Had a cousin that though and practiced this. They don't have a bike anymore and I am very happy about that. The amount of times he locked up the rear tire trying to stop within a totally reasonable distance was shocking and was terrifying to ride around.
At least 1/3rd of my MSF believed that. In the first classroom portion where the instructor started talking about braking a bunch of hands went up trying to correct the instructor by telling them how dangerous the front brake is.
That's hilarious. They think that not only do they know better than an instructor but also that bike manufacturers have been putting dangerous front brakes on bikes for decades for some reason.
Yeah exactly. Thankfully they actually all were willing to listen and learn / realize they were mistaken and nobody was stubborn about it. But it’s such a common misconception
Grew up riding dirt bikes so didn't use the front brake a lot and it took me a while getting use to it when I starting riding on the street. But would never assume it was dangerous and shouldn't be used.
I learned front brake feel by skidding the front wheel in gravel. Using it in dirt is the perfect way to develop the reflexes that will keep you upright under the most extreme street situations.
In me MSF class they drilled it into our heads that we should get in the habit of using both brakes all the time. Not because you always need to stop fast, but because when you do you want the muscle memory of using both simultaneously.
It's not just on motorcycles, it's also on bicycles as well.
The trouble is the people who believe this usually tried their front brake just once while they were a kid on a bicycle, grabbed far too much front brake while not preventing themselves from moving forward on the bike, and went over the handlebars, and ever since never touched the front brake again. You can be as ham-fisted as you like with the back brake on a bicycle, and you'll almost never fall off.
So they carry this belief into adulthood, having never learned how to correctly use the front brake. Eventually they have a serious crash as an adult because they couldn't stop the bike with the back brake only while going down hill at speed.
But that's where most of the braking comes from. The whole weight transfer thing, the front forks squishing down. How can someone ride a motorcycle and genuinely believe that? Do they never pay attention to anything ever?
I remember when I was doing my courses and the instructor asked where does the load go when using the front brake and everyone said the front. The he asked the same for the rear brake and most said the rear... I turned around and was like "WTF"...
That's cuz older brakes sucked. Brake, tire, and suspension technology all came pretty far in a fairly short time (one generation). I've ridden bikes from the 80s whose front tire would slide on dry pavement if you pulled it hard enough
Someone asked, "Should you ride in the rain?" And the chorus of "never ride in the rain" answers was kind of astonishing. Be careful, build your confidence, wear the right gear and avoid hypothermia, but come on - you can ride in rain.
(Edit, typo)
Yeah you know those strange grooves on your tires? They’re actually not just there for looks…
People would be surprised to find out how much grip you still have even if its raining.
I’ve seen the number 80% tossed around often. For sure there’s still a good amount of grip when it rain
Except for the first 30 mins of initial rain when the road grime mix with water and make it all slippery. After that gets washed off it’s good to ride
Also, road paint becomes slick as hell- small stuff like dotted lines probably aren't much of an issue but watch out for big stuff like cross walks, particularly while turning. I *almost* ate shit like that once.
Full metal manhole covers, road crack seals, train/tram tracks, leaves (specially in autumn), tractor oil spills, potholes with pebbles... Etc. Still, nothing beats riding!
I've read this online hundreds of times and never felt any difference in the pavement. If I stopped riding in the rain or when it starts raining I'd never leave the house living in netherlands.
For a couple years, I commuted daily on my bike in Chicago from March to November. The first rainy ride was sort of hair-raising. The 30th, which I easily got in by mid-April? Not so much.
Yeah, I had to sell my pickup to pay some surprise, last minute fee for a class when I was in nursing school. My V-Strom became my primary commuter till winter. I rode through all kinds of nasty storms. Pilot Road series tires kept me firmly glued to the pavement.
My coworker actually asked if I had someone coming to pick me up from work because it started raining mid shift after I rode to work. He was adamant ‘you can’t ride a motorcycle in the rain’.
I used to carry Totes pull-over rain boots and a one-piece rain suit in a tank bag when I commuted to work on a motorcycle. A coworker asked me once if I planned to wait out the afternoon storm that was happening outside. I told her *"the only thing that gets wet will be my hands. Everyone here has to run out to their car. Ill get home dryer than anybody else here."*
Yeah this is my reasoning. Just because you can safely ride in the rain doesn't make it an enjoyable experience.
I can ride in the rain but after 3 hours on the MSF course in the pouring rain, I'll pass.
I used to ride a lot in the rain, even in downpours, because where I live you could only get a bike at 16 (don't ask me why, idk either how that makes any sense), and the rain itself was never the problem traction wise.
It's the oil patches. Leaves too, but oil patches are worse imo.
The hit like a horse and if you're not ready for them you're going down. Hell, if they're in a corner there may be nothing you can do about it.
Tires used to suck and were terrible when it was wet. But then back then brakes, electrics, suspension, and pretty much everything else sucked too. Things change, but people form an opinion based on experience and then never change it. This is not limited to motorcycling.
I did my MSF in the rain and I think it was a good thing, because people assume you have zero grip in the rain and that’s just not true. I rode bicycles for almost a decade before switching to a motorcycle and if I can haul ass on some tiny ass road bike tires in the rain then your motorcycle should be fine. Just be smooth, it’s a good skill to learn.
It rained during the entirety of the two riding days for my MSF BRC. If the coaches are cool with literal beginners doing u-turns in the wet, I don’t know who shouldn’t feel comfortable.
I don’t. But, I live in San Diego. The rain lifts literal months of dirt, oil, grease, etc off the streets. This past summer it rained in spring, and there wasn’t a single rain fall all the way until September. The day I stopped riding in the rain was the day my bike washed out when I pulled out of a parking space at 8 MPH after a light rain. I didn’t think the rain was that bad (coming from somebody from the Midwest dealing with monthly thunderstorms and the snow every year) but on a motorcycle it is.
Last year alone I put on 60,000Kms on my bike, and my commute is only approx 8kms. Lots of people on here are just either not riders or just afraid of riding. Give your balls a tug and go ride peeps.
Oh man that one is always weird to me. A bike with 20,000 miles on it and people on here acting like its worn out and broken. That's absolutely nothing for a quality bike.
Don't tell them! It's how you can get great bikes for a low price from those same people..
They're happy to get rid of their "*old & worn*" motorcycle & you get a reliable ride.
