New GN250 owners

[Spuds1234]

Stay calm while riding.

Dont grip the bars really hard, be relaxed. Just let the bike do what it wants to. Dont try and brake or speed up.

Just carry on like its not there.

Also you dont have to worry about a bike falling over while moving. Its impossible due to physics. A motorbike has two great big gyroscopes that prevent the bike falling over

After riding around for one winter (assuming you remain hard and dont take the car), you wont have any problems with slippery stuff on the roads. Just watch out for anything that isnt road. Painted lines, metal road covers, grit, desiel, oil at traffic lights where cars sit, plain ordinary concrete can be really slippery to.

If its not ashphalt its slippery pretty much.

[Ixion]

Find yourself a gravel road. Ride along it. Quite slowly. Search the forum for gravel riding tips.

What it will do is get you used to having the bike move around a bit. By and large, it's no big deal.

Trust the bike. Riding a bike is like dancing , you and the bike need to be in harmony, moving together, not fighting each other.

And I echo the approval of the GN as an excellent learners bike (it is also a very good gravel road bike, a capability often overlooked).

Concentrate of on riding smoothly and safely, And gradually add speed. Don't try to do it the other way round, doesn't work

And get yourself on a rdiing course ASAP. And keep asking questions. On a bike you never stop learning. I've been learning for 50 years and now I know less than I did than when I was 16.

[samnz]

That's wickedley bloody good advice thanks Spuds!

I think my problem is that I'm not sure of the bike's capabilities. Perhaps if I can see someone demo the GN (my GN) where I can observe and just see how it handles, then I'd be a lot more confident in what it can do and how much it can take...what its limits are etc.

It's a bit like riding a horse (not that I do). I wouldn't dare try to jump a ditch if the horse isn't a jumper. But if someone clears a ditch on the same horse, my confidence would be greatly increased.

Hmmmm - think I'm getting a bit off track here so my apologies

Anway - I'm lovin the 'view' - lovin the 'sounds' - and can't wait for my next ride

[samnz]

Find yourself a gravel road. Ride along it. Quite slowly. Search the forum for gravel riding tips.

What it will do is get you used to having the bike move around a bit. By and large, it's no big deal.

Trust the bike. Riding a bike is like dancing , you and the bike need to be in harmony, moving together, not fighting each other.

And I echo the approval of the GN as an excellent learners bike (it is also a very good gravel road bike, a capability often overlooked).

Concentrate of on riding smoothly and safely, And gradually add speed. Don't try to do it the other way round, doesn't work

And get yourself on a rdiing course ASAP. And keep asking questions. On a bike you never stop learning. I've been learning for 50 years and now I know less than I did than when I was 16.

WOW - that's a great analogy - thanks. I kind of freaked when I started off on the gravel road. The best I can describe it is - it's a lot like riding a mountain bike in the mud...but you're going faster and have a much 'heavier' mountain bike.

I'll definitely be doing a driving course. Mainland Driving School have a whole day training course from learners to town riding and open road skills from $65 or $40 for a whole day on the track. Can't wait!

[marty]

instead of catcrap, put 5 or 6 drops of undiluted dish wash detergent on the inside of the visor, smear it all around with your fingers, then polish it til dry with a tissue or really soft cloth (not a handee towel!)

or spit. spit works fine - polish it off also. detergent smells nicer though.

[mrchips]

Good stuff, riding a GN is like riding on a piece of history.

A few things i could share with you:

Slow & steady building up that confidence, you should assume all road users are out to get ya, boy ricers have a thing for 'L' plates & especially don't like being beaten off the lights by a learner on a crusty old 250 !. ATGATT (all the gear all the time) + be visible to other road users.

[howdamnhard]

Welcome aboard.The GN is a good bike to learn on,still got mine ,makes agreat commuter and learner bike.Listen to all the good advice given above.Riding a bike is challenging and you never stop learning or improving yourself.Take it easy,start in a nice quite car park,then move up to quiet roads and then only onto open roads.Do as many courses as you can.Always wear all your protective gear,its cheaper in the long run.Besides leaving your helmet visor slightly open and putting some surface tension breaking solution on it you can also get a stick on inner visor which acts like a laminated window and helps reduce fogging.Good luck and enjoy,hurry up and get your licence.

[samnz]

Marty and Chips: Cheers guys. Dishwashing Liquid tip = priceless! Slow and Steady = valuable!

BuckBuck. Your Newbie Training thread has kept me for hours! Still chewing through it though and it is truly - truly captivating reading. Thanks - thanks - thanks!

[samnz]

Welcome aboard.The GN is a good bike to learn on,still got mine ,makes agreat commuter and learner bike.Listen to all the good advice given above.Riding a bike is challenging and you never stop learning or improving yourself.Take it easy,start in a nice quite car park,then move up to quiet roads and then only onto open roads.Do as many courses as you can.Always wear all your protective gear,its cheaper in the long run.Besides leaving your helmet visor slightly open and putting some surface tension breaking solution on it you can also get a stick on inner visor which acts like a laminated window and helps reduce fogging.Good luck and enjoy,hurry up and get your licence

Thanks for the welcome HDH. I think I'm up for any suggestions regarding defogging at this stage. The dishwashing liquid seems to work so far. But I'll have to test it in the real world - and not while sittin in front of the puta

[Terminated]

BuckBuck. Your Newbie Training thread has kept me for hours! Still chewing through it though and it is truly - truly captivating reading. Thanks - thanks - thanks!

Your very welcome samnz.

You are getting wonderful encouragement and support in this thread. Go forward steadily at your own pace, practise and review, then practise and review some more.

Regards

Heads Up and Enjoy