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There's also the gear ratio and overcoming valve spring pressure and the amount of weight on the rear tire. I don't know which bikes would start in first because I never really do it, because second is a reliable way to do it in every circumstance. Tbh I think the cbr300 is just really softly sprung so there's no way you can lock up the rear even in first.
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Aug 26, 2023 18:02
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I like the muck off stuff because it smells like grape soda 
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Aug 26, 2023 18:04
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Went through the first half of class today. Then went for a short ride after I got out. I feel so much more confident handling the motorcycle now. Now to pass the test tomorrow.
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Aug 26, 2023 21:09
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Slavvy posted:There's also the gear ratio and overcoming valve spring pressure and the amount of weight on the rear tire. I don't know which bikes would start in first because I never really do it, because second is a reliable way to do it in every circumstance. Tbh I think the cbr300 is just really softly sprung so there's no way you can lock up the rear even in first. i would guess it has a lot more to do with how grippy the clutch is than with anything about the engine, but thats just a wild rear end guess
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Aug 27, 2023 01:47
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when the stator failed in the 950 several years ago I could bump it with a precision timed release of the clutch and tap of the starter switch otherwise it would just drag the rear tire. The drz needed similar tricks when it was cold since the battery wasn't large enough, but hitting the kicker in unison with the starter switch.
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Aug 27, 2023 02:27
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I didn't ride my bike today because it was hot as hell, but a few minutes ago I looked out my apartment window and saw that my bike was sitting in a way that I never park it. I checked up on it and there are some scuff marks on the right hand side, the left mirror has been knocked loose, and the back brake footrest has been snapped in half. I swear as much as I love riding, owning a bike and living in an apartment complex is the most frustrating experience.
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Aug 27, 2023 03:36
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Cactus Ghost posted:also whats advised for holding the bike level while doing stuff like checking the oil. thus far i've just held the bike level-ish and tried to be careful lol A rear stand is what I usually use. However, some bikes are meant to be checked on the side stand, so I’d make sure yours actually needs to be held upright. Sagebrush posted:Only spin the rear wheel by hand!! NEVER touch the chain with the engine running, even if it's in neutral. You will lose your fingers. I once cleaned a drz chain with it on the rear stand and running in gear. It’s in the top three dumbest things I’ve ever done in my life, easily
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Aug 27, 2023 03:41
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IronDoge posted:Went through the first half of class today. Then went for a short ride after I got out. I feel so much more confident handling the motorcycle now. Now to pass the test tomorrow. good work and good luck
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Aug 27, 2023 08:14
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Spiggy posted:I swear as much as I love riding, owning a bike and living in an apartment complex is the most frustrating experience. That blows it sounds like some bonehead really knocked it good. Parking on the street makes me feel super naked for some reason. Locks and a cover really help and settles my nerves a bit. Good luck Irondoge you'll be certified before you know it!
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Aug 27, 2023 18:25
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Two new motorcycles recently popped up by our apartments being parked the long way, like a car. It's a little annoying because it's not a parking-rich environment, but I'm not sure I can fault them because they're probably slightly less likely to get missed or backed into. They're still parking wrong though.
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Aug 27, 2023 18:41
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Anytime I park in a car parking space I park front and center so someone doesn’t try to “share” somehow.
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Aug 27, 2023 18:44
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I should clarify those are out on the street rather than slot parking. In parking spots I'll usually pick a side so another rider might use it, but don't park very deep so I can't get blocked in by any foolishness on their part. e; vvvvvv that and their sidestands are up-slope, pretty sure mine in that position would be practically vertical and could be blown over to the right by a stiff breeze. I've been tempted to leave an illustrated note but that seems presumptuous. Remy Marathe fucked around with this message at 19:11 on Aug 27, 2023 |
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Aug 27, 2023 18:49
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I think it's weird to park car-wise as a motorcycle because I feel like the bike isn't stable unless its rear wheel is butted up against the curb. When parking in a lot I also park in the rear center. Rear, because you want the spot to be visibly taken so some idiot doesn't try to rush into what they think is a free space and then hit your bike. Center, to prevent cars from trying to "share." Yes, there's enough space for two bikes, but unless someone else arrives at the same moment I do, I'm just taking the whole spot. Parking lots are the thunderdome and I'm gonna look out for number one.
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Aug 27, 2023 18:59
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Yeah I guess what I call front you call rear; either way, I want someone to see my bike before they turn into the spot. Parking stalls in SF are pretty narrow. If another bike wants to squeeze in, they are more than welcome, but yeah, thunderdome. On the street though yeah wheel touching the curb. Maybe this is only SF? This space in between cars is a free and legal spot for motorcycles and where I usually end up parking. No one has hit my bike so far, but I also street park fairly infrequently. 
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Aug 27, 2023 19:06
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Toe Rag posted:Yeah I guess what I call front you call rear; either way, I want someone to see my bike before they turn into the spot. Parking stalls in SF are pretty narrow. If another bike wants to squeeze in, they are more than welcome, but yeah, thunderdome. On the street though yeah wheel touching the curb. That privilege is not universal at all.