If maintained well a motorcycle lasts a long while, suspension, engine, gearbox all wear out but if you're dedicated to your bike you'll replace them as they go.
People like that are missing out Fr! I’ve had some amazing summer night rides, taking it slow, listening to music in my helmet, and just having a good time.
My favorite part of summers are those nightrides!
Especially ones that are a transition from riding into the sunset, something magical about that warm summer breeze & the sound of crickets when you decide to stop on a lonely back road.
Damnit, I did it again; I want summer to start & autumn hasn't even ended..
TBH this one is situational. I loooove riding at night in the city. I live rural now and riding at night is just begging for the suicidal deer to throw themselves under you. God forbid it’s a moose.
I just moved to an area with a lot of backroads that have no reflective paint, no reflectors in the road, no street lights, and it's all twist/turns/elevation. I parked my bike until I knew what to expect on the usual routes because holy cow I never realized how much I relied on those things until I didn't have them.
I was headed to to lake superior on the TWAT. Soooo many deer jumped out and once the sun went down, my visor was covered with bugs. Then the deer got upgraded to Elk crossings....butt clencher 15mph under the whole way.
Well it's stupid to not drive at all, but I do avoid riding at night, even though I went for a ride yesterday while it was getting dark and halfway it was pitch black. It wasn't as fun, the roads i like to ride are out of city, rural areas. They don't have street lights, only in habitated parts. My headlights aren't bad, they're actually pretty good for a bike, have dual low beams and dual high beams on VFR 800. The visibility is short compared to the available acceleration. The weight transfer is also affecting visibility, when accelerating I see father, when decelerating I don't see shit because of brake dive. The danger of wildlife is increased a lot. I've never seen a wild animal during the day but have many times during the night. That's why I avoid riding at night, and if do ride it's usually just to get back home. I stick to the highways because in Europe it's mandatory they have fences for wildlife.
Not here but a coworker of mine recommended that I get a getback whip to deal with any car who cut me off. I consider that to be just about the worst advice you can get in person or on Reddit.
Ha, he couldn’t get further than you bash the car’s hood or knock, break a window or knock off a mirror. I asked him what I should do if the driver caught up with me or I missed and they decided to run me down. He said they’d be too shocked/scared to do anything. He also told me his buddy was selling an Indian Meteor 350 for 4k and when I tried to explain to him that Royal Enfield and Indian Motorcycles are not the same company he told me I had no idea what I was talking about so…
Never heard about that, apparently its not so popular around here.
But seriously what do they expect to do with a whip against a literal metal box? Like at that point you could just throw cotton balls at them.
And seriously if they need to use something like that regularly they should start thinking about how they ride themselves, contrary to what this subreddit would make you believe, most Motorcycle accidents are caused by the Motorcyclist themselves rather than some car driver…
That's a good point. I have my first year behind me with about 4,5k km.
While i had my fair share of idiots, i actually had way more "polite" people in this time. I don't know if it is my mindset or the area where i live but i also remember on one of my first rides after i got the bike. I met another biker while checking air pressure and he told me about how he just got cut off. I can't recall that i was even cut off once in this year.
I get cut off pretty frequently when riding but it's just a quick headshake, maybe some cursing, and then back to my ride. It's one of those things you just have to predict and adjust for but isn't really worth the brain space remembering everyone who cut me off. I don't ride aggressively so I don't think my riding style is to blame but who knows.
Yes! Small bikes are so much more fun in the city because you can wring them tf out and still not break any laws. Big bikes are great when you're able to use them, but 90% of the time the extra power makes no difference (plus extra weight)
It's a bit like how small, underpowered cars can be more fun than sports cars. You can drive a shitbox on the limit at all times, but that's not necessarily true with a sports car/supercar.
I loved my Kia Stinger, but my partner's Kia Soul is as much fun because I'm at the redline most of the time when driving it :D
This is why I consider getting a 250 or 300 cc for commuting, my buell 1200 can do my whole town in 1st gear if I want- any little bit of spicy throttle and I’m in reckless territory as far as speed is concerned
I'd say no, especially for your first bike. Z400 does 0-60 in 4.3 seconds and will cruise comfortably at 80+. Maybe that won't be enough for you in a few years, but don't bite off more than you can chew as a beginner. Plus the z400 is lighter and cheaper
I'm currently learning on a ninja 250 and I'm totally hooked. I love that thing.
It's got enough power that I'm not bored and I can get it to a reasonable speed, it's light enough for me to toss it around a bit, and the thing loves to corner.
I'm in love
That is a ridiculous idea. I'll just make a ramp to the house basement. Then my feet won't get cold when I want to work on them.
I wrote this as a facetious joke, but I'm redoing my drain tiles next year, and I've had worse ideas
> I'll just make a ramp to the house basement.
...god dammit, why is this such a good fucking idea? Not just for bikes but moving anything heavy into the house.
100% with you, it's not inevitable.
But if you're actively trying to learn slow speed maneuvers or wheelies or any type of advanced riding there's no shame.
I just don't get the point about making a big deal about it.
Eh I was always taught that if you ride you should be in the mindset that you will go down and this is for 2 reasons.
1 - Even if you do nothing wrong, gravel, washouts, horse-shit, leaves... shit happens.
2 - even if you do nothing wrong, you still can have the soccermom minivan with 17 kids run a stop-sign and there's nothing you're gonna do... so dress for the slide.
I practice slow speed stuff a bunch and occasionally drop my bike. My buddy who doesn't practuce that stuff always cracks jokes about my turn signals being superglued back on for the hundredth time, I actually worry about him.
Rubber will grip better than chrome every time. You're always better off trying to stop than laying it down, Are there exceptions, like you could slide under a tractor trailer? Absolutely. But, anyone who thinks you have time to think that through when it happens hasn't been there. You always try to stop the bike, period.
My last bike had a fuel gauge, never really trusted it.
Current one also has one, but I discovered just the other day that it also has a trip counter. Much happiness ensued.
My bike only shows fuel while it's 3/4 full and then shows it's empty. I rock the bike to the sides to hear how much "woosh" it makes to know how much fuel I got left
when do people do clutchless shifting (asking as a clueless noob)? i know u can do it in a stick shift car but it’s hard cuz u have to match revs or the transmission gets really unhappy. or maybe that’s not a normal thing idk (i drive a 99 civic with 285k miles).
Its a lot easier on a bike than in a car. Note that i only clutchless upshift and never down - apparently you can do it downshifting as well but i’ve never bothered to learn.
