I've never ridden a bike before!

[magicmonkey]

Which is odd as I like driving and I'm nearly 30 :Oops:

Anyways, I'm looking to learn and I was wondering if you guys had any pointers on how a complete novice should start out?

I figure that getting my learners license is a good first step but that's a couple of hours on a rented bike and a sit down exam, hardly my idea of getting out on the open road!

After that I figure I'll need a bike (well duh) but that's about where my ideas stop, I haven't a clue about the things!

[vifferman]

Doan do eeet! :eek5:
You'll die for sure!
Them murdercycles are just too dangerous!!!

[Ixion]

Actually, passing the Basic handling Test (BHS) is the first step.

You need the BHS certificate BEFORE you can sit the learner licence test.

Then once you have your L, this (http://www.rrrs.org.nz/)is the best $50 you'll ever spend

[crazyhorse]

Stop procrastinating and just do it! :angry2:

Sit the exam, do the riding test and go buy a GN250. You will never look back :rockon:

[MaxCannon]

Two questions

1 - Can you ride a pushbike ?

2 - Can you drive a manual ?

If you can do those then it's easy.
I sat my test when I was 29
Did the basic handling test - was the first time I'd ever sat on a bike.
Stalled a few times, locked the brakes - all the newb mistakes.
Instructor was excellent.
By the end of the course everything felt natural.

Following weekend I did the scratch and win, bought all the kit, bought a bike and rode it home.

Actually three questions....

3 - Do you like spending money ?

All mine goes on bikes, bike gear, bike mags, petrol, track days.......

[magicmonkey]

Actually, passing the Basic handling Test (BHS) is the first step.

You need the BHS certificate BEFORE you can sit the learner licence test.

Then once you have your L, this (http://www.rrrs.org.nz/)is the best $50 you'll ever spend

Yeah, BHS will be my first step for sure, quite looking forward to it :D

The RRRS looks pretty useful, ido you know of anywhere near Wellington that does the courses? That site seems to only deal with Auckland (although a weekend away doesn't sound that bad)

[magicmonkey]

Two questions

1 - Can you ride a pushbike ?

2 - Can you drive a manual ?

If you can do those then it's easy.
I sat my test when I was 29
Did the basic handling test - was the first time I'd ever sat on a bike.
Stalled a few times, locked the brakes - all the newb mistakes.
Instructor was excellent.
By the end of the course everything felt natural.

Following weekend I did the scratch and win, bought all the kit, bought a bike and rode it home.

Actually three questions....

3 - Do you like spending money ?

All mine goes on bikes, bike gear, bike mags, petrol, track days.......

Yup, I can ride a pushbike and I can't stand automatic cars, so far so good. I don't really mind spending money, not having much of it to spend doesn't help though!

[magicmonkey]

Stop procrastinating and just do it! :angry2:

Sit the exam, do the riding test and go buy a GN250. You will never look back :rockon:

Well, quick google show's they're not too ugly! How much would one set me back roughly?

[325rocket]

The RRRS looks pretty useful, ido you know of anywhere near Wellington that does the courses?


you could try these (http://www.roadsafe.co.nz/) guys. they run courses in petone. they are very good to deal with and do a range of advanced courses as well.

welcome to the site

[magicmonkey]

you could try these (http://www.roadsafe.co.nz/) guys. they run courses in petone. they are very good to deal with and do a range of advanced courses as well.

welcome to the site

Sweet, glad to hear that as I've been poking around their web site quite a bit today :)

[325rocket]

Sweet, glad to hear that as I've been poking around their web site quite a bit today :)

99% of wellington bikers went through them. they also have hire bikes available for lessons / tests. im sure you will only hear good things about them.

[magicmonkey]

yeah, that was the big draw to them, at least this way I'll only have lost out on the course cost rather than the cost of a bike if I decide it's not for me (not that I can see that happening!)

[tri boy]

Welcome monkey boy:sunny:
The whole learner gig may seem a bit daunting/a drag, but time really does fly.
kanny, (the boss in my household, had never ridden a m/cycle before, and was quite nervous about the whole learning etc.
We picked up a s/hand Suzuki Volty, (a bit like a GN), did alot of carpark practice teaching her to ride through a course laid out with cones, Q+a sessions out of the road code and she asked everybody all sorts of Q's.
Cutting the story short, she now rides a 600cc road bike, loves the freedom and lifestyle, and gets real grumpy if she hasn't gone for a ride in a week.
All in two years.
Just do it. ask Q's and be sensible about the learning process.
It's a disease this motorcycle gig, that has no cure.
Ride on.

[slofox]

......You will never look back :rockon:

Make sure you DO look back - before you change lanes anyway...:whistle:

[magicmonkey]

Nah, it's doen't look daunting or a drag at all! I enjoy learning new things and I enjoy driving. Fortunately I'm not rich enough to go out and pick up a Ducati to learn on so the bank manager will make me take it steady ;)

[marine0089]

I went through this 2 weekends ago.

Had never ridden a bike before.

Contacted http://www.streetwisenz.co.nz/

Booked in for a Saturday morning.

The instructor supplied everything, taught me how to ride for the first 2 hours then put me through the BHS. I passed that no worries, then went straight to VTNZ and passed the learners scratchy.

Now I am the proud owner of my first bike and loving it. :rockon:

[CookMySock]

You really need half an hour riding around some grassy park until you have your low-speed balance sorted, and then an hour or two in some large empty carpark getting used to the controls - stops and starts, gear changes, indictors, brakes. Then do the BHS.