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Aug 27, 2023 19:14
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I know it's done down south in CA too, but never would've guessed at it being explicitly legal. I'll use gaps that narrow in a pinch, but it gives me the willies unless both cars have plenty of extra room on either end to get out (and ideally look expensive enough that their owner might be worried about scratching their bumper on my ride). I also worry that the painted marks on the street increase the likelihood of one of those car owners feeling territorial and therefore justified in taking some risks on the way out.
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Aug 27, 2023 19:23
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I park in between cars like that all the time (also SF). I do make sure that the cars still have enough space to move forwards and backwards. One guy once came up to his car while I was parking in front of him and became extraordinarily furious, claiming I was leaving no room for him to leave... ...the space behind him was empty. I was deliberately leaving it open for another car! Trying to be nice! Maybe he just didn't know how to reverse?  It happens so much in this city that I think people are broadly used to it and don't get upset. I haven't had any other bad experiences that I can recall. Same as with lane-splitting -- in San Francisco nearly all drivers are fine with it and will even move out of your way if they notice you, but outside the city I've had people try to block me (including one guy with a Nevada plate who tried to door me), and doing it in another state might be outright suicidal. However, regarding slotting in being "free and legal" -- that varies. If it's unmetered parking, it's legal to slot between cars, but any time limits or restrictions still apply to you. If the spaces have parking meters, it's a gray area. There is no California law one way or another regarding parking motorcycles between metered spaces. The SF municipal law says that if you are "occupying the space" you must pay for it. My attitude is that I'm not occupying either space if I park between two cars -- I'm not preventing cars from taking either spot -- so I don't have to pay. This has been borne out by my not getting tickets when I do it. Trying to figure out a consistent rule, though, I've asked three different meter men for their read on it at various times, and I've gotten three different answers, of course. One said the same thing I believe -- you aren't preventing a vehicle from parking in the metered spot, so you aren't occupying it, so you don't have to pay. Another said that one of the two meters had to be paid up because otherwise you were parking for free, and parking for free isn't allowed. The third said that both meters had to be paid up in order to park between them, because there is no "space between the spaces" where you can park and therefore you are occupying both spaces. He was a prick. gently caress that guy. So yeah, ymmv. Hopefully you don't encounter the shitheads. Oh, and SF law does specifically say that the little extra unmarked spaces at the ends of rows or street corners, that are too short for cars, are ideal for motorcycles and you should park there. So go nuts with those Sagebrush fucked around with this message at 19:29 on Aug 27, 2023 |
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Aug 27, 2023 19:24
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The space in between spots being legal in CA I'm pretty sure I remember being part of the materials in the MSF or DMV stuff.
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Aug 27, 2023 19:28
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In MKE you’re allowed to sidewalk park motorcycles if they’re under some arbitrary CC limit like 100cc, but as long as you aren’t parking stretched hayabusas or full dresser cruisers on the sidewalk the cops tend not to care Sidewalk parking a motorcycle, especially near bars and things like that is a whole other set of worries though.
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Aug 27, 2023 20:16
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Passed the BRC today and got my license!
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Aug 28, 2023 02:53
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IronDoge posted:Passed the BRC today and got my license! 
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Aug 28, 2023 03:06
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Congratulations! I was driving in today and discovered that while lane splitting, looking at the gaps between cars is much better than looking at the cars themselves. If either one brakes then you will subconsciously also break and then you will never get through there. So what I started doing is look at each cars wheels and lights to make sure it’s not doing anything crazy and then look at the gap. What does the goonmind think?
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Aug 28, 2023 17:39
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Eventually you do that without even thinking and develop a sixth sense where subconscious micro cues alert you to someone trying to kill you without you even realizing what's happening and you take evasive action automatically, it feels like you're psychic
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Aug 28, 2023 18:22
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Slavvy posted:Eventually you do that without even thinking and develop a sixth sense where subconscious micro cues alert you to someone trying to kill you without you even realizing what's happening and you take evasive action automatically, it feels like you're psychic I felt like I was good at this in a car prior to riding, but after riding it's elevated more than I'd have imagined it would
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Aug 28, 2023 19:20
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Also that spider sense is derived from the breadth of your peripheral vision, you generally want your visual focus to be returning to where you’re headed and resting as far uproad as possible. Focused glances are moments of tunnel vision, so there’s such thing as too much.
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Aug 28, 2023 19:36
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Slavvy posted:, it feels like you're psychic It's amazing when you're riding along and you just get a feeling from a particular car, like a spidey sense that something's off, so you hang back, and ten seconds later they rip across four lanes and swerve across the gore right where you would have been
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Aug 28, 2023 20:06
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Around here that's not so much a spidey sense as just looking for the "TAXI" sign.
