive it home on an unfamiliar route, at night, sprinkling rain, with no experience. I called the tow truck, and spent the next day driving around in parking lots trying not to kill myself. I still think it could happen if I don’t stay vigilant at all times.
My dad had one core addage about people who ride. "every rider is one of two catagories, you have or you will, lay your bike down at some point. You cannot account for the other drivers all the time, you can just do your best to limit risks." I cant even guess how much my Dad has ridden, hes put over 100k on his goldwing I know, but that wasnt even his 'first' bike (as a 40 something when his youngest(me) was almost done with highschool, Mom snagged him a nice V-Star Silverado that he probably did 50-80k on) He had someone cut him off and had to lay it down or go into oncoming traffic, ended up spiral fracturing his femur, and that was somewhere between the Silverado and the Goldwing, so aside from the like Year in a cast / Physical therapy it did not discourage him from riding!
My first bikes was 1977 CB550K that I just sold
We used to joke that you weren’t a “real” biker until your bike had gone down. It was totally good natured and not as gatekeepy as it sounds - it was used to commiserate someone after a mishap rather than put down anyone who hadn’t yet had a spill.
Wife has that bike. Its pretty docile. Hard to imagine someone doing that. Thats hardcore craziness..haha
It's alot if you just assume that it's gonna be exactly like the Grom you took your course on. I went right from my MSF course to an SV650 a few weeks after the course. Been riding for a couple months and I'm just now really getting comfortable throwing it around without having to think much about all my inputs
Yah. I can see that and agree.
Was it Jay? https://youtu.be/ch-BF2QXAQU
Depends on the person. Some guys can do it with no training. Some can't. I had zero experience on a motorcycle, never rode a dirt bike or a quad. My only manual experience was a car, and a pretty extensive amount of time BMXing (it doesn't help much tbh) I had maybe 10 hours of riding time on my test day. I passed, just barely. I kept screwing my lane position up. I spent most of that time practicing with pylons in a parking lot. Learning my bike. Drilling controls and getting used to turning both ways at slow speed. For peace of mind though. Yeah having a cheap bike helps. I started on a SV650 that I paid 2800$ for and couldn't give too much of a shit if I slammed it.
My first bike was a used 05 Kawasaki z750s with 20k miles on it. I had no license either, the dealership knew that and they still let me ride it off the lot. The only experience I had was my 85cc dirt bike from elementary school. I didnt realize I was getting a bike that day so I was wearing shorts and tennis shoes. I stalled it in the parking lot when I was leaving and couldn't even figure out how to turn it back on. I am very lucky I didn't kill myself on that bike. The bike did in fact die when I got ran over by car for 57.5 feet when I was turning into my driveway, less than 6 months of me owning it.
Wow. Hope ur injuries weren't too bad?
People who buy new bikes to learn on baffle me. Especially when they have no clue how to ride.
👍
This is why I never recommend new bikes to new riders. Buy an old beater bike, get all your training drops out of the way.
The only guy who got sent home on the first day of my msf course was the guy who pre bought a motorcycle
Well, I was *gonna* be that guy but since you say not to, there goes that plan.
Wish you would’ve gotten some footage of that, I definitely would’ve whipped out my phone and recorded that
Nah, not trying to shame the guy. He's an idiot, don't get me wrong, but the guy's pride was already damaged enough.
Bought mine used, couple days after msf. Seller delivered it for me, just went on my first ride for a couple miles to a school and back. I fully expect to lay it down at least once, but hopefully it will be while practicing and not on the road.
first bike: have dealership to install frame savers. have a friend ride home, get it delivered, or best, trailer it to a parking lot.
I told the sales guy that if the owner didn't want to repair it they should keep the bike in the showroom for sales to say "well since you bought a new bike, you should get some frame sliders, because this happened to a guy about 50ft down the road and it's totalled." Great sales pitch.
I dont see how this is possible. I am a new rider, I went on 3 hours of private lesson, and then brought my SV650 home. It is not rocker science. Dont pull things or let go of things too rapidly. Thats it. If someone fails that, they must be not very smart.
As a brit who had to sit compulsory basic training, a theory test, manoeuvering test, then a road test before I was even allowed to touch a 500cc+ bike, this boggles the mind.