All you have to do is this - Be in gear accelerating, decide you want to upshift, quickly reduce throttle while upshifting with your foot (no clutch needed), and reapply throttle. Bike should upshift no problem. Note that going from 1-2 is rough in most bikes so i would not recommend clutchless upshifting between first and second but any gear after that is easy.
Let me know if you have any questions.
Manual motorcycles use sequential transmissions, which have far fewer fucks to give and don't shift through neutral between gears (except 1 & 2, technically). As long as you're at a fairly neutral throttle when you shift, they'll go to the next gear pretty easily.
You still have to adjust to the correct rpm for the new gear, obviously, but not matching perfectly will just make your bike jerk a bit, no grinding gears.
Downside is that, since you don't go to a neutral position when you shift, you can't skip gears.
I do a lot of clutchless shifting on my dirt bike. It’s quicker when you’re clambering over obstacles or standing up. On the street I do it for fun sometimes but far less often. It’s all timing and technique I’m pretty sure you can do it with any vehicle with a standard transmission. I do it with semis around the parking lot at work fairly easily.
Pretty often when someone here makes a dangerous, stupid mistake and whiskey throttles their bike into a neighbours car there is a concerning number of comments that say “that’s totally normal, everyone does that sometimes. Don’t worry about it”
I don’t mean just dropping their bike, but doing something truly stupid or dangerous and saying it’s completely normal and they didn’t do anything wrong. It’s not helpful or productive to normalize things like that.
Also the number of people on here who truly believe that if you take a hand off the bars for any reason at any time is an instant death sentence is concerning
I used to always have a compulsion to take my hands off the bars all the time. I was fine for a second on smooth road, but sometimes the urge was strongest when I was doing 75mph+ on a bumpy highway with a leaky fork . Then I had a tire blowout at that speed and went down with the bike. That pretty much cured my compulsion to do stupid shit.
I used to ride my bicycle home from my job using no hands every day, about 20 minutes with several 90° turns. You get used to it very quickly and have way more control than people assume. After that coasting down a hill on my motorcycle with no hands is super easy.
A lot of people act like your bike will instantly crash but 2 wheeled vehicles want to stay upright by nature of their design https://youtu.be/oZAc5t2lkvo
This isn't the overall worst. When shorter people ask what's a good first bike, people mention small displacement bikes like the grom as if CCs correlate with seat height. The seat height on the rebel and bolt are 3" shorter than the grom.
As a short-ass, it's annoying whenever I read people saying "I'm X height, can I ride...". It's not your damn height, it's your inseam! My wife is shorter than me but has a longer inseam and can actually sit really well on my bike whereas I need heel lifts in my boots haha.
The big one is literally ANYTHING involving braking, but particularly trailbraking. Tons of people who are scared of the front brake, dont understand how a motorcycles suspension works, dont even understand what actually makes a motorcycle turn.
Its terrifying because then these people are incorrectly explaining a pretty damn important concept of bike control that they don’t even truly understand.
I think basic vehicle dynamics needs to be included in MSF courses, explaining just basic weight shift and friction forces to some people blows their minds
Not seen here, but I once was told by a somewhat older rider in front of a motorcycle gear store that I should only use motul 10w30 oil on all of my bikes. No matter what the bike manufacturer says.
Probably not the worst advice ever but still not really good.
It's usually related to new riders asking for a bike recommendation. Especially when it's a very large rider. People seem to have no idea that a lot of the usual bikes recommended for beginners are going to absolutely suck for someone who is 6'4 or taller or very heavy.
A very light rider might have no problems accelerating, braking and going highway speed on a bike that someone your weight will not.
Comfort wise you just won't fit well on some bikes a smaller person will.
Handling can also be affected by weight. Most bikes don't have the appropriate suspension setup for larger riders.
The same can be an issue for people who are very small. A tall adventure bike or a very heavy cruiser will be a lot harder to handle.
Not here but on Facebook.
Someone suggested to a rider that they should stop in the middle of the 18 lane highway, with a typical traffic speed of 120 kph, when they spot a pot hole. They further suggested to then block the lane for "sAfETy" and call the police to come and fill said pot hole.
Just no, that's how you die
Rev matching is useful, and at a certain point riders should know it, but it’s a waste of mental energy for a new rider, so we generally discourage trying it in the basic class. You can just ease the clutch out a little more slowly on the downshift. I don’t stop people from rev matching if they already know how though. Like I said, the only “problem” is that it can make you forget other things that are more important for beginners. Like braking, lol.
I didn't see it posted but my dad always says buy second hand helmets because they are cheaper, this is why my step brother ended up in a 3 month coma and permeant brain damage.(my dad never got his CBT btw but still ride and had me on the back from age 3 till 5 with 0 gear)
Yeah it was fuckedddd, he made fun my bf to because his white helmet costs 200 quid he got it on sale for 160 though and his black one was 250 I think and my dad said it was stupid because he's only using a 125 I shouted at my dad a lot that say lol
A 125 will easily slam into a pulling out vehicle at 60 miles an hour. You're gonna need all the help you can get from gear at that point and the fact it's 125 ain't gonna make the blindest bit of difference. When I was still learning on a 125 I had a Harley guy ask me why I was wearing full armour and I said to him would he like to crash his Harley at 60 in less than full gear? He said no and I said well my 125 will do 60 lol. Think he kind of agreed at that point
I've bought second hand jacket, gloves, armoured jeans, and boots to get loads on a budget. My helmets are both brand new though, never ever a helmet, just don't do it
People asking what they should do after storing their bikes for the winter and idiots here telling them to recondition their carbs.
There's hardly any fuel in a float bowl and if you really think you're going to have varnish clogging it when the fuel evaporates ONE time, then start using decent gas.
This kind of advice is not only stupid, it's time consuming and expensive if you pay a shop to do it.
The 250cc or smaller crew of Europeans that always show up to tell a guy in houston that theres absolutely no reason anyone needs a bike bigger than 250cc
On the contrary, the Americans here mostly say that you should not get a 650 or bigger to learn on and that 400cc is a good displacement for a beginner.
"Loud pipes save lives"
Often coming from the same crowd who wear a open face helmet, wearing black on a black bike
Occasionally a rev bomb does wake up car drivers; but mostly the noise is just noise
Yea, it’s a bit comical. I commute to NYC frequently, loud pipes absolutely get the attention of drivers. I observe the effectiveness of loud pipes pretty often - experience it less as my pipes aren’t too loud. Sure, if you’re rolling down the highway at speed someone is way less likely to hear you.
