brand new to motorcycle riding

well...hello everyone.  im new to all of this.  new to the honda family...i just bought an 07 cbr600 today...not getting it til tomorrow.  paperwork needs to be done.
let me tell you how i decided to buy a bike...
 
last year in june of 07...my best friend was killed on a bike in our hometown of queens newyork.  it was devestating.  i lost my best friend...ive known her for 10years.  i have always wanted a bike..tho i have NEVER been on one until maybe 2 months ago.  she was a passenger and she flew off...its a long story of the accident.  after she died, i was against everything BIKE.  whenever i saw a bike on the streets, my eyes would automatically tear. 
 
my husband has had bikes in the past...and hes been wanting one for a while...well, dec 31st arrives and he said he found one in ft lauderdale...so i gave in and said okay...worried the crap out of me, but life does go on.  i finally got to ride on a bike...it was tough to begin with...my eyes teared up...i felt as if i was with her...being passenger..her last moments.  tough.  but i closed my eyes as my husband rode, the wind hitting me, hearing me breathe hard in the helmet....i loved the ride...FINALLY.  i felt at peace...she was there with me. 
 
so....after that day...i wanted a bike, again. 
 
today we walked into SunSports here in Fort Myers and i said...let's do it.  so now im a proud owner of a 2007 honda cbr600.  im stoked.  now i havent rode one at all...never been actually riding the bike.  crazy right?
 
now dont get me wrong, i WILL be taking the motorcycle course...i will be much better off with that course under my belt.  i do want to learn on my own too....i will be learning tomorrow in a deserted parking lot.  im getting frame sliders put on, JUST IN CASE.  im not nervous. im fine....excited!!!
 
i will post tomorrow night (after the superbowl!!)  of my day..picking up my new bike...learning how to ride...
 
thanx for your time....any advice, PLEASE GIVE ME!! 
 
-mallory

What an amazing description. Welcome Mallory! Great story...I know exactly what you mean finally feeling at peace.

Sounds like you don't need any advice--you're all geared up with eyes open already, great job. Just remember to put your feet down when you finally come to a stop the first time in that parking lot--ask me how I know!--no, don't.

Welcome and have a fun ride!

Welcome Mallory. 
 

quote:

any advice, PLEASE GIVE ME!!

 
Sliders are a must as you know, so the only other advice is to ride at your own pace and wear your gear.
 
 
Also read this thread.
 
http://www.cbrforum.com/m_74369/tm.htm

Just going to point out the obvious.
 
When i first started riding, about 1 year ago.. i learned quickly that you are invisible.
you have to pretend that every one in a car is out to kill you..may sound harsh, but its really a life saver.
i live in Bellle Fourche, South dakota..about 20 miles away from STURGIS.. there are so many bike wrecks here every august..and so many deaths as well.. i went down in august of last year..but that was a deer. but many times i was almost hit by a car..just not paying attention to motorcycles and they just cut me off.
 
sorry i cant be mroe helpfull..just thought i would try.

so...i got my bike today...took it to a parking lot and rode it for the first time.  never got out of first gear...baby steps!! but i did real well...my husbands proud. hehe.  i stalled it about twice...newbie mistakes...(thanx for the thread fishfryer527!!!)  i went around the parking lot a million times..took turns...(under 10mph) i havent done the counter steering yet...still weird about that...
 
can i get advice on the countersteering? i understand but...not fully.
 
but i am veeeerrrrrrrrrry happy!! i believe i did very good today. im so excited to ride again!!!!!!!!


Thumbnail Image

It's easy. In fact, it's not even something you have to think about. Once you and your bike are travelling fast enough, the gyroscopic effect takes over and the physics of 'countersteering' are in play--no special technique or thought required. It will feel totally natural and kinda cool...

Basically, once you get up to speed, try pushing lightly on the left handlebar. You'll see the bike start to turn in that direction. Same with the right side. It's not so much a technique as it is just a simple effect of motion. I promise you'll get used to it without even thinking about it...

Hi there , if you did turns then you did countersteering , every 2 wheeled vechicle counter steers , here are some clips to show you , countersteering happens even at very low speeds even with a bicycle , here's the link => http://youtube.com/watch?v=C848R9xWrjc , and like SpiritRR said , it will come naturaly , you won't even notice sometimes.
 
cheers

I just bought my first bike too.  But I waited til after I took the MSF course.  The beauty of the MSF course is that you get to practice on their bikes.  :P  (In my class there were 2 drops.)
 
Good luck, have fun, be safe. 

Countersteering..when you ride above maybe 15 MPH (it is easier the faster you go), you can take your outside hand off in a turn and just push with the inside. The faster you go, the harder the push, the tighter the turn the harder the push. I read somewhere that in the seventies, some racers would bend their bars from oushing so hard.
 
I think of the inside of the front tire takes a shortcut (turn), and that shortcut is due to the smaller diameter of the front tire off its center line. Not sure if that is true, but that is my visualization.

its cool i had an anut die from a motorcycle ride, thing is i did know her but was very close to my mom.


im also thinkin about buying an 07 cbr 600rr, as a frist bike im only 16 but dont get me wrong i have been riding with cuzins for about an year now. i only top at 120

so should i get one or get a smaller bike

im 16
110lbs
5'6

quote:

ORIGINAL: tonyp79247

its cool i had an anut die from a motorcycle ride, thing is i did know her but was very close to my mom.


im also thinkin about buying an 07 cbr 600rr, as a frist bike im only 16 but dont get me wrong i have been riding with cuzins for about an year now. i only top at 120

so should i get one or get a smaller bike

im 16
110lbs
5'6

 
If you're referring to 120mphs. You should reconsider buying a motorcycle and getting a bicycle. You might live a little bit longer.
 
