This Week 7 - 13th March: Where Did You Ride and What Did You Practise?

**Terminated** · 7th March 2007, 20:59

This week Lissa and Grub are your selectors and they will be looking at good new rider training practice and welcome input from senior riders and mentors.

This week’s review will cover rides from 7th March to 13th March reported here in this thread and selection will be made by Tuesday Evening.

Some Insight From You Please:

In your replies please include responses to:

1. "What Do You Think Are The Qualities of a Safe Rider?" [give one or two examples]

and,

2. " Do You Think You Are A Safe Rider? Why or Why Not. [one or two supporting statements]

also for the more 'Experienced Rider'

3. "Have you noticed any 'slippage' in your riding?" [One or two examples]

[eg. For me, I notice I forget to do my head check now and then [and I am not an experienced rider yet.] For others it may be hazard detection - you see the Pedestrian Crossing but did you check for pedestrians?]

Those selected will have their training comments copied to BuckBuck's Update - Newbie Training thread and they will in turn be the selectors for next Week’s Where Did You Ride and What Did You Practise?.

I encourage all newbie riders to seek out a riding Mentor to review your riding skills and technique periodically throughout your graduated licence time. Go for mentor riding reviews and discuss the matters that have been identified, then practise, practise, practise.

When you go for your ride think about those things you want to focus on and review before you set off on your ride.

I invite any new riders to put forward their comments relating to specific training sessions they may have had recently and not necessarily just this weekend's ride.

The key benefit that I am encouraging is: for new riders/all riders - to 'key in' their training comments to this thread and by doing so, this is reinforcing a personal training discipline.

For those posting to this thread, a degree of humour is welcomed as are pictures of your ride, however please note that the emphasis is newbie training awareness.

You take the time to train on the motorcycle, you take the time to make an entry to this web site, and hence you have indirectly reviewed your own personal training discipline. Well Done.

Heads Up and Enjoy
BuckBuckNo1

**elle-f** · 11th March 2007, 09:26

*batting eyelashes at lissa and grub*

**Terminated** · 11th March 2007, 13:29

A good ride with Mr and Mrs nzcruzer and bull out to Martinborough this morning.

Key focus was throttle control up and down the Rimutaka Hill and hardly using the brake. A good moment to reflect on the lessons with Uncle B: he had me practise throttle control and remaining in 3rd gear a routine that I review and practise fairly regularly.

Coming back I rode behind nzcruzer and watched his lines to give me an idea what to expect when I take Victor Lima Xray out soon. I can see that the cruiser style approach will be probably fit in well my my 'riding personality', I am definitely not a cafe racer.

Qualities of a Safe Rider: Ensuring safe lines particularly up and over the Rimutaka Hill.

I am a Safe Rider: within the limits of my ability. However moving up to a 600 cruiser from the GN250, I will be extra conscious of my riding technique and gettting the feel for Victor Lima Xray, over a varied mix of road way conditions very early in my familiarisation.

Slippage: I have been very much aware of my headchecking, a good example today merging from right with traffic coming up on my left, head check had car very close to me that I was not immediately aware of.

Thanks Mr and Mrs nzcruzer and bull for an enjoyable ride today.

Heads Up and Enjoy

**Nasty** · 11th March 2007, 16:22

Originally Posted by elle33f

*batting eyelashes at lissa and grub*

I never knew your eyelashes were do long elle ... but I don't think flitting them at Grub will do much good ... I tried that before

**chanceyy** · 12th March 2007, 05:26

did not ride this weekend as the old girl has packed a bit of a sad ... a trip to the friendly mechanic should sort her out after a bit of minor surgery

**TerminalAddict** · 12th March 2007, 07:33

Cambridge toy run on sunday .. followed by a gentle blat over to raglan, followed by an even gentler blat back from raglan on a shagged rear tyre ... then beer and motogp at my house with some of the local crew

good day all round

**yungatart** · 12th March 2007, 19:00

Only the second time back on my bike after my crash in December.

Mstrs and I chose to ride down HW 50, it has a nice variety of straights, gentle curves and full on twisties. The aim of our ride was to show some of our gorgeous country to our adopted Finnish son - and what better way than on the back of a bike.
I chose to make the focus of my ride, my cornering technique. I would really like to enjoy the twisties but at this point, I just don't get what all the fuss is about. TBH, I find cornering really hard work.
Prior to heading of, I repeated to myself over and over (Mantra style) that I was a confident, competent rider and I loved twisties.
As I approached the each corner I repeated my mantra yet again, I surveyed the corner, deciding on my approach and focused on the vanishing point, keeping my eyes lifted, leaning the bike in to the corner and - woohoo, around it went! I must have been doing something right as I felt really comfortable in all but the downhill left hand corners, where again I was ridiculously slow. (my off was on a downhill left hand corner). Not once did I have to adjust my lines, now that is a first! I still have not yet mastered the art of maintaining my speed through a corner apart from on the most gentle of curves, something to focus on later on.
I had the most fantastic ride yesterday, despite my wee off in the gravel on the way home....a rather heavy fall, due entirely to my own stupidity...but, strangely enough, did not dent my confidence one little bit.

Qualities of a safe rider...hmm, there is so much that makes up a 'safe rider', but I would say awareness - of one's abilities, surroundings, potential hazards, emotions, and one's bike's capabilities. Also being open to asking for/taking advice from someone who has more experience.

**Lissa** · 13th March 2007, 10:19

Originally Posted by elle33f

*batting eyelashes at lissa and grub*

haha.. you have to do better than that elle!!

Well this week I had our Wednesday Night Ride... in the wind, on the Rimutakas. That in its self is good practice. Being prepared... when you round a corner and the wind hits you so hard, my bike slows right down, change gears and away I went. This was more mental practice and trying not to freak out... as I took the hill pretty carefully and slowly.

Saturday was our Chicks ride to Quasi's show... and then Sunday (with hangover) riding home. I tried to practice my cornering on the hill. What I absolutely noticed is I have ALOT of work to do on my lines. I have had comments and suggestions that I am leaning over the white line... not good. Would like to find a mentor, somebody who can show me the lines I should be taking. I feel I might have alot of bad habits that I need some help getting rid of.

Qualities of a safe rider: Being prepared, give and take advice, concentration.

Do I think I am a safe rider? Hmm no not anymore. Well, I like to think that I concentrate, look for hazards, but I don't think I have learnt even 1% of what I should know.

**elle-f** · 13th March 2007, 10:25

*flashing at lissa and grub*

**skelstar** · 13th March 2007, 21:08

I rode to the Waikanae thing...and to my folks in Pukerua Bay. Ummm...I dreamnt I did my first intentional wheelie last night and I rocked! It was a 5km long spreader on gravel road. Wasn't as hard as I was led to believe

Ride safe!

**Terminated** · 13th March 2007, 21:43

Insufficient response. Posts will carry over to next week.

Heads Up and Enjoy

**skelstar** · 13th March 2007, 21:45

Argh!!!....lost again! How do you win these things? I kinda tried to jazz it up a bit too...

**Lissa** · 13th March 2007, 21:47

Originally Posted by skelstar

Argh!!!....lost again! How do you win these things? I kinda tried to jazz it up a bit too...

Its getting carried on to next week... so you are still in with a chance, you better practice up a bit... esp on your wheelies... maybe if you actually did them in real life? And maybe a bit of flashing like elle is doing.