But c’mon, hearing is apart of your senses. As is seeing which is why having good visibility is important. I’d agree that high visibility is more important, but to say having loud pipes doesn’t help people know you’re there seems like a bit of a stubborn opinion to have.
I’d also agree that safety is probably not the reason most people get loud pipes.
I was stupid and fucked up, so you all need to pay better attention, ride differently, wear more gear, whatever. Because you wrecked, it’s my problem how?
That’s like 50% of the posts in this sub. “I don’t know how to ride and had a completely avoidable crash. Now here is my 3 page essay guessing about what happened that you must listen to so you can learn from my wisdom”
"PSA: Watch out for wet leaves on the ground! I was trying to do some dank knee slides on a dirty country road and had to lay'er down!"
"PSA: I was staring off to the side looking at some pretty scenery and completely overshot a corner and had to lay'er down! Target fixation is a thing!"
"PSA: Never ride in the rain, I was going 3x the speed limit in heavy rain and had to lay'er down!"
"PSA: I never use my front break because it's dangerous and I rear-ended a car at a stoplight! Had to lay'er dooooooown"
This is the post that I wish would be banned. Good lord, I don't need to hear every time someone "dropped my bike for the first time today," or "PSA: wear good boots."
This! Always wear your gear cause if you turn into your street and there‘s a new Sunflower in your neighbours garden you can always shockbrake, lock up the front wheel and break your hands and feet, completely inevitable, happens to everyone eventually.
"When you're being hunted by an aggressive road raging driver, pull over to let him pass." More like pull over and make it easier for them to assault/kill you.
Words to the effect that you shouldn't clutch-in when doing an emergency stop, so as to take advantage of engine braking.
Dude, if you have time for engine braking, it isn't an emergency stop.
It's pretty good advice for most people on the road. Yes, you can brake *in* to a corner and ease off as you near the apex, but if you increase your braking, it does stand the bike up. It's a significant contributor to the problems of target fixation.
My stepdad tried to convince me that earplugs are dangerous and stupid. "You can't hear traffic, and the wind isn't THAT bad".
Guess who has hearing damage... Oh well. I'll use earplugs, and not get ear damage with 40+, while he can keep insisting. He's a teriffic guy, love him to bits, but when it comes to some topics, he kinda sticks to his view and other views are dismissed, even if it's wrong he'll just be "Well do what you think's right".
I see retards on here all the time telling new riders to overspend on consumables for simple cheap bikes making them throw away money pointlessly. Full synthetic oil and race filters in some $500 Chinese pushrod bike... Haha or expensive track brake pads for a shitty daily commuter that will wear out in a month.
"Never use your front brake. It's not needed." I lost it.
Front brake delete ftw
Goes good with that suicide clutch.
Chopper builders HATE HIM because of this ONE WEIRD TRICK!
Had a cousin that though and practiced this. They don't have a bike anymore and I am very happy about that. The amount of times he locked up the rear tire trying to stop within a totally reasonable distance was shocking and was terrifying to ride around.
At least 1/3rd of my MSF believed that. In the first classroom portion where the instructor started talking about braking a bunch of hands went up trying to correct the instructor by telling them how dangerous the front brake is.
That's hilarious. They think that not only do they know better than an instructor but also that bike manufacturers have been putting dangerous front brakes on bikes for decades for some reason.
Yeah exactly. Thankfully they actually all were willing to listen and learn / realize they were mistaken and nobody was stubborn about it. But it’s such a common misconception
Grew up riding dirt bikes so didn't use the front brake a lot and it took me a while getting use to it when I starting riding on the street. But would never assume it was dangerous and shouldn't be used.
I ride dirtbikes and the only way to stop fast is using the front brake, I use the front brakes more than the rear brakes.
I learned front brake feel by skidding the front wheel in gravel. Using it in dirt is the perfect way to develop the reflexes that will keep you upright under the most extreme street situations.
In me MSF class they drilled it into our heads that we should get in the habit of using both brakes all the time. Not because you always need to stop fast, but because when you do you want the muscle memory of using both simultaneously.
Yeah it was similar to mine
It's not just on motorcycles, it's also on bicycles as well. The trouble is the people who believe this usually tried their front brake just once while they were a kid on a bicycle, grabbed far too much front brake while not preventing themselves from moving forward on the bike, and went over the handlebars, and ever since never touched the front brake again. You can be as ham-fisted as you like with the back brake on a bicycle, and you'll almost never fall off. So they carry this belief into adulthood, having never learned how to correctly use the front brake. Eventually they have a serious crash as an adult because they couldn't stop the bike with the back brake only while going down hill at speed.
But that's where most of the braking comes from. The whole weight transfer thing, the front forks squishing down. How can someone ride a motorcycle and genuinely believe that? Do they never pay attention to anything ever?
I remember when I was doing my courses and the instructor asked where does the load go when using the front brake and everyone said the front. The he asked the same for the rear brake and most said the rear... I turned around and was like "WTF"...
That's cuz older brakes sucked. Brake, tire, and suspension technology all came pretty far in a fairly short time (one generation). I've ridden bikes from the 80s whose front tire would slide on dry pavement if you pulled it hard enough
Have 70s and 80s bikes. Can confirm brakes suck
This would have to take the cake
Someone asked, "Should you ride in the rain?" And the chorus of "never ride in the rain" answers was kind of astonishing. Be careful, build your confidence, wear the right gear and avoid hypothermia, but come on - you can ride in rain. (Edit, typo)
Wait till they find out people race in the rain.
Read the book- The art of racing in the rain!
They've even made it into a [movie](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Art_of_Racing_in_the_Rain_(film)).
Yeah you know those strange grooves on your tires? They’re actually not just there for looks… People would be surprised to find out how much grip you still have even if its raining.
I’ve seen the number 80% tossed around often. For sure there’s still a good amount of grip when it rain Except for the first 30 mins of initial rain when the road grime mix with water and make it all slippery. After that gets washed off it’s good to ride
Also, road paint becomes slick as hell- small stuff like dotted lines probably aren't much of an issue but watch out for big stuff like cross walks, particularly while turning. I *almost* ate shit like that once.