Steve

[magicmonkey]

Well, I've had a quick look at the bank balance today and realised that I'm not going to be hiring a bike and getting any training this month (ironically due to needing a new set of tyres for the WOF on the car, doh!) So I've been reading up on the theory side of things (really good links on this site, thanks guys:)).

Next month I intend to get some training in and I've negotiated use of the garden to do up a bike with the live-in-landlord so I can buy a cheap doer-upper and get my hands greasy. I'm reasonably decent with cars so I figure bikes can't be that much of a stretch and it'll be good to get to know the thing mechanically before riding it, I'll feel more comfortable anyway even if it never breaks down...

[Ms Piggy]

Stop procrastinating and just do it! :angry2:

Sit the exam, do the riding test and go buy a GN250. You will never look back :rockon:

He's right EXCEPT for he part about buying a GN250 - you'll always be lookin' back on a GN cos of all the traffic that will be backing up behind ya cos they're gutless. DON'T!

[crazyhorse]

As a learner, its not about speed. A GN250 would set you back a couple of grand only, and are a great learners bike. Once you get your full, you can get whatever you want. If you like in the big smoke, its probably fine. In the country, yeah, you'd want something quicker, but I personally know heaps who've had one, and are more than happy with them. I never had a learners, but my kids did.

[magicmonkey]

He's right EXCEPT for he part about buying a GN250 - you'll always be lookin' back on a GN cos of all the traffic that will be backing up behind ya cos they're gutless. DON'T!

I've got bit of a lead foot problem in the car which will probably head over onto bikes as well so I think that 'gutless' might not be such a bad place to start, it's keep me out of trouble a lot more than something with more kick!

Having said that I may well find myself changing my mind down the road!

[CookMySock]

I'm reasonably decent with cars so I figure bikes can't be that much of a stretch...Yeah they are pretty straight forward. The first mistake you make is overtightening everything, hehe. Bikes are much littler! That torque wrench is much more important here.


I've got bit of a lead foot problem in the car which will probably head over onto bikes as well so I think that 'gutless' might not be such a bad place to start, it's keep me out of trouble a lot more than something with more kick!Yeah you are right there. Theres mucho fun to be had on a bike without speeding anyway.

Steve

[tate35]

Hey there,

Welcome to KB!!! Just do it. That's what I did, a friend gave me some lessons in quiet empty carparks of an evening. If you have a good teacher - it really only takes a few pointers and away you go.

Then you just need to do your BHS (basic handling skills) test which involves you riding around a carpark while an instructor watches you for maybe half hour to show you are competant to handle a motorbike. Once you pass that you can go and get your learners licence. Which a year on is what I should do lol

Good luck :woohoo:

[ready4whatever]

i went... basic handling test, learners, booked restricted, hired bike and passed test. thats the 1st time i rode on the road.

[Maki]

Part of the BHS is:

"Riding a curve - ride up to a curve from a distance of 25m at a speed of 20 km/h. You must then give a turn signal, adjust your speed and ride around the curve (which is 1.2m wide), keeping within the lines all the way."

I misunderstood it and though you were meant to go through the curve AT 20km/h without slowing down first. It was fun with some big lean angles until the instructor told me to slow down <_<

To get into biking you need to do three things.

1. Save more money. A bike is NOT cheaper than a car.

2. Find out what a gixxer is.

3. Buy one.

[magicmonkey]

2. Find out what a gixxer is.

3. Buy one.

Yeah, I've been looking at them, nice looking bike, especially for the price. And let's be honest, I know nothing about bikes! At the moment it's all looks as I have nothing else to weight my decisions against :p

[Markw336]

in main centres they do BHS and training on a bike aswell so it teachs you how to ride before you do the test

[Insanity_rules]

Welcome to the mad house. Go on do it! Get a bike and join the fun. GN's are a hoot to rip round on but theres heaps of choice out there.

[EJK]

Basically... It's quite like riding a push bike with two 25kg rice bags on each side with enough power to take all the weight upto 100kph aswell.

It's heavy. It's powerful (for a first timer).

[YellowDog]

Which is odd as I like driving and I'm nearly 30 :Oops:

Anyways, I'm looking to learn and I was wondering if you guys had any pointers on how a complete novice should start out?

I figure that getting my learners license is a good first step but that's a couple of hours on a rented bike and a sit down exam, hardly my idea of getting out on the open road!

After that I figure I'll need a bike (well duh) but that's about where my ideas stop, I haven't a clue about the things!


When you drive your car, it is all second nature and you don't need to give any thought to the processes such as using the clutch, brake, or changing gear. You know the correct line to take around a corner and it all just happens doing what we call driving.

When you start out of a motorcycle, you will be thinking about every part of the process and there are also a few more things to think about.

Basically, you need to be able to get your self to the same level of competence with a motorcycle as you presently have with your car.

It's heaps more fun.

Enjoy!

[mrchips]

Do it, it's highly addictive !

Try these guys, the BHS is done at the riverbank carpark, lower hutt
http://www.stephensdrivingschool.co.nz/motorcycle_lessons.htm

btw, A doeruppa is a good idea but keep in mind summer is here & you want to be out riding not 'bonding' with motorcycle innards

[Ms Piggy]

I've got bit of a lead foot problem in the car which will probably head over onto bikes as well so I think that 'gutless' might not be such a bad place to start, it's keep me out of trouble a lot more than something with more kick!

Having said that I may well find myself changing my mind down the road!

If you're wanting a bike that you can ride on the open road as well as pootle round town on I'd choose just about anything else over a GN250. Depends how long you're planning on having it for though and they may have improved a bit since my friend had hers.