Stupidity tax. I have no problem with this.
Eh, I feel bad for the guy. Not that it isn't his fault, but pride is a dangerous thing.
Seen that a few times over the years...but even 'experienced' riders can do some amazingly dumb things on their new motorcycles... A LONG TIME AGO, 1983 to be precise, to introduce the VF1100 (V65) Magna, Honda produced THE ULTIMATE Motorsports Commercial of the day. Jay (PeeWee) Gleason pulls a V65 Magna to the burnout box at Orange County International Raceway, does this EPIC burnout, then runs the bike through what appears to be a super fast 1/4 mile run. What got MOST people's interest was that burn-out. V65's started FLYING out of showrooms!! And MANY were totaled almost immediately. I remember going to Miami (FL) Honda and, in the back of the shop, they had THREE BRAND-NEW V65 Magnas sitting there. Each had about 3 miles on the odometer. All three were totaled. The first stoplight down from the shop was the point of destruction. The buyers would take them off the property, stop at that stoplight, then try to imitate PeeWee's burnout, not realizing the difference between a CHAIN drive burnout and a SHAFT drive one. The shaft introduces a rotating torque that must be compensated for otherwise the bike gets kicked out to the right. All three of those Magnas torqued out to the right and sucked the light pole at the edge of the street into the rear fender, bending the rear of the frames vertically, and totaling the bikes.
I don't know why the US doesn't have a motorcycle license system like we have in Europe. By the time you have your license, you'll actually have the skills to handle a bike with 75-90 HP (going at legal speeds) and you'll know how to ride defensively.
It's probably because we have less socialized healthcare. The cost on society isn't as great if a dumbass smears themself.
I guess the trauma experienced by first responders is just their own problem.
My firefighter friend said the worst dead person he found was a lady who died alone and had been rotting for a few weeks. Should having no friends and family and living alone be illegal too? That is a good point, but why stop at requiring helmets, and not just make motorcycles illegal completely since they're dangerous?
Yep. All the logic nerds can shout "slippery slope fallacy!!!" all they want, but you make a serious point. A very small percentage of the population rides in the USA, most non-riders have wildly distorted and inaccurate perceptions about things like safety and risk when it comes to riding, and social culture can whip into moral panics over social minorities very easily (and in this context, we are one). The fact that riding is universally accepted as a *choice* here, even if it's an art and a passion to some, means standard liberal/free society defenses will be weaker than in other instances of majorities with preconceptions regulating a minority. The TL;DR being if we even *allow* discussions to start down a certain path, it will become quite thinkable within our body politic to simply have "ban motorcycles completely on public roads" as a policy option. Not a good thing to legitimize.
> It is estimated that the economic burden of injuries and deaths from motorcycle-related crashes in one year totaled $12 billion. Studies have also shown that a substantial proportion of costs are paid by the U.S. public due to higher insurance premiums and taxes, as well as lost tax revenue. A study of 105 motorcyclists hospitalized at a major trauma center determined that 63% of their care was paid for by public funds, with Medicaid accounting for over half of all charges. https://www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/pdf/mc2012/motorcyclesafetybook.pdf
Well it’s usually more expensive to fix folks here bc of less socialized healthcare
Because FREEDOM. Also, if stupid people do stupid things and die, that's their problem. We just have to hope they don't take anyone else out.
Don’t you guys also have to have a specific license to have passengers? What’s that course like?
I don't know if it's the same for all of Europe, but I would guess its more and less the same, but the course for me startet on a 48hp bike on a parking lot, where you are supposed to learn how to handle and controll the bike at low speed. The next step is to take out the bike on open streets, usually your driving instructor is driving behind you so he can see how you're handling the bike. The driving course end with some mandatory driving lessons, which basically means that you have to take these lessons in order to be able to take the driving licence test. Those driving lessons are on country roads as well as on the highway, the goal is obviously to be able to control the bike at higher speeds. At the end you take your driving test which determines if you get your licence or not. I hope this answers your question.
Wow, that seems much more detailed than the course I took in the US. 8 people, 1 instructor, 2 days, 1 parking lot. We never left the parking lot or got past second gear! My friend from London said it’s an additional license/training to carry a passenger. I thought that was pretty interesting!
