75ZT Community

Carl will have seen this elsewhere, but thought I'd throw it in here!

Anyone got any/much experience of bikes?

I'll put myself on the line for jokes, but I think I may be approaching the Mid Life Crisis point where I fancy a go!

I've never even sat astride one let alone ridden one, so no idea what it's like. I've never really been all that interested, but have had thoughts of a motorbikey lustful nature of late. There's some cool looking machines out there.

I know that passing a test would be a challenge, but what if there were places you could go to "get a feel for it" before committing to expensive lessons or the like, somewhere you could have a go after a little tuition, on a private track? Do such places exist?

Saw an article this morning in Reader's Digest on just this topic and there was a photo of this which looked well cool



Apparently it's a Honda Shadow 750 Black Spirit and I was surprised to learn it costs a lot less than I would have thought - somewhere in the region of £6500

Haven't ridden a motorbike for some years now.
Had the normal things: AJS, Norton Commando, Triumph Saint and last bike was a Triumph Bonneville.
Yes I know showing my age.

Too many mad car drivers around nowadays for most bikers, some of which have given themselves a bad name, but
always have a look at the local meets of Bikers locally,
still seem to want to get one again.
One of the current big Triumphs 1600 Thunderbird T16 parallel twin engine jobs. Nice.

May i suggest you get a copy of motorcycle news,in it there is loads of info about various types of bikes,various agencies where you can learn or try bikes,bike shows where wannabees can have a go.Above all else,if you want a bike,GET TUITION.I cannot stress this enough!When you decide on the type of bike ie cruiser,tourer,sports etc,find the owners club website to find out all you can (pro,s & con,s) of ownership.I did this before buying my 75.HTH. Ronnie

Thanks for the advice

My problem is, I don't really even know if this IS what I want!

I need to have a go somehow, before committing myself to anything........

Hi Dave,don,t forget that if you do choose to follow the bike ownership thing,that once you,ve done the CBT theory & practical,you will only be able to ride a resticted (33bhp) bike for 2 years,& depending on your age,it may be too late for you to fully appreciate the joy of riding.I had a bike for 30 years & loved every minute.Only stopped due to bad shoulder.

suzublu wrote:Hi Dave,don,t forget that if you do choose to follow the bike ownership thing,that once you,ve done the CBT theory & practical,you will only be able to ride a resticted (33bhp) bike for 2 years,& depending on your age,it may be too late for you to fully appreciate the joy of riding.I had a bike for 30 years & loved every minute.Only stopped due to bad shoulder.

LOL! I may be old, but not THAT old!!! (I'm 48)

I believe there's a "Direct Access" course which allows you to avoid the two year wait?

Yep you,re right.you can do direct access & 48 isn,t old(sorry)i,m only 54

suzublu wrote:Yep you,re right.you can do direct access & 48 isn,t old(sorry)i,m only 54

No need to be sorry, as I guess I probably gave the impression that I was older!!!!!

That looks like I might even be able to reach the ground on that. Every bike I've sat on has been too far off the ground for me. No problem riding them it's propping myself up at a standstill that's a problem. Even the Cuban heels didn't help

Hi Dave

Don't know if this is of interest, or in your area

http://www.circuitbasedtraining.co.uk/

And some other info hear

http://www.begin-motorcycling.co.uk/index.htm

Sorry Info overload, found this Yanky site, maybe worth a look!!

http://www.totalmotorcycle.com/school.htm

Hope this helps

Dave wrote:Thanks for the advice

My problem is, I don't really even know if this IS what I want!

I need to have a go somehow, before committing myself to anything........

My suggestion would be to do a CBT (Compulsive Basic Training), you have to pass this before you are allowed on the road on any motorbike anyway.

This is a full day course where you learn to control a motorbike in safe surroundings, usually a car park, and then you go out for a ride on the road to show you can put what you've learned into practice.

Costs around £85 IIRC.

Bear in mind the bikes used are usually very small and light, I just couldn't get on with them, despite having had a 125 when I was 17. As soon as I got on a big bike (500cc) I felt much more at home.

Then if you decide you do like it you can do your theory test and take lessons to do the Direct Access course on a Big Bike.

HTH Chris

I saw on of these at The Essex Air Ambulance Ride last September

Honda DN-01

£10,125 OTR

680cc, it's auto though, which on a bike I'm not mega keen on

Nice looking machine mind

Simon wrote:I saw on of these at The Essex Air Ambulance Ride last September

Honda DN-01

£10,125 OTR

680cc, it's auto though, which on a bike I'm not mega keen on

Nice looking machine mind

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder as they say.

Personally I think is one of the ugliest bikes have ever seen

Ama big fan of Honda bikes. Had a VT500e that I had never even touched for 3 years, old fuel in the tank, flat tyres and everything. Local trader came round to give me a price for it with a car battery and some jump leads. Fired up second attempt with no fiddlin at all. Shame they can't make their cars as reliable.

Chris

Dave wrote:

suzublu wrote:Hi Dave,don,t forget that if you do choose to follow the bike ownership thing,that once you,ve done the CBT theory & practical,you will only be able to ride a resticted (33bhp) bike for 2 years,& depending on your age,it may be too late for you to fully appreciate the joy of riding.I had a bike for 30 years & loved every minute.Only stopped due to bad shoulder.

LOL! I may be old, but not THAT old!!! (I'm 48)

I believe there's a "Direct Access" course which allows you to avoid the two year wait?