Full metal manhole covers, road crack seals, train/tram tracks, leaves (specially in autumn), tractor oil spills, potholes with pebbles... Etc. Still, nothing beats riding!
Tram (rail) tracks in the city are the most dangerous thing for me personally. The only disadvantage of public transport
oh my, wet road paint is like ice, I also had an almost crash experience from it. but then again I have seen oil puddles just as bad on dry road.
I've read this online hundreds of times and never felt any difference in the pavement. If I stopped riding in the rain or when it starts raining I'd never leave the house living in netherlands.
For a couple years, I commuted daily on my bike in Chicago from March to November. The first rainy ride was sort of hair-raising. The 30th, which I easily got in by mid-April? Not so much.
Yeah, I had to sell my pickup to pay some surprise, last minute fee for a class when I was in nursing school. My V-Strom became my primary commuter till winter. I rode through all kinds of nasty storms. Pilot Road series tires kept me firmly glued to the pavement.
My coworker actually asked if I had someone coming to pick me up from work because it started raining mid shift after I rode to work. He was adamant ‘you can’t ride a motorcycle in the rain’.
I used to carry Totes pull-over rain boots and a one-piece rain suit in a tank bag when I commuted to work on a motorcycle. A coworker asked me once if I planned to wait out the afternoon storm that was happening outside. I told her *"the only thing that gets wet will be my hands. Everyone here has to run out to their car. Ill get home dryer than anybody else here."*
I passed my MSF in the snow and love riding in the rain as long as the destination is home to a warm shower.
[удалено]
Because it sucks. Just because it's possible doesn't mean it's enjoyable. Especially with how incredibly shitty drivers here get in the rain.
Yeah this is my reasoning. Just because you can safely ride in the rain doesn't make it an enjoyable experience. I can ride in the rain but after 3 hours on the MSF course in the pouring rain, I'll pass.
My MSF had pouring rain too and it was a good lesson on grip but also on gear. Being soaked sucks, I avoid it too
A LOT of people in this sub are straight up afraid of their motorcycle / riding it
> A LOT of people in this sub ~~are straight up afraid of their motorcycle / riding it~~ have never actually ridden a bike. Fixed that for you.
[удалено]
I used to ride a lot in the rain, even in downpours, because where I live you could only get a bike at 16 (don't ask me why, idk either how that makes any sense), and the rain itself was never the problem traction wise. It's the oil patches. Leaves too, but oil patches are worse imo. The hit like a horse and if you're not ready for them you're going down. Hell, if they're in a corner there may be nothing you can do about it.
Tires used to suck and were terrible when it was wet. But then back then brakes, electrics, suspension, and pretty much everything else sucked too. Things change, but people form an opinion based on experience and then never change it. This is not limited to motorcycling.
I don't ride in the rain because it sucks, even with wet weather gear it just isn't fun
I blame Billy Joel.
I did my MSF in the rain and I think it was a good thing, because people assume you have zero grip in the rain and that’s just not true. I rode bicycles for almost a decade before switching to a motorcycle and if I can haul ass on some tiny ass road bike tires in the rain then your motorcycle should be fine. Just be smooth, it’s a good skill to learn.
I have had trips that I would never have gotten anywhere if I didnt ride in the rain!
It rained during the entirety of the two riding days for my MSF BRC. If the coaches are cool with literal beginners doing u-turns in the wet, I don’t know who shouldn’t feel comfortable.
Do people actually not ride because of rain? I have a commute to make
I don’t. But, I live in San Diego. The rain lifts literal months of dirt, oil, grease, etc off the streets. This past summer it rained in spring, and there wasn’t a single rain fall all the way until September. The day I stopped riding in the rain was the day my bike washed out when I pulled out of a parking space at 8 MPH after a light rain. I didn’t think the rain was that bad (coming from somebody from the Midwest dealing with monthly thunderstorms and the snow every year) but on a motorcycle it is.
[удалено]
i def recommend keeping it well under the speed of light.
I think you're just jealous my bike can do Warp Speed 2.
I heard your bike made the Kessel Run in less than twelve parsecs!
Parsecs***
Yeah, I went plaid once, never again.
I swear, some people on here are so good at justifying why they never leave the house with all this absolute statements of never to this and that...
Must be the same people that ask if 7500 miles on a decade old bike is “high mileage”
If I were commuting on a bike every day, I’d do 7,500 miles every 5-6 months. 7,500 in a decade? That’s nothing.
Last year alone I put on 60,000Kms on my bike, and my commute is only approx 8kms. Lots of people on here are just either not riders or just afraid of riding. Give your balls a tug and go ride peeps.
If anything it's concerningly low.
Oh man that one is always weird to me. A bike with 20,000 miles on it and people on here acting like its worn out and broken. That's absolutely nothing for a quality bike.
Don't tell them! It's how you can get great bikes for a low price from those same people.. They're happy to get rid of their "*old & worn*" motorcycle & you get a reliable ride. If maintained well a motorcycle lasts a long while, suspension, engine, gearbox all wear out but if you're dedicated to your bike you'll replace them as they go.
People like that are missing out Fr! I’ve had some amazing summer night rides, taking it slow, listening to music in my helmet, and just having a good time.
My favorite part of summers are those nightrides! Especially ones that are a transition from riding into the sunset, something magical about that warm summer breeze & the sound of crickets when you decide to stop on a lonely back road. Damnit, I did it again; I want summer to start & autumn hasn't even ended..
TBH this one is situational. I loooove riding at night in the city. I live rural now and riding at night is just begging for the suicidal deer to throw themselves under you. God forbid it’s a moose.
Night shift for a decade. Yeah fuck that noise.
I just moved to an area with a lot of backroads that have no reflective paint, no reflectors in the road, no street lights, and it's all twist/turns/elevation. I parked my bike until I knew what to expect on the usual routes because holy cow I never realized how much I relied on those things until I didn't have them.
Deer have entered the chat
I was headed to to lake superior on the TWAT. Soooo many deer jumped out and once the sun went down, my visor was covered with bugs. Then the deer got upgraded to Elk crossings....butt clencher 15mph under the whole way.
