Take Care of Your Sportbike and it Will Take Care of You

 Breaking down on a motorcycle is never fun. You definitely don’t want to blow a tire or lose a chain while your riding, especially on the freeway.  Trust me, I’ve done it! I was doing about 70 mph in the fast lane and the bike suddenly felt like it went in to neutral. I looked down and saw a naked sprocket. Trying to coast to a stop while merging over 3 lanes of traffic with people rushing to get home was not something I wanna do again! 

 Here’s a few quick checks I do before each ride.. 

1- Inspect the tires & wheels..You have very little rubber actually making contact with the road so you want to make sure that rubber is going to perform optimally. Along with checking your air pressure & tread-wear, you should inspect the tire for cracks, uneven wear, foreign (and domestic) objects, and rub marks that may come from something on the bike rubbing the tire. Give your wheels a quick look for cracks and make sure your axle nuts are tight while your down there.

2- Check your fluids.. 

 -Fuel-Seems like a no brainer, but are you sure you fueled up before you parked it??

 -Engine oil- Along with the oil level, check the color & consistency, if it’s black change it soon! If it’s gritty or has metal flakes, you may have other issues.. This is common however with a brand new engine that is still in the break-in period.

-Brake fluid- You should have 2 separate  reservoirs for the front & rear brakes, make sure they are to the max level and there are no leaks.

-Coolant- If your bike is liquid cooled vs. air cooled.

-Clutch fluid- If your bike has a hydraulic clutch, it will be similar to the brake fluid reservoir on the clutch side.

3- Brake & throttle cables.. Make sure your cables are not starting to fray or rust. You can’t see the whole cable but you can feel if the cable is kinked or too stiff. Just work the controls and see if they feel right.

4- Brakes & rotors.. Check the thickness of the brake pad linings between the caliper & the rotor. Make sure the rotor isn’t discolored from heat,warped or cracked.

5-Lights & signals.. Make sure your brake light, headlight and signals are working properly and have no cracks. Give your horn a quick chirp while your at it. Although a loud exhaust is much more effective ;)

6-Chain & sprockets.. Make sure your chain is in good condition, lubed, and has the proper tension. Tension will vary depending on model, generally 1 to 1 1/2  inches of free-play is good. This is measured by moving the chain up & down half way between the front & rear sprockets. Check the sprockets for cracks & broken teeth. The teeth should be rounded off at the tips, if they are getting too pointed you should replace the sprocket soon.

7-Kickstand.. Most motorcycles have an engine kill switch that shuts the bike down when you put it in gear with the kickstand down. Just give it a quick glance before you take off & make sure its going stay up.

Now you can ride with a little more confidence knowing you gave your sportbike a quick pre-trip inspection..

Ride safe.. Ride Smart.. Ride Sane.. 

Sportbike Bliss

If your answer was “Depends on their speed” your right!

 It’s hard to judge from a picture the speed and distance of these bikes , but at around 40-50 mph this would probably be an acceptable following distance. Unfortunately I’ve been on both sides of the following to close equation.

  The first, my fault. I learned a few valuable lessons the day I was riding behind my buddy on his sportbike. He almost missed the street on which he wanted to turn . He suddenly grabbed his brakes at the same time I just happened to be checking my mirrors. When I looked up, it was too late. I grabbed the brakes too hard and slid right into the back of him. Fortunately we both walked away from this.

The second, not my fault! I was stopping at a red light when I was suddenly launched over my handlebars by another sportbike rider plowing into the back of me who was simply not paying enough attention. Thankfully, no serious injuries here neither.

 What did I do wrong?

 More than I care to admit, but the first was obviously my following distance. I didn’t give myself enough time to react. You should maintain at least a 3 second following distance from the vehicle in front of you. The way to do this is to pick a stationary object like a road sign, tree, or my preference, the dotted lines separating the lanes. When the vehicle in front of you passes the object, slowly count “one-one thousand, two-one thousand, three-one thousand.” If your reach the object before you finish counting you should probably back off a little. The ”three second rule” is for ideal road conditions and should be increased, usually doubled  in ”less than ideal” conditions such as rain, wind, fog etc. or when riding at night. 

 My second mistake was following his riding line. When riding with other bikes  always stagger yourself so your not riding directly behind the other rider, if the other bike is favoring the left half of the lane you should favor the right & vice versa.