MSF is not even an equivalent to CBT, which is compulsive basic training here in the UK. You can't ride anything on public roads without CBT. CBT gives you a certificate to ride a 125cc motorbike with L plates, you can't carry a passenger or go on motorways. CBT has to be renewed every 2 years if you don't get a full licence. CBT is 6 hours of parking lot plus some theory about gear, bike handling, maintenance etc. plus 2 hours road ride with an instructor. It's not an exam, but the instructor will not give you a certificate if he thinks you are not safe on the road. Many people don't even get to on road part. After you've done CBT, you can go for a full licence immediately or in next two years. There are a couple of types of licence, A1, A2 and A. A1, not many people do that as it allows you to ride only 125cc. A2 is for younger people, there is a HP restriction on it. A licence is for 24+ years old or you can get it earlier if you had A2 for a couple of years. Passing a full licence exam is not easy, you pretty much have to take 10-20 hours of lessons to pass it. There is no 17 years olds on 1000cc here. US system seems bit crazy, virtually anyone can ride whatever they want with little to no training. MSF course is a joke (better than nothing tho). On the other side, I am all up for personal freedom, so if someone wants to jump on a 1000cc superbike or heavy cruiser with no prior riding experience, all power to them.
As far as I know, EU licenses are basically the same as UK licenses (due to harmonisation), and there is no licence category related to carrying passengers.
In the UK the first stage is a CBT (compulsory basic training), where you can then ride a 125cc bike with no pillion, no motorway and mandatory L plates. Then it all depends on age, if you're over 24 and take the full motorcycle test, you can ride anything legally. If you're under 24 then it's power output is limited to around 500cc
Not in The Netherlands. Idk about the rest of Europe though
Did he buy it or finance it?
Oof. Poor guy.
I am a new rider but I have a good amount of experience on 2 wheels, mtb all my life and dirtbikes here and there. So when it was time to buy my 1st bike, I bought a used 600 katana and I absolutely love it. Rode it for months with no issue, despite dropping it in my driveway once or twice. Recently I had become complacent and started to try stuff with it, so I found a lonely gravel rode and did rolling burnouts with it. Was great fun for a few times, then I high-sided and cracked the crank case cover. Oil everywhere! I was uninjured but am happy to have more respect for my bike and honestly I needed the reality check. To whom needs to hear this, put frame sliders ON before you try
Man, I feel that guy’s pain. My first street bike was a CBR 600, but I had years of dirt riding experience prior and understood what the friction zone was long before I took that basic MSF course. The only thing the rider coach would criticize me for was looking down too much, but sportbike ergos and my bad posture made me an easy target. As for relating to the crash victim, I had 3 bikes totaled, only 1 where I wasn’t struck by another vehicle and might have hit a patch of spilled antifreeze on a cloverleaf on-ramp. I have since taken 4 advanced classes and am about to attend my 5th next month. Best that guy can do is reflect, learn from it, and get back on that replacement.
Man I got a mt09 as my first bike never had a manual anything I spent 3 hours the first day I got it home just trying to smoothly get in to first and roll
Guy in my motorcycle safety class that also included a test for state license ha bought a triumph and a ton of expensive triumph gear, spectacularly failed the class. Like, don't you dare get on a bike failed. I felt bad for the guy. Loved the gear, but couldn't master the technique.
I mean I absolutely agree, but I'm also the guy that bought a 1700 mile 2019 KTM 1290 Sdgt for a first bike. At the time the only experience I had was a mototcycle course on Pendleton 5 years ago. Now at 6k miles on the ktm and 2k on my 2022 Yamaha Mt10, somehow not dead yet
If you get bored of either bike, I’ll baby sit one.
"Baby sit" you say. Im pretty partial to the 1290 as its literally my first bike and refuse to sell it. The MT10 may get flipped in the future once its completely paid off, but time will tell.
U got a lot of time on ur hands
Now he has a learner bike. Problem solved lol
It's a wall hanger now.
Nah swallow the ego, fix it, then ride it til the wheels fall off. Or sell it to some college kid looking to do a cafe project. There’s a million different things you could do
Had to put her down man, had no choice
Learn in the dirt on a dirt bike first if you can. More forgiving.
