Why a fireblade is a bad first bike....

-Z- · 07-07-2008, 4:46 AM

Yeah, I think this video says it all.

MySpaceTV Videos: NOOB by not rick

.OrgOwner · 07-07-2008, 5:09 AM

The clip speaks volumes for some seriously bad riding instruction all round. And the safety gear, yeah they looked after him not. This is how not to introduce people to the great sport of motorcycle riding.

bladeracer · 07-07-2008, 5:09 AM

He needs to find a better class of buddies...

-Z- · 07-07-2008, 5:54 AM

Yeah....you can tell they were expecting something along those lines from how they were laughing the whole time. Great guys.

SodaO · 07-07-2008, 6:32 AM

speaking of which:

my favourite soundbite:

'kick that thing up. no not that, the kickstand'.

LoopyLee · 07-07-2008, 9:14 AM

Would I let a mate who has never ridden before loose on my bike if I was teaching them to ride.... NOT BLOO*Y LIKELY!!!

I like the way he carefully rolled his sleeves down to protect his arms... classic!!!!

ghbzorro · 07-07-2008, 9:19 AM

In my opinion this is only a good example of why proper instruction is required, and why people should learn who their real friends are. It has very little to do with whether a FireBlade is a good first bike. The guy would have dumped a Ninja 250 and would have been hurt just as badly. In fact he might have got up to a slightly higher speed before wiping out.

SodaO · 07-07-2008, 9:25 AM

Quote:

In fact he might have got up to a slightly higher speed before wiping out.

You mean like this guy:

YouTube - Bike crash idiot!!!

steingar · 07-07-2008, 10:02 AM

All right, a confession is in order. I did put a buddy on my old Nighthawk 750 a few years ago. He's a big guy, so I thought the bike appropriate. Anyhow, he neither crashed nor ran into anything, but did give us all a really good laugh. Now after seeing this I feel bad.

curt248 · 07-07-2008, 10:14 AM

I almost feel bad not letting relatives and such ride my bike. These videos show exactly why you should never let a non-biker ride your bike. Even a biker needs to be super careful. I'm thinking I might not even let someone ride my bike first before selling it. Maybe I'll do what one other guy did to me and my buddy. He took all of the money that the bike was selling for in his hand before he let us try his bike.

HondaGalToo · 07-07-2008, 10:49 AM

Yeah, yeah, you can get hurt on anything, but I'm going to maintain that it will happen A LOT quicker on a literbike than on a 250, just like those videos show.

bladeracer · 07-07-2008, 10:56 AM

I agree. We have to ride a 250 (or other low-powered bikes) for the first year or two down here. Everybody is hanging out to get their big bikes but I keep telling them to enjoy every minute they're on the smaller bikes. They're cheaper to run, a ton of fun and they're more forgiving. And odds are you may never ride them again once you get into the big bikes and their power. I still manage to have a ball on smaller bikes every now and then and it's great not having to be so disciplined with the throttle for a change :-)

FB1000inPA · 07-07-2008, 11:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HondaGalToo

Yeah, yeah, you can get hurt on anything, but I'm going to maintain that it will happen A LOT quicker on a literbike than on a 250, just like those videos show.

OK, let me throw you a curveball:

There are places where new riders taking the BRC ride 500 ccm Buell bikes. Odd that the PAMSP would allow that if they support the "do not learn on a bigger than 250ccm bike" mentality.

bladeracer · 07-07-2008, 11:18 AM

We used to have a 250cc limit but the RGV and Aprilia were bloody potent 250's so some of the states switched to a horespower limit instead so some bigger bikes are now legal for learning which I think is how the UK does it.

My brother learned to ride on my '90 GSXR750L racebike when he was working for me for a short time. I'd take it work on the trailer and he'd spend a few hours riding it up and down the street each day for a few weeks until he was comfortable with the way bikes work. Then he went and sat his 250 licence and passed which allowed him to ride a 250 for one or two years (I can't recall how long it was back then). He didn't bother riding at all though and simply sat the open licence when the time was up and then bought his first bike - a CB750.

nedro · 07-07-2008, 12:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FB1000inPA

OK, let me throw you a curveball:

There are places where new riders taking the BRC ride 500 ccm Buell bikes. Odd that the PAMSP would allow that if they support the "do not learn on a bigger than 250ccm bike" mentality.

That's not inconsistant or hypicritical. The Buell qualifies under the 250cc rule. It is an easy bike to control.
And the only thing I am truelly convinced of is that I've seen all of these crashes before, many times over.

HondaGalToo · 07-07-2008, 12:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FB1000inPA

OK, let me throw you a curveball:

There are places where new riders taking the BRC ride 500 ccm Buell bikes. Odd that the PAMSP would allow that if they support the "do not learn on a bigger than 250ccm bike" mentality.

I'm not saying it needs to be a 250. A 500 cc Buell is a far cry from a literbike. I think 500 cc bikes such as that, a Ninja 500 or a GS 500 are good starter bikes as well.

spiral · 07-07-2008, 12:58 PM

The throttle works both ways is true. But, learning to ride a bike on a litre bike is in my opinion nothing but madness!!!!.

The sleeve rooling was great. I wonder did he want to get a load of fabric into the cuts he WAS going to get on is arms.

SodaO · 07-07-2008, 1:36 PM

At the end of the day, getting onto any bike without proper instruction is stupid. Unless of course it's a dirtbike and you're a kid. Even then, stay off hard surfaces.