Once you mature up ... start on a 250 and go from there.
 
Mallory, Welcome to the Forum! Moving story. I implore you to take a look at this posting below. Great job on asking for help... we have a great bunch of riders here willing to offer their advice.
 
http://www.cbrforum.com/m_360824/mpage_1/key_/tm.htm 
 
Starting on the same bike as you... I can offer a couple suggestions
 
Practice Practice Practice
Braking and Emergency Braking
Throttle Control
 
Goodluck and keep the shiny side up
 

Awesome story! MSF course will do ya wonders, MAKE SURE you've got good riding gear (Hands, body, legs, ankles, feet, head), and +1 on being invisible. Heck, on my Bright Blue '07, in the middle of a sunny afternoon, in blue riding gear, with my wife on the back in her sky blue and white gear... A guy in an oldschool VW beetle cut out accross traffic and tried his best to run me off the road. If I hadn't been looking out and hadn't "seen it coming", the outcome wouldn't have been me honking the horn and giving him the old New-York 'Hello'. 

Other than that, baby steps are good! Keep up the good work! A 600 might have been a little much to start with (people always say it's about the power or whatever, but really, starting small hones your skills so much quicker!) but hey, you seem to have a level head on your shoulders and are taking it in as good a stride as you can. So... with that, my hats off to you. Good luck and let us know if there's anything you need help with!

sooo.....i rode my bike yesterday...i still havent taken it out of 1st gear...but i was trying to make a u-turn...and i dumped it!!!  i was weary at first turning (which i have done many times) and i continued on...well..i braked and i lost control...i tried to keep it up..i had my left foot firm on the ground to help me and it was still goin down.  the next thing i did was just jump off...i rolled a little bit and just layed there on my back...PISSED OFF!! i had a small tantrum..hitting the ground..lol.  my husband came running and picked the bike up.  im fine, bikes fine..just a very smalll scratch on the crank case...fairings are fine...mirrors, turn signals..everything is fine.  its crazy. 
 
i brought my bike into my friends shop today and hes going to lower it for me.  i had sat on the same cbr600 i have at SunSports and i was lowered and i felt very comfortable on it, balanced it perfectly. 
 
im still a little upset for what happened.  i braked in the turn and went too slow...wrong move! sucks. 

quote:

ORIGINAL: zleek0

sooo.....i rode my bike yesterday...i still havent taken it out of 1st gear...but i was trying to make a u-turn...and i dumped it!!!  i was weary at first turning (which i have done many times) and i continued on...well..i braked and i lost control...i tried to keep it up..i had my left foot firm on the ground to help me and it was still goin down.  the next thing i did was just jump off...i rolled a little bit and just layed there on my back...PISSED OFF!! i had a small tantrum..hitting the ground..lol.  my husband came running and picked the bike up.  im fine, bikes fine..just a very smalll scratch on the crank case...fairings are fine...mirrors, turn signals..everything is fine.  its crazy. 

i brought my bike into my friends shop today and hes going to lower it for me.  i had sat on the same cbr600 i have at SunSports and i was lowered and i felt very comfortable on it, balanced it perfectly. 

im still a little upset for what happened.  i braked in the turn and went too slow...wrong move! sucks. 

 
Sorry to hear but no worries! Did you have frame sliders on yet? .. if not go ahead and get them installed. Things like that happen. Can you flat foot the bike as is? Do you know what you might have done wrong? if so..it was a learning experience and its great that it was in a controlled environment. I had a close call on my bike doing the U turn at the dmv. My mistake was.. I panic'd because I was getting ready to cross the boundries and grabbed a handful of front brakes! opps!  Needless to say I had to muscle it from going over. Next time doing the U-turn, use the Rear brake(the Key for very slow turns) softly to help make the turn tighter(avoid your front brake at all cost) ... if from some reason you think the bike is getting ready to go over.. straighten out the front tire/clutch in/ and put on the front brakes.

quote:

i braked in the turn and went too slow...wrong move! sucks

 
The first 'real' bike I rode was my buddies 051krr, he said to me 'walk it around any slow turns, DON'T RIDE IT'.
 
I wonder why none of us had said the usual ' too much bike for a noob' thing on this thread. or 'learn on a smaller/older/cheaper bike because you almost always crash your first bike'. Maybe because the bike was bought already? 
 
So I am going to say what others may be thinking, park the RR, get a old 250 ninja for a few thousand miles and then try again. It isn't hard to ride a bike, but learning takes a little time. And a 600 sportbike isn't the best choice to learn on. I only have 11,000 road miles and I really only feel that I am somewhat competent/safe on my bike (road stuff, not track stuff), I have a LOT of learning to do. 
 
But I'm glad you didn't get hurt, glad it wasn't a locked up rear tire leading to a highside, or an endo or any other thing like that.

welcome to the forums, love the colors you have, red and black...awww....i want an '07 now in red and black.

Hello & Welcome!!

hey!! sorry i havent posted in a bit...i was busy taking the MSF class!! i passed on sunday!! im now certified! hehe.  so ive been practicing on my cbr..its waaaaay different than the 250cc ive been on for the past few days at the school.  im riding around in my neighborhood practicing on stopping and taking off.  Im not ready yet for the streets.  im very happy...cant wait to just ride.  my husband is very proud of me...sunday afternoon after i came home and tried to ride my bike, i was discouraged because i kept stalling on my bike...well duh, its not the same as the 250cc's...but i got back on it later that evening and tried again..learning!!  then he took me for a nice long ride on his bike around the city.  then yesterday after work we headed out around the neighborhood and i did very well. 
 
i want to ride today after work but thunderstorms are due to roll in this afternoon.  siiigh.  i can wait...