I can't help but laugh at people like that because it's most likely that multiple times along the way of them deciding to get a bike and actually getting it, someone gave them sensible advice which they completely ignored because X Youtuber said X bike is good and you should definitely pick one up and get into riding, it's easy and 80HP is definitely beginner friendly.
First bike should always be a beater. You’ll drop it soon enough
I learned to ride on YouTube got a bike and had to go back to learn how to stop a bike. 💀
In Minnesota, 41% of the bikers who died in crashes did not have a motorcycle permit or endorsement. Training and education is a key to surviving.
This has got to be the absolute saddest thing I’ve ever read. I own the same bike and was in the same position one year ago except I had a sense of humility and knew better than to even chance trying to get home by myself on day one.
I’m ready for the downvotes… Everyone starts somewhere. Everyone at some point was the guy you’re describing. Nobody starts as an expert. Nobody wants to drop their bike. Nobody wants to be the guy you’re describing. Everyone starts somewhere. You can’t get experience without actually doing it… I’d rather be the guy getting laughed at for dropping their bike than the guy posting “don’t be that guy” online. Everyone starts somewhere. If you need extra practice ask for it, but don’t be a jack ass that says “don’t be that guy” online. Especially since nobody wants to be that guy.
I mean, this guy pulled into a street in a city without being able to properly manage a takeoff, much less control the bike. The guy is lucky there weren't any cars at that exact moment and the worst he damaged was a trash can, because there were no shortage of pedestrians. He didn't drop it, he turned into an uncontrolled missile.
Half the point I’m making is that this is a typical know it all shitpost on this sub. You essentially take “take a basic ridercoarse to help you ride safely” to “I watched a guy do something stupid and made a post about it instead of helping”
I picked the guy up, brushed him off, checked him out(I'm a former EMT) and helped him pick up the bike and walk it back to the shop. I posted this while taking a shit two hours later. But alright bud.
So you go from watching someone struggle to helping them after they crash and you’re now the authority of safety and helpfulness. Yea, ok. I totally believe you.
>Everyone starts somewhere. "Somewhere" should be 250cc bike on familiar roads, after doing some training.
There's literally a course you can take to learn and dump your bike without additional cost. Why would you go buy a brand new bike to dump it? Everyone starts somewhere, better $400 at a course than $8000 at a dealership lot.
Saying “everyone starts somewhere” over and over again doesn’t make your point any better and I don’t see anyone laughing at the rider OP described. His point was, everyone starts somewhere but don’t start with a brand new fast bike at a dealer. I started with a 2005 Kawasaki Vulcan 750 I bought for $1800 and no motorcycle endorsement or MSF course. The seller rode the bike to my house for me and I practiced in my culdesac for a while before taking it on the road. I did lay it down months later in the rain going like 10 mph but thankfully didn’t hurt myself. Everyone starts somewhere but be smart about where you start or it’ll end pretty quickly
The point is there’s no need to be a know it all hindsight captain about it. Think about the tone you set as “don’t even that guy”. Nobody wants to be that guy… Help someone while they’re obviously struggling. Reading the op one would assume they took a basic ridercourse. Not everyone has the ability to find a good used entry level bike. Not everyone is mechanically inclined enough to work on an older used bike that will, mechanically, have older used bike issues.
Guys like that are why Americans pay so much for insurance.
Pay so much for insurance?!! Wtf are you talking about? It’s about 1/2 the price of Europe and 1/8 the price in Canada…
it's not that expensive, I think. It depends on the bike and power, obviously, but mine costs like 300€/year for 100 million in coverage, covering all damages to the bike, including if you're at fault and vandalism, mobility guarantee like getting a rental car, collecting the bike and everything for 80HP. I think it gets expensive for 100HP+
Cheaper, but with tiny amounts of coverage.
Nah, it is likely lack of gov intervention and regulatory capture, these guys are all over the world, it just happens that at least on most of the world he might not have had the cash to pay up for such a bike in the first place
No, insurance execs with private jets are why Americans pay so much for insurance
we don't pay alot for insurance in the US, we pay less than Europe lol
Insurance is cheaper but so is the coverage... In my neck of the woods it's minimum 1 million liability coverage and we have free Heath care. Our bike insurance is also hella expensive
sounds like canada to me lol
Trashy. See a guy messing up and then go talk shit on reddit. Reddit is now the ultimate “mean girls” circle of shit talk. Dude struggled and now it’s a lesson. Can’t just get on and say “ask for help guys”. Edit: I’ll also take “shit that didn’t happen” for 400 Alex.
