#18 in Motorcycles books
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Reddit mentions of Proficient Motorcycling: The Ultimate Guide to Riding Well
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Reddit mentions: 6
We found 6 Reddit mentions of Proficient Motorcycling: The Ultimate Guide to Riding Well. Here are the top ones.
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https://www.amazon.com/Proficient-Motorcycling-Ultimate-Guide-Riding-ebook/dp/B004CLYCPM
Basically that's it for the swerve. Just getting to know how hard and fast you can switch directions. A lot of the time it's a car pulling in front of you and not having time to break.
For emergency brakes its going from speed to 0 as quick as possible without locking a tire. Most of the time locks come from too much rear break. At the beginning of the brake apply both brakes, progressively applying more to the front and letting off the rear(front breaks have about 75% of the stopping power). Also, if you do lock a tire it's best to ride it out, depending on speed releasing a break can cause the bike to over correct into a highside.
You might also look into taking the Motorcycle Safety Course(assuming you are in the US). It gives the basics of low speed maneuvering and how to deal with panic situations. It also has the benefit of lowering insurance rates and counting as the driving portion of the license test(depending on the state).
Also, This book is very in depth look into good riding habits and bike control. Highly recommended if you don't know much about bikes and how their controls are much different than cars.
Now that I've got a bit of real world experience since my MSF class, I do plan on taking a supermoto class and ADV riding training (if I can find such a thing).
The main thing I learned since MSF is that there's always more to learn. David Hough's book saved my ass the very day after I read it, luckily for me! I got into a situation in a construction zone that I would have had no idea how to handle if I hadn't read his book, and only had the MSF as my base of knowledge.
I think everyone goes through this starting out. The guy who I took advice from was ATGATT and had a good riding philosophy. When my mom first saw me with the bike, I showed her all the gear, padding, and armor. and it eased some of her fears. "Whatever happens" does not have to be whatever. You need to take control of your own safety so when "whatever" happens, you have a safe response. Your dad needs to see how you're prepared for danger and prepared for life.
Watch a lot of motorcycle crash videos, seriously. Try to figure out what went wrong, why did the rider crash, what could they have done to prevent it? Buy and read this book: Proficient Motorcycling
Are you a good car driver? Be honest with yourself. If yes, then you can be a good motorcyclist because it uses a lot of the same driving skills. The biggest difference is the controls. The risk is much higher and that's the part you really need to be okay with. Use your fear to make better decisions, become more observant, and find ways to get other drivers' attention. No matter how many years you ride, there will always be fear.
Lastly, Why did you stall five times riding around your block? What did you do to resolve this issue? What are you going to do the next time you stall the motorcycle? Don't tell me, tell yourself. Learn something from everything you do wrong...and right.
First off (To the OP): Your fear is understandable. I've heard it all: murdercycle, organ donor, all of it. Keep in mind that he can die in a car, walking on the sidewalk, or absolutely anything. A motorcycle is more dangerous than a car; there's no doubt. And the chance of a serious or fatal accident is higher than a car.
The question you should be asking him: why do you want a motorcycle? If it's just to save money or some other, non-passion reason you should have him think hard about his choice. You will spend more money, have more frustration (Maintaining the bike and a car), and have more stress than not owning a bike at all. But if it's a truly a passion, then all the bad will be outweighed by the feeling a rider gets when they're on a bike. It is an experience that cannot be described; it has to be felt. The money and all the frustrations pale in the face of that. And trying to rationalize it away never works.
And questions you should be asking yourself: why am I so afraid? Is it because I don't know anything about riding? Is it because the media has hyped up the danger? Am I worried he's going to die, and is that worry not overblown? You thoughts matter and you should think about your fears, where they come from, and are they realistic/overblown/justified/etc. Maybe you'll want to take the MSF course (See below) and see for yourself the risks involved. Maybe not. But it's just as important for you to understand your feelings as it is for him so you can have a good discussion and come to a solution that you both can agree to and feel satisfied with.
Now.. If he wants to see if riding is worth it then he should do the following:
Hell, I find this book so important that I'll buy you a copy if it'll help in any way. Just PM me.