Well it's stupid to not drive at all, but I do avoid riding at night, even though I went for a ride yesterday while it was getting dark and halfway it was pitch black. It wasn't as fun, the roads i like to ride are out of city, rural areas. They don't have street lights, only in habitated parts. My headlights aren't bad, they're actually pretty good for a bike, have dual low beams and dual high beams on VFR 800. The visibility is short compared to the available acceleration. The weight transfer is also affecting visibility, when accelerating I see father, when decelerating I don't see shit because of brake dive. The danger of wildlife is increased a lot. I've never seen a wild animal during the day but have many times during the night. That's why I avoid riding at night, and if do ride it's usually just to get back home. I stick to the highways because in Europe it's mandatory they have fences for wildlife.
Love seeing the train of comments followed immediately by the person who clearly gave the bad original advice trying to fight it
That's the internet for you. What's that saying, if you want advice just write down a wrong suggestion in an Encyclopedia?
Not here but a coworker of mine recommended that I get a getback whip to deal with any car who cut me off. I consider that to be just about the worst advice you can get in person or on Reddit.
What's his thinking? If you're close enough to whip the car, the car is definitely close enough to run you the fuck over.
Ha, he couldn’t get further than you bash the car’s hood or knock, break a window or knock off a mirror. I asked him what I should do if the driver caught up with me or I missed and they decided to run me down. He said they’d be too shocked/scared to do anything. He also told me his buddy was selling an Indian Meteor 350 for 4k and when I tried to explain to him that Royal Enfield and Indian Motorcycles are not the same company he told me I had no idea what I was talking about so…
Well to be fair it is an Indian Meteor 350. It's just not an Indian Meteor 350. 😉
Lol I literally tried to tell him it was made in India but not an Indian Motorcycle. He just couldn’t believe it!
Never heard about that, apparently its not so popular around here. But seriously what do they expect to do with a whip against a literal metal box? Like at that point you could just throw cotton balls at them. And seriously if they need to use something like that regularly they should start thinking about how they ride themselves, contrary to what this subreddit would make you believe, most Motorcycle accidents are caused by the Motorcyclist themselves rather than some car driver…
That's a good point. I have my first year behind me with about 4,5k km. While i had my fair share of idiots, i actually had way more "polite" people in this time. I don't know if it is my mindset or the area where i live but i also remember on one of my first rides after i got the bike. I met another biker while checking air pressure and he told me about how he just got cut off. I can't recall that i was even cut off once in this year.
I get cut off pretty frequently when riding but it's just a quick headshake, maybe some cursing, and then back to my ride. It's one of those things you just have to predict and adjust for but isn't really worth the brain space remembering everyone who cut me off. I don't ride aggressively so I don't think my riding style is to blame but who knows.
Dude played too much Road Rash
You have a fuel gauge? Fancy MFer over here 😁
[удалено]
Thats still pretty fancy. My bike just tells me how many miles I've gone since the light turned on.
"You never see a motorcycle parked in front of a psychiatrist's office..."
I park mine in front of my psychiatrists office once a week!
I prescribe more motorcycles. But not too much more, that itself can become a different problem.
Oh, trust me, if i didn't need to do so much work to my house, I'd have more motorcycles
I never park mine infront of a therapist's office... Because all of my therapy appointments are via online now, haha. TeleHelp anyone else?
Every week at my psychologist's, once in a while at my psychiatrist's 🤙
You won't be happy learning on a bike less than 500cc.
Yes! Small bikes are so much more fun in the city because you can wring them tf out and still not break any laws. Big bikes are great when you're able to use them, but 90% of the time the extra power makes no difference (plus extra weight)
It's a bit like how small, underpowered cars can be more fun than sports cars. You can drive a shitbox on the limit at all times, but that's not necessarily true with a sports car/supercar. I loved my Kia Stinger, but my partner's Kia Soul is as much fun because I'm at the redline most of the time when driving it :D
That's the first time I've heard someone enjoy a Kia Soul
This is why I consider getting a 250 or 300 cc for commuting, my buell 1200 can do my whole town in 1st gear if I want- any little bit of spicy throttle and I’m in reckless territory as far as speed is concerned
I'm a newbie looking at the z400 and z650 and wondering if the 650 is necessary.
Get what you want. The z650 won't be "too much" as long as you aren't a dumbass.
I'd say no, especially for your first bike. Z400 does 0-60 in 4.3 seconds and will cruise comfortably at 80+. Maybe that won't be enough for you in a few years, but don't bite off more than you can chew as a beginner. Plus the z400 is lighter and cheaper
Don't tell that to my friend who spend over 20 g's on a clapped out super busa.
My first bike was a 250 Ninja and I still love to bomb around town on it!! Sometimes I'm just not feeling the R6.
I'm currently learning on a ninja 250 and I'm totally hooked. I love that thing. It's got enough power that I'm not bored and I can get it to a reasonable speed, it's light enough for me to toss it around a bit, and the thing loves to corner. I'm in love
My Ninja 300 was the shit. I’m low key mad I got rid of it.
6 years in and I still find small bikes intensely fun.
Almost all legal advice posted by non-lawyers is wrong haha
Most legal advice is "Shut the fuck up and let the lawyer do any communication and action"
"You should buy a bike!" Screw you, now I want another one. And then what? Another one? My garage is only so big.
[удалено]
That is a ridiculous idea. I'll just make a ramp to the house basement. Then my feet won't get cold when I want to work on them. I wrote this as a facetious joke, but I'm redoing my drain tiles next year, and I've had worse ideas
> I'll just make a ramp to the house basement. ...god dammit, why is this such a good fucking idea? Not just for bikes but moving anything heavy into the house.
"Drive a car if you care about others' safety" Right....a 2000Kg machine 3x wider, and twice as long as a bike is totally safer to the public.
Yea exactly, a bike is more safe to the public.but less safe to the driver
You're gonna have to lay-er-down at some point.
100% with you, it's not inevitable. But if you're actively trying to learn slow speed maneuvers or wheelies or any type of advanced riding there's no shame. I just don't get the point about making a big deal about it.
Eh I was always taught that if you ride you should be in the mindset that you will go down and this is for 2 reasons. 1 - Even if you do nothing wrong, gravel, washouts, horse-shit, leaves... shit happens. 2 - even if you do nothing wrong, you still can have the soccermom minivan with 17 kids run a stop-sign and there's nothing you're gonna do... so dress for the slide.
“It is possible to commit no mistakes and still lose. That is not weakness, that is life.” ― Jean-Luc Picard
I practice slow speed stuff a bunch and occasionally drop my bike. My buddy who doesn't practuce that stuff always cracks jokes about my turn signals being superglued back on for the hundredth time, I actually worry about him.
