My Easy Rider Moment
Sorry to have been AWOL from posting lately. Between the job and commute, there’s little time left for much of anything.
The only real news I have is I took Basic Rider Training through Team Oregon to get my motorcycle endorsement on my drivers license. I passed the written part, but unfortunately did not pass the on-cycle skills test. Well, for someone who was brand new to motorcycles, I think I did ok all in all. The eight hours on the range for this class were the only eight hours I’ve ever spent on a bike so I’m ok with the outcome. I do get one chance to retest in the next 6o days so I’ll probably take a shot at it. It was a lot of fun anyway. Leaning into the curves and swerving through cones and learning to stop hard – all good skills. The main instructor was Joel, who was just fantastic. He was not at all intimidating, always encouraging and got almost as excited as I did when I did things especially well. When it came time for the test, I just choked, plain and simple. I did ok on parts of it, but not enough of it. So I’m not ready to hit the road without a lot more practice and time in the saddle, but for only having ridden for eight hours, it’s hard to be too disappointed. I know I’m not ready, I know where my skills are. We had two hours of classtime on Friday evening, then got on the bikes at 7:45AM on Saturday. Just finding all the controls was an education in itself! We started out real slow, doing a straddle-walk on the bike, holding the clutch at the friction point and just walking across the range. Even that was a thrill for me! By the end of the morning I was leaning into curves, swerving around obstacles, weaving through cones, countersteering, and feeling like a motorcyclist. Here’s the bike I rode (well not the actual one I was on… you know what I mean):
Kawasaki Eliminator 250
Kinda sweet, no? For as little exposure as I’ve had to bikes, I think I did pretty well, which Joel kept telling me. I learned a lot, and I didn’t biff or fall or lay the bike down (which one guy did, and he quit the class he was so rattled by it. It was too bad). And I met some nice folks. The class was a real mix of older and younger people, some who had ridden previously or had at least some experience, others like me with none. I gotta tell ya, it’s pretty exciting the first time you shift into second gear and roll on the throttle and get that sensation as you feel the bike accelerate! Yes, I realize it’s still not going very fast, but it sure feels like it to someone who’s never ridden before.
So that was my entire weekend until I got home today and shampooed the carpet.
17 Comments on “My Easy Rider Moment”
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What a cute little bike! It sounds like you learned a ton in just 8 hours, and you just need a little more road time so you can feel confident and ride safely. Keep at it, for sure!
p.s. are you thinking of springing for the the “Rider Skills Practice” hours if you need it after next month?
I’d love to take all their classes. If I’m really going to do this, I want the best skills I can get, without spending years learning the hard way. One of the guys in the class had ridden years ago, but took the BRS course anyway because, as he said, you forget the good techniques and learn bad habits (as most car drivers do) along the way.
You will get them next time. Never give up the good fight when it comes to riding.
Thanks, two! It was such an amazing experience, I don’t want it to end now
Sounds like even though you didn’t pass you still had a great time. Best of luck on your next try!
Thanks, it was so fun. Even driving in my car this morning I felt like I was still on the bike, trying to roll on the throttle, cover the clutch…
Yay, DD! It’s so much fun to try new things. And what a cool thing to learn. Soon there will be a blog post about how you passed the driving part.
Let’s hope so!
Have images of you flying around on a bike – hair a flyin, boots, shades. That buff angel at the top of the page riding on the back. You wouldn’t even need an helmet.
No flying hair, more like helmet-hair (the HORROR). But I had the shades and boots
Yes, with my friend up there riding shotgun (or whatever they call it on bikes) I should be A-OK!
They call it riding bitch, b/c more often you see the man driving and the old lady riding on the back. We will need to find a new term for you & your passengers
I should have been able to figure that one out
Hmm… have to give that some thought.
how about the “boyfriend seat,” or, as a verb, “ridin’ boyfriend” ? Or if your passengers look like that illustration (one hopes) the “angel seat.” I like the idea of a well-built angel looking over yr shoulder, keeping you safe.
Heehee, I was thinking the “boy toy” seat
And as you know, my angels are always with me, even if they are fallen.
Love how you got home and shampooed the carpet! I can just imagine that you were so wired with excitement, you needed something requiring a lot of energy just to work it out of your system.
I’m always amazed when I see smallish people operating big bikes and not dumping the bikes. I recall having to move someone’s very small (250, I think) bike in Viet Nam — had to move it backwards down a slight slope, from between two other motorbikes. Of course, as you can guess, I dropped it, but thank goodness didn’t knock any others over. After that, I made a point of practising moving one around, but never did find it easy. Maybe if I drove one, it would be easier. Anyway, bravo for learning so much, and I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you on your next test.
Actually motorcycle class was quite exhausting (or maybe it was only because we had to be on the range at 7:45AM Sat. & Sun). I’m amazed I came home and did anything! Yeah moving those things, even the smaller ones, is a lot easier with it running and letting the engine do the work
It was kind of weird to go from feeling all badass on the bike to playing domestic goddess with the Bissell, I can tell you.