2Wheeltips

I was riding yesterday on a busy road just after rush hour. The traffic was slow and I was minding my own business staying in my lane and watching my following distance.

Then out of no where, an idiot on a sport bike zoomed by and passed me in MY LANE! I'm thinking to myself, what kind of fool would do such a thing? What if I would have moved a bit to avoid a pothole, or a dead animal or even a car battery in the road? He would have hit me and we would have both been hurt.

Unfortunately for him, there was a red light up ahead and I drove right up to him, tapped him on the shoulder and told him he was a complete #$%#$%^&*#@@$! and that he could have killed or hurt both of us. He was in total shock that he was getting lectured in the middle of the highway. From talking to him, I could tell he was a new rider.....perhaps 2 years or so.  After a few more choice words, I moved so he could go and he rode away. At the next intersection, he made a left turn and almost rode off the road.

I know we are all taught to stay out of the way of cars and trucks on the road, but I think we should not forget about idiots like this guy that are on the road. They tailgate in group rides, weave in and out of traffic, speed through intersections and pass too close to other riders. They can get you just as quick as a distracted driver. They are also the ones you read about in the newspapers and see on the 6pm local news.

I hate using tragedy as an example but here is another example of a motorcycle fatality at an intersection. It appears from the article that the rider swerved to avoid a turning car, lost control and crashed.

When approaching intersections, you should ALWAYS slow down and look for cars on side streets and also look for situations where other vehicles are blocking your view. 

http://www.mycentraljersey.com/article/20100804/NEWS/8040338/1003/NLETTER06 

We had very hot day in Iowa last week, got up to 99 degrees, quite unusual this early. I was driving home from work down I-35 going my usual 5 to 10 MPH over the speed limit (in my car!!) when I see a bike in my rearview mirror coming up fast behind me. I pull over into the slow lane and this couple on a HD crusier blow past me doing at least 90 MPH. I glanced over at them as they went by and this is what I saw: The bike had no windshield or sissy bar. The driver, a male, had jeans, boots and a sleeveless t-shirt, no helmet, no eyewear, no golves. His female passenger had on a tank top, capri pants and sneakers. No helmet, no eyewear, no gloves. Her face was buried in his back to block the wind. His face looked like what you see when the astronauts and fighter pilots would get into those centrifugal force accelerators so they could experience the "G" forces they would be subjected to on take-offs and high speed turns. All of his facial skin was flapping and his mouth was open and lips blown back. Not a terribly attractive sight to behold!! I needed gas so I pulled off behind them at the next exit and coincidentally followed them into the same gas station. I pulled up behind them at the pump. I was seriously wanting to mention to them it would be a good idea if they would at least wear eye protection when riding those speeds but thought I would start with some casual conversation just to "test the water". My concern is that I was coming from work in a 4 door sedan dressed in business attire and they had very much the hardcore biker look. I'm not making a statement that their look was any better or worse than mine, only that we were at opposite ends of the spectrum!! I commented on his bike and mentioned he was really getting some impressive speed. I asked him what he thought the top end was for his Harley. His reply, was and I quote: " it can do about 110MPH when the "bitch" ain't on the back". The "bitch" happened to be standing right next to him and didn't bat an eye. With that I wished them all the best and drove off not thinking it would be wise and or useful to provide any safety commentary. After getting home I debated whether I did the right thing or not. Well, I'm still debating but stongly leaning towards keeping my advice to myself was probably a good decision. What would you have done?

As a father you would do anything to keep your child safe. There should be no difference when it comes to them riding as a passenger on a motorcycle!

My daughter has been riding with me since she was four years old and has been riding for four years. Let me tell you that it's been a blast for both of us, it's something we can share and enjoy together. We try to ride as much as we can, school drop-offs/pick-ups, shopping, visits to grandparents house and windy rides along the river.

But, before this wonderful adventure began; I wanted to make sure that we did it right! My initial thought was a harness, research on children riding motorcycles had confirmed some reservations that I had on certain techniques and opened my eyes to things I didn't think about.

The obvious one for me was proper attire and a well fitting helmet; this just made sense, or because my daughter was so young, I knew getting thwapped by a junebug and holding up an oversided adult helmet would not be enjoyable or comfortable for her. The other factor is to be prepared for any circumstance and that the helmets inability to do it's job if it does not fit right.