Although you can avoid the two year wait, my advice would be: don't. You need that experience before getting on a machine that has a performance that makes most Ferraris look sluggish. The logic is that if you're older & wiser you won't go crazy on a big bike like someone younger might and you've probably got road sense from driving cars for years.

Whilst that's all true, I don't think anything prepares you for riding a big bike until you've really mastered something less powerful. To give you some idea: my VFR 800 (pretty quick but there are faster machines out there) makes 109 BHP & weighs 210 kg wet. With me & the luggage on it, around 300 Kg. That's a power/weight of around 360, comparable to many "supercars". But that doesn't tell the whole story. The way the power is delivered is, shall we say, interesting. My old NTV 600 - a boring 600cc V-twin commuter bike - does 0 - 60 in around 4.5s. The Viffer is, I think, under 3s. On a bike like that without ABS (Antilock Braking System), slam the brakes on at speed & the bike'll somersault as you lock the front wheels first. And it's all so effortless. It takes time to train your reflexes to handle that kind of performance & burn into your brain the rest of the skills that'll keep you safe.

There's no question biking is risky... but then the pleasure, IMO, more than balances that out. The adrenaline rush from riding a big bike fast is incomparable. Unless maybe you fly fast jets

hbb wrote:There's no question biking is risky... but then the pleasure, IMO, more than balances that out. The adrenaline rush from riding a big bike fast is incomparable. Unless maybe you fly fast jets

Couldn't have put it better myself. Though I personally gave up due to the general standards of driving (or lack of) in my local area.

With regard to Direct Access, it is the way I went. I rode 125's as a teen and then returned to bikes in my late 20's. The secret is not to go out and buy a very powerful 1st bike. I have ridden 100BHP bikes but most of my time was spent on 400's or 500CC V-twins which have around 50BHP. These also tend to have a low seat height, which is a real bonus when you are building your confidence on a bike. Is nothing worse than falling over at standstill ata busy junction.

Dave - you seem to like cruisers, none of which are very powerful, they tend to be v-twins which generally have easy to maintain shaft drives, have lovely lazy power and loads of torque.

Chris

MrB wrote:Dave - you seem to like cruisers, none of which are very powerful, they tend to be v-twins which generally have easy to maintain shaft drives, have lovely lazy power and loads of torque

Not really sure what I do like to be honest, as I know nothing about bikes! I think that at my age (48) and with my paunch (!) getting onto a sporty job all leathered up I'm going to risk looking ridiculous and/or a hernia!

Would be happy to start on something not too powerful or expensive, maybe like a 125 version of the aforementioned Honda Shadow Black Spirit and see if even like it. I'll admit to feeling a bit exposed driving with the top down in Gill's MX5, so I might turn out to hate a motorbike!!

Dave wrote:

MrB wrote:Dave - you seem to like cruisers, none of which are very powerful, they tend to be v-twins which generally have easy to maintain shaft drives, have lovely lazy power and loads of torque

Not really sure what I do like to be honest, as I know nothing about bikes! I think that at my age (48) and with my paunch (!) getting onto a sporty job all leathered up I'm going to risk looking ridiculous and/or a hernia!

Would be happy to start on something not too powerful or expensive, maybe like a 125 version of the aforementioned Honda Shadow Black Spirit and see if even like it. I'll admit to feeling a bit exposed driving with the top down in Gill's MX5, so I might turn out to hate a motorbike!!

The Shadow is a cruiser - so I assumed that was the sort of thing you liked.

Sports bikes are not the only other alternative. I personally like the current crop of naked bikes - Bandit, Hornet, Fazer etc.

I personally still feel you should just get yourself booked onto a CBT course - where you learn all the basics and get to have a ride on the road on a 125. You'll probably find the 125 too small and a little wobbly, they are designed for 17 year olds after all. Then if you like it you can book some Big Bike lessons and if you don't you've only lost approx £85.

MrB wrote:The Shadow is a cruiser - so I assumed that was the sort of thing you liked

I think I probably do prefer these

MrB wrote:Sports bikes are not the only other alternative. I personally like the current crop of naked bikes - Bandit, Hornet, Fazer etc.

No way am I riding naked!

MrB wrote:I personally still feel you should just get yourself booked onto a CBT course - where you learn all the basics and get to have a ride on the road on a 125. You'll probably find the 125 too small and a little wobbly, they are designed for 17 year olds after all. Then if you like it you can book some Big Bike lessons and if you don't you've only lost approx £85.

You're probably right - just don't like the idea of learning (stupid, I know)

Dave wrote:

MrB wrote:The Shadow is a cruiser - so I assumed that was the sort of thing you liked

I think I probably do prefer these

MrB wrote:Sports bikes are not the only other alternative. I personally like the current crop of naked bikes - Bandit, Hornet, Fazer etc.

No way am I riding naked!

MrB wrote:I personally still feel you should just get yourself booked onto a CBT course - where you learn all the basics and get to have a ride on the road on a 125. You'll probably find the 125 too small and a little wobbly, they are designed for 17 year olds after all. Then if you like it you can book some Big Bike lessons and if you don't you've only lost approx £85.

You're probably right - just don't like the idea of learning (stupid, I know)

It is very different to driving and to riding a push bike. It's not half way between the two or anything like that.

Its hard to describe, but there are things everyone needs to learn. Like how you have to use more power to turn slowly than to turn quickly, by using the gyroscopic effect of the wheels and engine used to stop bike falling over and the rear brake to control your speed. It's great when you master it.

Everyone else doing the CBT will be at the same point as you. It is the basics you must have before being allowed on the road.