The third mistake was not being familiar enough with bike and how well it handles under heavy breaking. I locked up the rear tire and didn’t apply enough front brake. A good idea is to find a vacant parking lot or a street with no traffic and get more familiar with your bike. Make some quick stops and, at your own pace, work into some “panic” stops. Pay attention to how much your using your front & rear breaks. If your starting to lock up the rear tire, ease up on it and try using more front brake. Although around 75% of your stopping power comes from the front brake, you should always use both at the same time.

  You obviously don’t have any control over the vehicle behind you. If someone is following you too closely the best thing to do is just pull off the road when you can &  let them pass. You can also change lanes when possible or gradually slow down hoping they will just pass you. I’ve been known to give a friendly hand gesture, (and no I don’t mean telling them they’re #1) more like throwing up your arms so they notice you.  Honestly though, you don’t want to be involved in a road rage situation, especially on a motorcycle.

  This brings me to checking your mirrors. You want to check them often, but quickly, don’t get fixated on what is behind you, just be aware of it.

  Well that’s it for now. Don’t forget to enter your email so we can keep in touch! I’ve got a Podcast coming soon as well as some cool additions to the site. I’d love your input!

Ride Safe.. Ride Smart.. Ride Sane…

    Rod

Kinda gives ya a knot in the gut doesn’t it?  What’s your first impression?

  To some it would probably be something like, “Sportbikes are just dangerous” or “They must have been going too fast.”  Although rider error does contribute to a lot of motorcycle crashes, 75% actually involve collisions with another vehicle, with the leading cause being failure on the the other motorist part to recognize the motorcycle. I won’t get into the stats too much, if ya want to find out out more you can check out the NHTSA site. It has some really good info.

 What I want to do is focus on ways to avoid accidents.

There are many things we as riders can do to help keep ourselves safer on the roads. We obviously can’t control what other people do, but making sure they see (and hear) us will significantly improve our chances of avoiding an accident.

Like I’ve said before, People seem to think sportbikes are more dangerous than other bikes do to their power. However, I will stand by my statement of  being able to avoid accidents and bad situations better because of their superior maneuverability and ability to stop faster. 

  This probably doesn’t shock you but about 50% of motorcycle-vehicle collisions occur at intersections,  so your going to want to pay extra attention. The most common accident here is when the vehicle making a left turn in front of you from the opposite direction decides to go at the last second  or doesn’t even bother to stop or even see you at all.  Be prepared to react quickly. Be aware how long the traffic light has been green, it could change any second, and some people decide to make their turn as soon as they see yellow.

 Intersections have a lot of distractions and vision blockers. When approaching an intersection I’m usually off the throttle and ready to brake. Look ahead as far as you can & keep your eyes moving, let your peripheral take care of the closer things. This will give you more time to react.  Scan the intersection, keeping an eye out for cars ready to pull out,  parked cars,  pedestrians etc.

  When riding on a multi lane road with vehicles traveling in the same direction, try to avoid being right next to the other vehicle. They could suddenly swerve for some reason and take you out. Try to ride just in front of them or behind them far enough to be out of their blind spot. This is especially important on the freeway. You have the power to put the bike where you want, don’t be afraid to use it to quickly voice your presence or get away from a bad situation.

Take the time to read through your owners manual. There are some good tips in there as well. I still recommend taking a rider safety course. If you need to get your motorcycle licence this is a great way to do it. They will show you how to ride and give you the road test for your endorsement.

Stay alert and ride like your invisible, make sure your seen and heard. Rev your engine! Make a statement! But also be respectful of other motorists.

Podcast coming soon!

I want to get more focused info out to ya so I’ve decided to start a podcast. Please sign up on my email list so I can let you know when the first episode is up. I’d love your input!

Thanks! Rod

Ride Safe.. Ride Smart.. Ride Sane..

So your ready to buy a sportbike! Not quite sure which one?

   The first thing you’ll want to do is go to a local dealer and get a feel for a few. Most dealers don’t mind when you go ”try on” their bikes, I mean it’s the least they can do when ya can’t even test ride the damn thing even if you’re buying it! (Can’t say I really blame em though).

   Anyway , if your a beginner I would not recommend buying a brand new bike. Other than the obvious factor of layin’ it down. You may not even enjoy it like you thought you would and that would be a waste of your hard earned cash..

  Engine size is important factor when shopping around for your first sportbike. You surely don’t want to jump on a bike that is so powerful that it scares the s#!t out of you and makes you never want to ride again, or worse gets you hurt. 

    Sportbikes are powerful machines and can be somewhat intimidating to a beginning rider.  They are, quite simply, built  for performance. Learning to control this power is a must. I highly recommend taking a riding course before anything. You can find one in your area at the Motorcycle Safety Foundation.

