Living in Utah, we adapt to the cold, but after a few months of cold, snow, and horrible air quality from the winter inversion, some of us begin to experience withdrawal symptoms from lack of riding. I know many riders just park their bikes in the garage, hook up the battery tender, and add some Stabil to the fuel so that their bike will start up in spring. But some of us prefer to ride [...]
Steering Your REAR wheel does it more often than not By: James R. Davis "Steer" - To direct the course of. When your motorcycle is stable in any course, whether in a straight line or in a curve, it is your rear wheel that is primarily responsible for maintaining that course and stability. Indeed, it's the job of your front wheel to DESTABILIZE the bike in order to change course. That is, your front wheel [...]
By: James R. Davis I was reflecting on an experience I had during my first MSF class (nearly 20 years ago) and remembered something that made a real difference for me - a time when I was not at all convinced that my (unfamiliar bike) would safely make an abrupt 90 degree turn at slow speed without dumping me to the ground. As a long term rider I didn't REALLY believe that the bike couldn't make it, it [...]
By: James R. Davis The other night I was discussing tires with a non-motorcyclist friend of mine. He is a bright attorney who is well schooled in physics and logic. Imagine my surprise when I learned that not only were a few tire facts not understood by him, but that most of my motorcyclist friends, whose lives depend in no small part on their knowledge of our sport, have the same blinders on. When I [...]
By: James R. Davis Throughout the set of articles I have written here there is a clear message, often repeated - you should practice, practice, practice. Having some confidence in the merits of the material that you have read here, I suspect that most of you accept the premise that practice is worthwhile because it tends to convert what is otherwise difficult to 'doable with some facility' (meaning that as a result of practice you [...]
By: James R. Davis Sooner or later you will find something in the road just ahead of you and you are going to hit it. Maybe a small animal. Possibly something that falls off of the vehicle in front of you. Maybe you have missed a curve and a curb is dead ahead. One of the exercises taught by the MSF includes running over a board (4x4?) and you are told to 'lift' the front-end of your motorcycle [...]
By: James R. Davis When everything is going right, riding a motorcycle is effortless and completely enjoyable. By 'right' I mean that the weather is perfect, traffic is light, the bike is familiar and well maintained, and you are rested and healthy. Given these conditions you have the potential to focus entirely on those things that demand your attention - or to be lulled into believing that you can afford to be distracted for a few minutes, and die [...]
By: James R. Davis Some time ago I was riding with a group down a back-country road when our group leader decided that we needed to perform our 'mandatory' U-turn. The road had two lanes (one in each direction) and there was no oncoming traffic. With only one exception everybody made a 'three-point' maneuver. That is, we turned across the road and stopped when we could not keep going without running off the pavement, then backed up after turning [...]
By: James R. Davis Riding when the temperature is well in excess of 90 degrees can be dangerous to your health. Unless you take care to keep your body temperature under control even rides as short as an hour can result in heat-prostration or even sun-stroke. Many riders know that if you keep your neck cool, because the large veins that feed your brain are so close to the surface, you greatly diminish these health risks. There are [...]
By: James R. Davis When you ride in a group it is unquestionably your first priority to take care of yourself - to ride within your limits and the limits of your bike, regardless of what the rest of the group does. That's often been described as 'Riding your own ride'. But you ARE in a group and that means some new responsibilities and behaviors apply. You ride at the speed the group rides, you stay in the [...]