Then get the proper gear (CE rated) a used bike (To see if it's something he'll want to spend money and do), and get on the road and take it slowly. Just like any new car driver does. In fact, treating riding in the beginning like starting out in a car for the first time is the best way to think about it. In other words, he won't be commuting on a highway immediately after completing the course.
But then again there's some bad advice out there too. To whit:
> There are only two kinds of bikers. Those who have, and those who will, lay their bikes down.
Some sort of mishap should be expected. I've had my "0mph crashes" (Dropping the bike while stopped), and I've had one accident where I got a hospital ride, and then thrown out of the emergency room for not being sick/injured enough. Proper gear, proper safety equipment, etc should be paramount and will make the difference between walking away with a little road rash, and the ICU or worse.
That being said...."Lay the bike down"? Seriously? You've been riding for 10 years and you're putting that in writing? Do you even understand where that comes from and why it's no longer relevant?
You NEVER lay the bike down. Modern bikes have amazingly good brakes (Search Youtube for "stoppies" to see) and you NEVER cede control ever. You ride that brake upright until the bitter end if you can't avoid the accident to lose speed and keep control. If necessary you hit the object upright too (See motorcycle airbags, or as I call them "assbags"). The laws of physics, once they're in full control and you become a passenger, are a lot harsher than if you always have control and options. "Lay the bike down"....Why don't you go back to fixing your rear drum brake while you're at it too?
>Leather is a MUST
Nope. Motorcycle Consumer News some years back highlighted a report that did drag tests on various materials showed that Cordura/Synthetics could keep up with all but the highest quality leather. Unless your husband plans to compete in MotoGP at Leguna Seca he should buy gear from a reputable manufacturer, and pay close attention to the seams, stitching, and zippers. The material itself makes little difference for most street use; poor stitching will in a slide though.
>STAY THE FUCK AWAY FROM SEMI TRUCKS.
Yes and no. They are dangerous to be around, but the hysterics presented are just that. I worry more about the student from China that has just started college with his brand new Audi and a US driver's license. Take the risk in context, not as an absolute.
>STAY THE FUCK off the freeway in the rain.
Horseshit. I do it all the time, and have no problems. Living in New York it rains A LOT and this year even moreso. That said I have had no traction problems or issues from riding other than the water soaking through my gear and the usual fuckwits in their cage. Your husband needs to decide for himself how safe/unsafe it is than rely on individuals who deal in absolutes.
>Full faced helmets protect from road rash, but I've seen some of my best friends get killed because of the torque on their neck on impact.
Anecdote is anecdote. Mine is easy: In my accident my full face helmet prevented injury to my head. That included a bounce in the process.
Statistically there is NOTHING to support such a statement. If anything, wearing a non-full face helmet opens you up to more serious, if not fatal face/head injuries. See the Hurt Report for details. Proficient Motorcycling will go into some detail on this as well.
Ultimately, if your husband decides to ride, he should take individual opinions with a grain of salt. Individual anecdotes about how full face helmets can kill, leather over Cordura/synthetics, staying away from rain and tractor trailers, etc are just that: either anecdotal or outright BS. He should listen to the MSF instructors and the book. If there's any questions he should not go for anecdotes. He should look to Europe where they take riding more seriously than the US, try to buy equipment that meets Europeon standards, and failing that spend time with quality publications (Motorcycle Consumer News) and quality message boards (Eg: Adventure Rider). And, above all else, he needs to be comfortable with what he has and what he's doing. If not, then he needs to stop and re-evaluate.
Now before /u/MentalSewage goes off, here's my experience:
All typos and grammar mistakes are mine. Accept no substitutes.
Take the MRC!
Then buy this book:
http://www.amazon.com/Proficient-Motorcycling-Ultimate-Guide-Riding-ebook/dp/B004CLYCPM/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1408734391&sr=1-1&keywords=proficient+motorcycling
And read it cover to cover, at least three times.
Once you have the stuff in that book down, move onto this:
http://www.amazon.com/Twist-Wrist-Motorcycle-Roadracers-Handbook/dp/0965045013/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1408734423&sr=1-2&keywords=twist+of+the+wrist