Must admit though, these idiots make for great viewing. Here's another one of my favourites:

YouTube - Idiot On Motorbike

FB1000inPA · 07-07-2008, 1:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nedro

That's not inconsistant or hypicritical. The Buell qualifies under the 250cc rule. It is an easy bike to control.
And the only thing I am truelly convinced of is that I've seen all of these crashes before, many times over.

What is the 250ccm rule?

FB1000inPA · 07-07-2008, 1:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HondaGalToo

I'm not saying it needs to be a 250. A 500 cc Buell is a far cry from a literbike. I think 500 cc bikes such as that, a Ninja 500 or a GS 500 are good starter bikes as well.

I believe many miss my point here. It doesn't matter how strong the bike is. This was discussed over and over at meetings.

The real problems are the first ride instructions. The chances that you will have a crash when instructed by friends or even family members are much higher than when instructed by professionals in a controlled setting.

HondaGalToo · 07-07-2008, 2:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FB1000inPA

I believe many miss my point here. It doesn't matter how strong the bike is. This was discussed over and over at meetings.

The real problems are the first ride instructions. The chances that you will have a crash when instructed by friends or even family members are much higher than when instructed by professionals in a controlled setting.

I absolutely agree with you 100% on the instruction. I will never agree that a literbike is a good first bike, even with proper instruction...I think it matters how strong the bike is. We can agree to disagree on this point...

FB1000inPA · 07-07-2008, 2:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HondaGalToo

I absolutely agree with you 100% on the instruction. I will never agree that a literbike is a good first bike, even with proper instruction...I think it matters how strong the bike is. We can agree to disagree on this point...

Nah, we can agree on this topic as well. I rather teach new riders on 200/250ccm bikes because of a variety of pros/cons but mainly because of the confidence factor.

However, why should higher ccm bikes be thrown out of the equation just because of a bad video?? Do we really know the circumstances?

If you give me 12 students and another rider coach I make sure all of them will be riding after 4 exercises even on a liter bike.

HondaGalToo · 07-07-2008, 4:44 PM

Not saying it can't be done, I'm sure there are some who could start on a literbike if they've had some previous dirtbike experience or some such. I just don't think it's the optimal bike to learn on.

FB1000inPA · 07-07-2008, 4:50 PM

I am not going to say it, no, not a chance. "Smaller is better" - there, I said it. Happy now?

Which brings me to my next question: What's with this dirtbike thingy? I hear so much about dirtbikes and prior experience and better street bike riders if you were a prior dirtbike rider.

I never understood that. Frankly, I don't even come close understanding it. Tell me the pros of prior dirtbike riding.

nedro · 07-07-2008, 5:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FB1000inPA

What is the 250ccm rule?

I was just refering to your post #13 about the 250 mentality/rule.

HondaGalToo · 07-07-2008, 5:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FB1000inPA

I am not going to say it, no, not a chance. "Smaller is better" - there, I said it. Happy now?

Which brings me to my next question: What's with this dirtbike thingy? I hear so much about dirtbikes and prior experience and better street bike riders if you were a prior dirtbike rider.

I never understood that. Frankly, I don't even come close understanding it. Tell me the pros of prior dirtbike riding.

I'm only thinking that because dirtbikes are smaller, less powerful, (in general) and at least someone who's ridden one will know how to work the controls, that's all. I don't necessarily think you'll be a better street rider if you've had dirt experience.

curt248 · 07-07-2008, 5:21 PM

Like honda gal said, you will be familiar with the controls. The other thing is that you'll be comfortable with the bike sliding and moving around under you. This will help you to not to freak out when something unexpected happens. Unexperienced riders tend to make rash decisions when faced with an emergency like the panic front brake/endo maneuver. You will also be very familar with how a motorcycle reacts to different rider inputs. They also familiar with the sensation of turning, stopping, accelerating etc.

nedro · 07-07-2008, 5:32 PM

I've never seen a noob with enough sack to apply the front brake hard enough to endo. They usually just hit the rear brake and go skidding their rear wheel while riding the bike staight up into the hillside. But if you think that's funny, check out someone with years of street experience ride their first dirtbike at speed. All you have to do is park yourself on the inside of the first turn to watch them lean into the turn, lowside it, and wonder what just happened.

HondaGalToo · 07-07-2008, 6:25 PM

Yup, that would probably be me.

I have no dirtbike experience, I'd probably hurt myself on one!

BigBassTurd · 07-07-2008, 7:04 PM

I raced motocross for years and think it helps a lot on the street. Especially if you get a little squirelly or the arse end breaks loose. This happens so much on dirtbikes it's like second nature when it happens. Just stay behind the bars forget about where the arse end is going and stay on the gas. I've got in more trouble chopping the throttle then I have just maintaining the throttle and straightening the bike out. The difference on streetbikes is that most of the time it is not in a controlled enviroment(city streets not the track) when a situation happens and you have to take everyone's action around you into consideration which eats up valuable reaction time. The biggest differences between dirt and street are the turning and braking. I really had to get use to using the front breaks a lot more on the street. First day on my 929 I was locking the back break up all over the place. It was beat into me from when I was little never to grab the front brake on the dirt to stop(I used them but very lightly), so it was hard to break that habit. I was so afraid the front was going to lock up or hit some oil/water and go down from past expierences on dirtbikes and the front brakes. And for the turning part I kept wanting to throw my leg out like I was going to rail a burm at first.

But all and all I think the dirt riding did help my street riding.