The technique I was never fond of was the thought of having my daughter ride in front of me on the motorcycle. I came across an article that talked about a child slipping and the choice of letting go of the handlbars to catch them...and you know where this is leading! If you let go of the handlebars (even with one hand) what else are you probably not focusing on? Yup, your eyes on the road. So, probably more than likely this progression of events is not going to end well. Also, not a choice or a scene that I would want to be stuck with replaying over and over in my mind.

So, the one item I did not think about was the fact that children can fall asleep from the vibration of the motorcycle. If it's not good to have the child sitting in front of you, now they are in back of you, with the potential to fall asleep! This completely solidified my thought of a harness that would secure her in place just in case.

The next task was finding a harness, there were belt devices that the driver wears that has loops on both sides of the rider for the child to hang on to. This was a nice setup, but a child can easily let go of the loop if they fall asleep; nothing is going to prevent them from dozing off to one side or the other. Also, with my daughter being four years old; one is trusting she'll remember what she needs to do and the other is the strength to hang on for a sustained amount of time. Keeping all these considerations in mind and some lengthy searching, I finally found the Child Riding Belt (www.childridingbelt.com).


It seemed to fit the needs that I was looking for, the ability for my daughter to ride securely behind me without the dependency of her having to hang on and in the case of her falling asleep there would be no chance of her falling off!

I can attest that this device has been great; my daughter has worn this on rides for the past four years. Over that time we have put on a couple thousand miles together and not had any issues with it. She has fallen asleep once and the harness kept her on the bike securely. I know because my back was the pillow :)

The way the harness works, there is a belt that goes around the driver, there is a foam pad between that belt and the harness for the child. This is great keeping a slight distance so the child is not pressed right up on the back of the driver. They even put two handles on the foam pad that the child can hang onto if they desire. The harness has straps that go from the bottom of the pad down around the childs upper legs and connect to the back of their belt along with straps from the top of the pad over the childs shoulders to the back part of their belt. The shoulder straps can not slip off because they are ajoined by a neck pad that supplies padding and stability for their neck.

My original goal was to have her ride to feel comfortable with and not intimidated by the motorcycle, to appreciate and respect it for what it is. What I didn't realize is what we were going to gain together, to watch her grow up on the bike and see the changes has been something I will always cherish! Our first ride, I told her to hang-on and when we stopped I found that she bruised her little hands from hanging on too tight. From then she has felt comfortable enough to not hang on and wave to the shadows as we ride along. To this year being excited to not wear the harness on short trips and hanging on to the passenger handles. That's my girl!!!

If you are contemplating having your child ride with you, I would encourage you to do your own research. My hope is that this little writeup gets you thinking about the safety issues involved and to do it right! It will make the ride for you both more relaxing and enjoyable, which will then allow it to grow into a time to cherish. Because we all know how fast our children are growing up and soon (I hope) they will be asking when they can have their own motorcycle, then maybe we've nurtured a riding companion for life!

I can not stress enough how important it is to protect your hearing while riding. Next time you go to a major rally, look around and you will see many riders with double hearing aids. I'm not talking about riders in their 60's and 70's, but riders in their late 30's and early 40's who have been riding for years without hearing protection.

I encourage you to listen to the video on hearing loss and hearing protection from Dr. Melissa Heche. She is a 2wheeltips member and regularly writes for the site.  You can contact her if you have any hearing-related questions.

How often have you heard the slogan “loud pipes save lives”?  It is a common explanation by riders who either purchase bikes with loud exhaust pipes or replace the original exhaust pipes on their bike with loud ones.  Before you put loud pipes on your bike, consider the following:

    •    In some towns, you may be fined for riding with loud pipes.
    •    Motorists may still not hear you until you are right on top of them.
    •    Loud pipes can irritate drivers and pedestrians.

Accident avoidance is your goal, and you should practice the following tips:

    •    Wear bright clothing during the day.
    •    Wear retro-reflective clothing at night.
    •    During the day, ride with your high beams on.

Headlights on later model bikes come on whenever the bike is on but riding with the high beams during the day will make your bike more visible and it does not blind drivers as it can during the night.

   •    Use your turn signals!  Using hand signals will not help you be seen; lighted turn signals can.
    •    You can tap your brake to show drivers that you are slowing down before you actually start to brake completely.
    •    Use your horn!

  If you see a potentitally dangerous situation coming up, use your horn to get someone's attention.  Remember that your horn is not a substitute for maneuvering around a dangerous situation.  But, in some cases, it is all you need to get the attention of a driver or pedestrian who may be about to cut in front of you.  Don't hesitate to use your horn in the two most dangerouss situations:  oncoming vehicles making a left turn, and cars pulling out from side streets (never assume that others see you).