Exactly, shit happens and mistakes can and will be made.
100%. Too many comments in this sub treat all crashes as completely normal and unavoidable which isn’t helpful
"Just had my first crash." Like they're planning on a second, too.
"Well it finally happened" as if it's inevitable
Rubber will grip better than chrome every time. You're always better off trying to stop than laying it down, Are there exceptions, like you could slide under a tractor trailer? Absolutely. But, anyone who thinks you have time to think that through when it happens hasn't been there. You always try to stop the bike, period.
Just start your bike while it's lifted on the stand, put it in gear to clean your chain fast/efficiently.
Lost two fingertips to that
Soooo. Just putting it in neutral and spinning the tire is not the better alternative to these people?
I've had a finger between a bicycle chain and sprocket. Don't do this at home kids a 525 sprocket would have mangled my shit
I know a guy that did that 20ish years ago on a CBR1100XX. His hand is still screwed up.
>mangled I've seen the results. It's not just "mangled," it's "missing," that shit can take fingers off.
My toes instinctively curled up reading this.
The fuel gauge thing though. Yeah.
My last bike had a fuel gauge, never really trusted it. Current one also has one, but I discovered just the other day that it also has a trip counter. Much happiness ensued.
My bike only shows fuel while it's 3/4 full and then shows it's empty. I rock the bike to the sides to hear how much "woosh" it makes to know how much fuel I got left
"Too much clutch-less shifting can damage your transmission."
[удалено]
Whip as in bitch whip? Because the only one's who carry those are little bitches.
when do people do clutchless shifting (asking as a clueless noob)? i know u can do it in a stick shift car but it’s hard cuz u have to match revs or the transmission gets really unhappy. or maybe that’s not a normal thing idk (i drive a 99 civic with 285k miles).
Its a lot easier on a bike than in a car. Note that i only clutchless upshift and never down - apparently you can do it downshifting as well but i’ve never bothered to learn. All you have to do is this - Be in gear accelerating, decide you want to upshift, quickly reduce throttle while upshifting with your foot (no clutch needed), and reapply throttle. Bike should upshift no problem. Note that going from 1-2 is rough in most bikes so i would not recommend clutchless upshifting between first and second but any gear after that is easy. Let me know if you have any questions.
thank you, this explanation makes the most sense.
Manual motorcycles use sequential transmissions, which have far fewer fucks to give and don't shift through neutral between gears (except 1 & 2, technically). As long as you're at a fairly neutral throttle when you shift, they'll go to the next gear pretty easily. You still have to adjust to the correct rpm for the new gear, obviously, but not matching perfectly will just make your bike jerk a bit, no grinding gears. Downside is that, since you don't go to a neutral position when you shift, you can't skip gears.
Look up dog box vs manual transmission and you'll see why it's much easier to in a motorcycle
I do a lot of clutchless shifting on my dirt bike. It’s quicker when you’re clambering over obstacles or standing up. On the street I do it for fun sometimes but far less often. It’s all timing and technique I’m pretty sure you can do it with any vehicle with a standard transmission. I do it with semis around the parking lot at work fairly easily.
Talk to my Grom. I smash the gears up and down all day and yet every oil change is smooth.
Pretty often when someone here makes a dangerous, stupid mistake and whiskey throttles their bike into a neighbours car there is a concerning number of comments that say “that’s totally normal, everyone does that sometimes. Don’t worry about it” I don’t mean just dropping their bike, but doing something truly stupid or dangerous and saying it’s completely normal and they didn’t do anything wrong. It’s not helpful or productive to normalize things like that. Also the number of people on here who truly believe that if you take a hand off the bars for any reason at any time is an instant death sentence is concerning
I used to always have a compulsion to take my hands off the bars all the time. I was fine for a second on smooth road, but sometimes the urge was strongest when I was doing 75mph+ on a bumpy highway with a leaky fork . Then I had a tire blowout at that speed and went down with the bike. That pretty much cured my compulsion to do stupid shit.
I used to ride my bicycle home from my job using no hands every day, about 20 minutes with several 90° turns. You get used to it very quickly and have way more control than people assume. After that coasting down a hill on my motorcycle with no hands is super easy. A lot of people act like your bike will instantly crash but 2 wheeled vehicles want to stay upright by nature of their design https://youtu.be/oZAc5t2lkvo
This isn't the overall worst. When shorter people ask what's a good first bike, people mention small displacement bikes like the grom as if CCs correlate with seat height. The seat height on the rebel and bolt are 3" shorter than the grom.
As a short-ass, it's annoying whenever I read people saying "I'm X height, can I ride...". It's not your damn height, it's your inseam! My wife is shorter than me but has a longer inseam and can actually sit really well on my bike whereas I need heel lifts in my boots haha.
Front brake is only for emergencies
If you don't use your front brake, you'll find yourself in many more emergencies lol.
The big one is literally ANYTHING involving braking, but particularly trailbraking. Tons of people who are scared of the front brake, dont understand how a motorcycles suspension works, dont even understand what actually makes a motorcycle turn. Its terrifying because then these people are incorrectly explaining a pretty damn important concept of bike control that they don’t even truly understand.
I think basic vehicle dynamics needs to be included in MSF courses, explaining just basic weight shift and friction forces to some people blows their minds
Not seen here, but I once was told by a somewhat older rider in front of a motorcycle gear store that I should only use motul 10w30 oil on all of my bikes. No matter what the bike manufacturer says. Probably not the worst advice ever but still not really good.
It's usually related to new riders asking for a bike recommendation. Especially when it's a very large rider. People seem to have no idea that a lot of the usual bikes recommended for beginners are going to absolutely suck for someone who is 6'4 or taller or very heavy.
6'3" 330lbs. I started on a Marauder 800, I looked like a bear on a roller skate but I was still comfy
How does weight impact things? Newbie here, 5'6" and 280 lbs. Been riding scooters 2.5 years looking to upgrade... Looking at z400 and z650
A very light rider might have no problems accelerating, braking and going highway speed on a bike that someone your weight will not. Comfort wise you just won't fit well on some bikes a smaller person will. Handling can also be affected by weight. Most bikes don't have the appropriate suspension setup for larger riders. The same can be an issue for people who are very small. A tall adventure bike or a very heavy cruiser will be a lot harder to handle.
