Beautiful bike, love the color.
I like it, it’s very pretty.
Forgive me if I come across as a little bit preachy in the following.
First of all congratulations on passing the MSF course. Now you know how to make the bike go and hopefully stop safely. But you’re just starting. You’ve got to continuously develop your powers of observation and situational awareness. Take your new bike to a large empty parking lot and practice stopping quickly and safely. Use both brakes and get in the habit of applying them progressively, stopping as quickly as you can without locking up the wheels.
Buy a copy of David Hough’s Proficient Motorcycling
(From one of the reviews)
Good luck and I hope you enjoy your new ride safely!
Oh, trust me, I know. I’ve been taking the mindset that the MSF course taught me enough not to kill myself when I practice on my own. Granted, I couldn’t help myself and took it on the road today, but I don’t intend to become one of those idiots who’ve been hopping on bikes and getting themselves killed lately because they didn’t know how to drive safely. I’ve yet to get in a serious accident in 10 years of driving and I don’t intend to start now. 
There, I cleaned that up for you.
Buy yourself some engine guards very very quick, because you’re going to dump it on its side doing something lame, like filling up at the gas station. It’s just an inevitable fact of motorcycling, and it happens to all of us.
Careful, you’ll get a mod on your butt with that. Not reporting it, mind.
I’ve already ‘dropped’ it a couple times, but it was more of a controlled slow fall. Overbalancing while navigating a parking lot, and once I tried getting off without putting the kickstand down. :smack: At no point did the engine actually touch pavement, though; I’m strong enough that I was able to stop it from going that far.
I’ve ridden the bike about 60 miles now, and I can see why folks avoid the armor and helmet where they can. It’s a right pain to get the gear off and back on every time you make a stop, especially if it’s only for 15 minutes or so. Not that I’m going to eschew the armor, of course, but I can understand why they’d go without.
Bosstone, what kind of shoe/boots did you wear while taking the course? I’m thinking of doing the MSF myself when the temperature drops, but our local course’s website simply says 'footwear with ankle support."
High-top shoes are acceptable, I believe, as long as they cover the ankle, but these are what I bought. They’re fairly light on protection, but there’s no way I was going to bother with the heavy-duty boots, and they’re plenty stiff and cover the ankles. Pretty comfortable too, once they’re broken in; I’ve worn them at work the last couple of days without a problem.
I wore army boots FWIW. Your ankles (and legs) will probably get more of a workout than you’re used to.
Dang! Now I wish I still had my old ten-hole Doc Marts – our scooter doesn’t provide much of a workout. Thanks for the response!
No, you sort of did the exact opposite of what we recommended. :smack:
It’s a beauty, though, I don’t blame ya.
As for the gear being a pain in the ass, it seemed to me that it got easier once I stopped putting shit on and taking it of in the wrong order. On, it’s boots, jacket, helmet, glasses, gloves; off, it’s right glove, glasses, helmet, left glove, jacket, boots.
Daithi Lacha, keep us updated when you take the course!
ETA: You’re only averaging one drop per 30 miles… not bad. 
To date, this remains my only drop:
- Stop the bike at the gas pump
- Shut off the engine
- Start to put the kickstand down
- Change my mind because I’m going to just balance the bike while I fill up
- Drop pen out of pocket while pulling out wallet
- Dismount bike to retrieve pen because of course I already put the kickstand down (!)
- :smack:
I can’t put my helmet on with my jacket on (especially zipped up). My arms don’t go up that high. Are men’s jackets more accommodating?
I…guess so. I hadn’t ever really thought about it, but my jacket certainly doesn’t restrict my range of motion in any noticeable way. I’ve got a leather jacket and a mesh jacket with armor. Both are pretty comfortable to wear. My jacket always goes on before my helmet.
All I can say in defense is I put a lot of thought into it.
This is exactly the routine I figured out, but even with gloves off securing and loosening the chinstrap on the helmet takes too damn long. I found a DOT-approved quick-release clasp that attaches to the strap, which should make things easier. Before you jump on me for that I’ll say that the MSF instructor actually mentioned those clasps to us, and just pointed out that if we were going to get one, get one that’s DOT-approved. So it ought to be sufficiently safe.
Same here.
I’m still looking for a mesh jacket I like - I wear a leather jacket with armor. It may be that the women’s jackets are cut more closely to make up for the linebacker armor look. The sleeves are quite snug with the armor in.
That sounds dangerous, are you not able to adjust your glasses or face shield when you’re riding, either? My jacket is not at all constricting, especially now that it’s warm and the lining is out. The only thing keeping me from fully extending my arms upwards would be when the shoulder armor hits my face. Maybe your jacket is too small? Depending on the brand, I have to buy one to three sizes larger than what I measure. For example, I wear size large tshirts, but have to use size XXXL (:eek:) in Shift, and I forget if my Cortec is XL or XXL.
ETA: Upon reading your post, yep, looks like your jacket is too small for you. Being snug in the arms sounds uncomfortable, too.
EETA: I strongly recommend Cortec, stay away from FirstGear.
Here’s a start: http://www.motorcycle-superstore.com/1/2/49/DEPT/Street-Bike-Jackets-Womens-Riding-Gear.aspx#&&Back=473%2C0
If you want to go with another brand,
Let me know if you decide to get one, I’ll PM you a coupon code… I forget if it’s 5 or 10% off.