A common response from people who collide with motorcyclists is “I never saw him....he  came out of nowhere...”  By understanding that many motorists and pedestrians simply do not notice motorcyclists, and making yourself more visible to them with what you wear and what you do when approaching them, you can help prevent many accidents.

Rather than paying a lot of money to upgrade the pipes on your bike, consider upgrading the horn on your bike.  It will cost significantly less and you can bet that people will hear it!

You need to modify your riding style when riding on new tires.,

New tires are very very slippery. There are conflicting reasons for this (mold release compound, chemicals used in the molding process etc.) but one thing is for sure, hard leaning and quick braking on new tires is a quick way to crash your bike.

Although some people will tell you to use  sandpaper, degreaser or do a "burn out", the only way to get rid of the slippery surface is through the friction caused by riding.  75 miles is usually enough to get it off.

The first 5 - 10 miles are the most dangerous. The tires have limited grip and will drift from even the slightest lean.  So take it nice and slow. As you get closer to 30 miles you can begin leaning a bit more to wear the tires closer to the edges. As you get closer to 75 miles, you will feel the tires grip more.

One final tip. Even after you have passed 75 miles, remember your tires are still new. Save the hard leans and braking for when you have a few hundred miles on the tires.

I was reading an article from the October 2009 issue of GQ magazine titled "Easy Riding - A GQ Motorcycle Primer".

There is a very interesting quote by one of the MSF coaches who contributed to the article. I've included part of it below:

"Once you pass (the BRC), you can ride on any road in America. "But practically speaking, you are qualified to ride in an enclosed lot with two instructors watching."

One of our members said that his BRC instructor told him:

"Congratulations, you are now qualified to ride a 125cc motorcycle around cones in a closed parking lot"
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As bad as they sound, the above quotes reflect reality.  Passing the BRC does not make you an instant skilled motorcyclist. You are now a person who has spent a few hours practicing the most basic motorcycle skills on a bike you cannot even purchase at a dealer.

I am not putting down or critizing the BRC or other basic training classes because they are important. Most motorcycle accidents involve people with no training. But once you get your license, you need lots of practice to become a skilled and safe motorcyclist. The BRC is the foundation on which you build your good skills.

It matters what and where you practice. Riding around in parking lots will help your slow maneuver skills and as a new rider you should go to parking lots and practice as often as you can. But you also need to practice road skills such as merging into traffic, switching lanes, target fixation, going around curves, wet weather riding, braking and acceleration. To become a skilled rider you should practice all of these things.

Think of the BRC as an excellent beginning rather than the finish line. You spend a few years, many hours and quite a few miles on your bike before you become a skilled rider.

Ride a motorcycle and soon you will realize that one of the most personalized accessories you can get  speaks volumes about you, but costs you absolutely nothing:  your biker nickname.  In this column, I invite everyone to respond by answering the following questions (and I'll be the first to provide my own answers!):
    1.    Do you have a biker nickname?  If so, what is it?
    2.    Now, for the really interesting part:  How did you acquire that nickname (without being too offensive, and avoiding those dreaded TMI (too much information) bits and pieces…?
    3.    If you don't have a nickname, what do you want it to be, and why?

Okay, everyone, here I go!

1.  My biker nickname is "Cookie".
2.  Friends that I ride with know me for my homemade cookies, so "Cookie"  seemed the appropriate nickname for me.
Do I look like a "Cookie"….who knows (you can decide for yourself when you meet me in person)?  But, "Cookie" it is, and "Cookie" I am!

Now, it's your turn to share!  What's your story?

I figure it is time to let everyone know about the David Hough (pronounced "Huff") interview.  David is the author of Proficient Motorcycling and More Proficient Motorcycling; the best selling motorcycle books of all time and a must read for every new rider. (both books are available in the 2wheeltips MarketPlace in the recommended reading section)

I'm sitting here reviewing the video now and I must say......I am just as impressed as I was 2 days ago. The interview lasted close to 2 hours!!  It was an amazing interview and we are all still.....totally speechless!!! We thought we knew a thing or two about motorcycling......that was until we got him talking. Not only is he full of knowledge, he doesn't have a problem sharing and he is genuinely  a very nice person.

I will try to clip a section or two from the interview to post here later tonight or tomorrow. The good thing is we will have a chance to work with him more in the future. Stay tuned.....