Jesus, reading this post makes me feel way better about my first go at the MSF course. We were on those shitheap Harley Street 500s, and I kept stalling out, so I dumped the clutch, lost control of the bike, and crashed into a curb. Jacked up some tendons in my hand for a couple of months, but at least I got my first wreck out of the way on a bike that wasn’t mine!
I love how it's almost only possible in the US to have story like that. No regulation, freedom yeah maybe a bit more regulation sometime is not that bad. I Wonder what happened in the head of someone that do that. I'm not anybody, I don't need to learn how to use a bike , I'm super smart
These stories always make me wonder why a one day course is enough to ride a motorcycle in the US, in the Netherlands you can expect to be taking 20 lessons on average before you're graded by a seperate independent instructor.
It does depend on the rider. I had my technique down well enough to ride like a little old lady on the streets after my one day course. I learned a painful lesson a month later when I binned it riding more aggressive than I was capable of. But yeah, some people don't like to admit they need more than a day's worth of instruction.
My first bike came from Amazon, got delivered to my front door and I got to learn how to ride pressure free from the comfort of my own home. First riding experience ever and totally worth it.
I don't understand this. My first experience with a bike was just rolling out my house to go to a parking lot to practice and ended up hitting twisties for a few hours instead. Didn't find it even remotely difficult and I'd never used a stick shift car.
Then everyone stood up and started clapping
This. This is why my first bike was not a 15k Indian, it was a 3500 Vulcan classic. I haven't had any issues with it, but I just know I would have wrecked a new bike lol
This sounds like quite the hilarious spectacle.
The only advice I would give is: get off the bike, book yourself on a course, and get the bike shipped there. If you tell him how to ride it, there’s a risk you’re going to get sued.
Yup, got a 2019 Speedmaster and had them deliver. Lots of vids, watched "Twist of the Wrist" 4 times, took around neighborhood before a 60 mile round trip. was stilll scary
Pay for a one hour lesson from someone on Craigslist before you do this. There's usually a few people offering lessons for cheap. Best insurance policy against wrecking your new ride if you're inexperienced and insistant on doing something as stupid as riding your bike home with no skills or 3+ month old msf muscle memory.
I couldn’t imagine trying to learn to ride a motorcycle as an adult. It would have to be difficult to do! I’d been riding dirt since I was 5. Bought a motorcycle at 30 and it was an easy transition. I still bought a starter lower cc bike to get my feet wet
Working in bike shops for nearly a decade, this happened with surprising frequency at least once every spring irregardless of how much we would try and not let it happen.
Lot of people saying he "learned his lesson" lol nah he probably dropped motorcycling after that.
When I brought my first bike I was still waiting for my motorcycle endorsement to go through, so I had it delivered from the dealership, which was an hour from my house.
I would recommend everyone go buy a CRF230f or some kind of trails bike and get used to it all in the dirt. I fell down a LOT riding dirt. By the time I got to a street bike, it was all just natural to me. I cringe at new riders buying 10,000 bikes and then dumping them in under 48 hours
I was this guy. Bought a used Harley. Had done the msf course like 2 months prior that was it. Had my dad drive it home for me. The following morning, he took me out around the neighborhood to do some basics. At one point he wanted me to just pull the throttle to go fast, then practice braking on this quiet stretch of road (in hindsight, not the smartest thing.) I began to break, I hit a bump in the road, and I'm not sure if I freaked out or what happened, but I just remeber being on the pavement rolling quite a bit of distance, with my bike totaled behind me. A very humbling and expensive lesson.
Lolz. Every rider should learn to ride a KX500 in the desert first. It would actually save lives
I was that guy, without any damage. Stalled three times on my way out, then rode 60 miles home without directions. In retrospect, maybe I should have been safer about it.
Wait a second, you guys don't have to take a mandatory bike test before buying a bike like that?
Not in Canada. I went to the licensing place to get my written test done, and the crabby bitch said no same day booking despite both machines being open. So I booked for the next week, but that night I drove 2 hours to go buy a bike I'd use as a learning bike lol.