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Aug 28, 2023 20:13
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Or a Lexus badge Or an Audi badge Or a V8 anything Or a ute anything Or a Tesla
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Aug 28, 2023 20:38
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Collateral Damage posted:Around here that's not so much a spidey sense as just looking for the "TAXI" sign. Same but Amazon vans
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Aug 28, 2023 20:40
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There's no need to filter down at all, if it's a motorized vehicle on the same road as you then it is trying to kill you
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Aug 28, 2023 20:42
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Here in LA traffic is entirely composed of only those specific cars anyway
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Aug 29, 2023 00:17
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This thread got way too real, all I can hear is dandanthefireman saying "You know the car saw that escape path too brother you gotta be smarter than that"
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Aug 29, 2023 16:38
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It’s finally raining here in Portland and I’m actually kind of looking forward to putting on my rain gear and turning on my heater grips. But I probably won’t ride anywhere today because the first time it rains after a long period of … not, all of the road grime and oil gets washed off and can cause some weird slick spots that are bad enough in a car but could really gently caress you up on your bike. I remember being out the first time it rained in a while last year and being stuck in some traffic, watching the oil and gasoline make patterns in the water that was standing on the road. It’s something I’m glad I didn’t have to learn about the hard way and want to be sure no one else does, either.
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Aug 31, 2023 17:49
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Geekboy posted:It’s finally raining here in Portland and I’m actually kind of looking forward to putting on my rain gear and turning on my heater grips. Yeah, first time in months I took the car to work.
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Aug 31, 2023 19:37
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Sure doesn't feel like August 31st in Portland, 60 degrees and rain, quite relaxing, but also the first day I haven't ridden in a long while.
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Aug 31, 2023 19:54
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Got out for the first time in a couple of weeks today, in the near 100 degree heat. This is the first time I've really sweated up my gear.
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Sep 5, 2023 04:27
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Four months in and I'm starting to feel very comfortable on the bike. That's probably still somewhat unearned but I'm at the point where processes are starting to be habit/subconscious. For example, slowing down near parked vehicles or checking all the danger spots when merging lanes or lane splitting. I find myself relaxing my "no lane splitting over 20mph" rule and doing it comfortably at up to 40. Questions: * On the highway, lane splitting, going about 30-40mph: How to judge distance between cars for whether you want to gun it between? Typically if the gap seems a bit small for comfort I will hang out 5-10 feet behind the cars for a moment or two to see whether an opportunity presents itself. Sometimes one car pulls ahead or aside and then you can just go. But I do feel a bit exposed during that time. There's nothing directly in front or ahead or to either side of me, but I am hanging out in both car's blind spots for a moment, sometimes an extended moment if neither car moves. Is there a better way to approach this? * Also say a gap appears and I gun it to take the gap and minimize time between the cars: while I'm gunning it I feel like a sudden movement from either car could do me in. You're not in that situation for long and realistically I don't think it's an actual danger (who ever sideswipes a car directly to their lateral on a highway? much more common to hit someone in your blind spot or rear end someone) but my lizard brain yells "danger" the whole time so I can't help but feel like there might be a better way. * Is it polite to honk at someone to ask them to open a space for you? I don't think I would ever do it because I don't want to draw attention to myself and possibly road rage someone while I'm on a bike. I have seen bikers pull up behind and then rev their engines real loud for a more subtle version of the same effect, but my engine's not loud enough for that anyway. * For the first time this week I rode somewhere I haven't ever been in a car before and wasn't familiar with. I memorized the directions and would have been OK, but just in case I put an airpod in my left ear. (The phone is always inaccessible zipped up in my jacket pocket.) It was a terrible experience, noisy and falling out everywhere in the helmet. Does the goonmind think I am experienced enough for real motorcycle bone conduction headphones assuming I still leave the phone inaccessible zipped up in the jacket pocket and of course never play music or anything, or is it best to keep to the streets I know for now? What did you wish you did? Also, I haven't dropped the bike yet! I keep saying it because if I can avoid dropping it even while jinxing myself then I will be the only person who has never dropped their bike.
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Sep 15, 2023 07:07
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Vino posted:Four months in and I'm starting to feel very comfortable on the bike. That's probably still somewhat unearned but I'm at the point where processes are starting to be habit/subconscious. For example, slowing down near parked vehicles or checking all the danger spots when merging lanes or lane splitting. I find myself relaxing my "no lane splitting over 20mph" rule and doing it comfortably at up to 40.
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Sep 15, 2023 07:32
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Vino posted:Also, I haven't dropped the bike yet! I keep saying it because if I can avoid dropping it even while jinxing myself then I will be the only person who has never dropped their bike. "Yet" is the keyword here IMO. You can be mindful of your actions when you're on the bike or handling it some other way, which lowers the risk, but it only takes one small bad decision or some kind of fumbled move for it to come down. I dropped a bike once during practice before I got my licence, then again this summer three years later. I'm certain I'll drop a bike again eventually if I stick with this hobby. It isn't the end of the world.
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Sep 15, 2023 10:59
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I've only dropped my bike when emergency stopping once. My nx250 has tipped on its own on too soft ground a couple of times, seemed fine, then sagged over just after you turn away. But it's been really drat close some times when moving a bike around when not sitting on it. Me getting to close to the bike and the bike getting the weight unbalanced away from you. I prefer to move my big bikes around either properly leaned toward me with my hip leaned on the side of the seat, or sitting on it properly.
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Sep 15, 2023 11:12
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