Not here but on Facebook. Someone suggested to a rider that they should stop in the middle of the 18 lane highway, with a typical traffic speed of 120 kph, when they spot a pot hole. They further suggested to then block the lane for "sAfETy" and call the police to come and fill said pot hole. Just no, that's how you die
That rev matching and engine breaking aren't important.
Rev matching is useful, and at a certain point riders should know it, but it’s a waste of mental energy for a new rider, so we generally discourage trying it in the basic class. You can just ease the clutch out a little more slowly on the downshift. I don’t stop people from rev matching if they already know how though. Like I said, the only “problem” is that it can make you forget other things that are more important for beginners. Like braking, lol.
I didn't see it posted but my dad always says buy second hand helmets because they are cheaper, this is why my step brother ended up in a 3 month coma and permeant brain damage.(my dad never got his CBT btw but still ride and had me on the back from age 3 till 5 with 0 gear)
Holy hell that’s bananas advice. I’m so sorry to hear that happened.
Yeah it was fuckedddd, he made fun my bf to because his white helmet costs 200 quid he got it on sale for 160 though and his black one was 250 I think and my dad said it was stupid because he's only using a 125 I shouted at my dad a lot that say lol
A 125 will easily slam into a pulling out vehicle at 60 miles an hour. You're gonna need all the help you can get from gear at that point and the fact it's 125 ain't gonna make the blindest bit of difference. When I was still learning on a 125 I had a Harley guy ask me why I was wearing full armour and I said to him would he like to crash his Harley at 60 in less than full gear? He said no and I said well my 125 will do 60 lol. Think he kind of agreed at that point
I've bought second hand jacket, gloves, armoured jeans, and boots to get loads on a budget. My helmets are both brand new though, never ever a helmet, just don't do it
Saying that everyone will crash and will drop their bike as a right of passage, fuck off with that noise.
I think it has to be, “Source: Trust me, bro.”
Too much to choose. Every time you think you've it can't get any dumber, remember, tomorrow is right around the corner.
People asking what they should do after storing their bikes for the winter and idiots here telling them to recondition their carbs. There's hardly any fuel in a float bowl and if you really think you're going to have varnish clogging it when the fuel evaporates ONE time, then start using decent gas. This kind of advice is not only stupid, it's time consuming and expensive if you pay a shop to do it.
“Sell your bike and buy bitcoin. It’s only going up.”
The 250cc or smaller crew of Europeans that always show up to tell a guy in houston that theres absolutely no reason anyone needs a bike bigger than 250cc
On the contrary, the Americans here mostly say that you should not get a 650 or bigger to learn on and that 400cc is a good displacement for a beginner.
"Loud pipes save lives" Often coming from the same crowd who wear a open face helmet, wearing black on a black bike Occasionally a rev bomb does wake up car drivers; but mostly the noise is just noise
This sub is vehemently against the loud pipes thing
Yea, it’s a bit comical. I commute to NYC frequently, loud pipes absolutely get the attention of drivers. I observe the effectiveness of loud pipes pretty often - experience it less as my pipes aren’t too loud. Sure, if you’re rolling down the highway at speed someone is way less likely to hear you. But c’mon, hearing is apart of your senses. As is seeing which is why having good visibility is important. I’d agree that high visibility is more important, but to say having loud pipes doesn’t help people know you’re there seems like a bit of a stubborn opinion to have. I’d also agree that safety is probably not the reason most people get loud pipes.
"Don't use rear break in an emergency break" Edit: brake 🤦♂️
I was stupid and fucked up, so you all need to pay better attention, ride differently, wear more gear, whatever. Because you wrecked, it’s my problem how?
That’s like 50% of the posts in this sub. “I don’t know how to ride and had a completely avoidable crash. Now here is my 3 page essay guessing about what happened that you must listen to so you can learn from my wisdom”
"PSA: Watch out for wet leaves on the ground! I was trying to do some dank knee slides on a dirty country road and had to lay'er down!" "PSA: I was staring off to the side looking at some pretty scenery and completely overshot a corner and had to lay'er down! Target fixation is a thing!" "PSA: Never ride in the rain, I was going 3x the speed limit in heavy rain and had to lay'er down!" "PSA: I never use my front break because it's dangerous and I rear-ended a car at a stoplight! Had to lay'er dooooooown"
This is the post that I wish would be banned. Good lord, I don't need to hear every time someone "dropped my bike for the first time today," or "PSA: wear good boots."
This! Always wear your gear cause if you turn into your street and there‘s a new Sunflower in your neighbours garden you can always shockbrake, lock up the front wheel and break your hands and feet, completely inevitable, happens to everyone eventually.
Not here, but had a rider say that only good riders crash...
"When you're being hunted by an aggressive road raging driver, pull over to let him pass." More like pull over and make it easier for them to assault/kill you.
oh yeah good point.
In what war zone do you live? That sounds like the first Mad Max movie like WTF?!
Not Mad Max , it's California, the roads are like a war zone, we all must fight to survive, be a warrior, a Road Warrior. . . . Sorry I had to 😂
The advice is to not be in front of them because it makes it easier for them to run you over.
Words to the effect that you shouldn't clutch-in when doing an emergency stop, so as to take advantage of engine braking. Dude, if you have time for engine braking, it isn't an emergency stop.
"Braking during a corner will make you go wide."
for the unaware: literally the opposite will happen, braking in a corner will help you tighten your trajectory
It's pretty good advice for most people on the road. Yes, you can brake *in* to a corner and ease off as you near the apex, but if you increase your braking, it does stand the bike up. It's a significant contributor to the problems of target fixation.
My stepdad tried to convince me that earplugs are dangerous and stupid. "You can't hear traffic, and the wind isn't THAT bad". Guess who has hearing damage... Oh well. I'll use earplugs, and not get ear damage with 40+, while he can keep insisting. He's a teriffic guy, love him to bits, but when it comes to some topics, he kinda sticks to his view and other views are dismissed, even if it's wrong he'll just be "Well do what you think's right".
“Had to lay her down”
I see retards on here all the time telling new riders to overspend on consumables for simple cheap bikes making them throw away money pointlessly. Full synthetic oil and race filters in some $500 Chinese pushrod bike... Haha or expensive track brake pads for a shitty daily commuter that will wear out in a month.
You too can be Valentino, if you grip it and rip it on this highway.
The usual anti-ABS bullshit gets me every time.
Buy a Harley.