    The difference between a 600 cc sportbike and an 1100 cc is quite significant. The peak hp and torque curve varies with engine size. In most cases, the bigger the engine, the more low end power,  (torque), the bike will have. With a smaller engine you will need more rpm’s before you start to feel the bike’s true potential.

     That said… The obvious choice for a beginner is a bike with a smaller engine. This way you can better control and more gradually get used to the power.

   So enough about the engine size for now, because the overall size of the bike is actually much more important. You can control the power better when you have control over the bike.  If it feels to big this will obviously intimidate you and give you a very insecure feeling. On the other hand, if the bike feels too small your more likely to get a little too comfortable and ride beyond your abilities.

   Ultimately you’ll want to do some research on your own to decide which brand and size you want . Here are a few guidelines to help you make the best choice! 

• When sitting on the bike both your feet should be flat on the ground without having to lean the bike to one side or the other.
• Your reach to the handle bars should be comfortable with your elbows slightly bent.  Although you do lean forward on a sportbike, you don’t want to feel like you have to reach for the handlebars.
• Rest your feet on the pegs, (with the kickstand down of course). Or even better, have someone hold the bike upright for you.  You don’t want your knees to high, nor do you want your legs to be stretched out, (which usually isn’t the case with a sportbike). This can through off your center of balance.
• Operate the clutch, pull on the brake lever, and use your feet on the gear shifter and foot brake. Some are adjustable, but get a good feel for it.
•  Actually riding the bike would be great! If you can find someone willing to take the risk.

To sum things up, I wouldn’t recommend anything bigger than a 600 cc if you’ve never ridden before, and that’s pushing it. A 250 or 500cc bike would be the better choice. You can always upgrade later.

Let me know what bikes you check out and how they feel. I’m curious to here!

Ride Safe, Ride Smart, Ride Sane 

Rod

Wearing a helmet is a choice in at least 30 states.. This doesn’t mean it’s a good choice not to.

  There are claims that you are more likely to get in an accident if you wear a helmet… People will say helmets block their vision or impair their hearing.  Ok, so you might loose a little peripheral vision and not hear as well when someone is trying to talk to you when stopped at a light…  Really?!  This is why your bike has mirrors and you have the amazing ability to turn your head!  

As far as the “I can’t hear as well” claim,  the wind on naked ears, even at 30 mph, is loud people.  Over time this can actually cause hearing loss. Cutting down wind noise will help you hear other sounds better.  You might think the wind in your face helps you feel more alert or awake, but in reality it actually causes  fatigue. 

Studies from around the globe show that riders who wear helmets not only crash less often, but suffer fewer injuries if they do crash, than those who don’t wear a helmet. They are also less likely to suffer long-term or permanent disabilities and death caused by head or neck injuries.

 A helmet that meets the D.O.T. (U.S. Department of Transportation) standard offers significant protection if you crash. Identified by a label on the back of the helmet, the DOT standard means the manufacturer says it will pass specific tests for impact protection, penetration, staying on your head, and more. I would not buy a helmet that does not have this sticker!

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates helmets improve your odds by 37 percent. That is, for every 100 riders killed not wearing one, 37 riders could have lived had they all been wearing helmets.

You can get “half helmets,” which give you partial coverage, (you’ll still need glasses or a face shield), or my preference a ”full-face helmet” which covers the entire head and has a flip down face shield. Modular helmets are becoming more popular as well, it’s kind of a combination of  both where the whole face flips up.

Find a helmet that is comfortable, but fits snug. Try a few on, if you can, sit on your bike with it on. Most dealer accessory-sales people have some training in fitting a helmet. Don’t be in a hurry to buy one that you’ll end up not wearing because it doesn’t feel right, or look right for that matter.

Find one that expresses who you are and/or matches your bike. Have fun with it! You can get them painted and airbrushed with personalized designs if you can’t find one you really like.

Ride Safe… Ride Smart… Ride Sane…

Rod

 

  This will keep you very stable and attached to the bike should you happen to hit a bump or have to make an evasive maneuver..

  While being strong and stable on the lower half of your body you want to keep your upper body loose and ready to move. Although you want to have a firm grip on your handlebars, (again not squeezing), you want to keep your arms loose and relaxed. Many new riders tend to have a “death grip” on the handlebars to the point of not being able to control the bike well in turns. The point is to stay comfortable but confident enough to be ready to react quickly. If you are tight on bottom and loose on top you will really feel a better sense of control.

  Slow down BEFORE you enter the turn and then once you’re leaned over in the turn, gradually roll on the throttle and accelerate through it.

It’s a good idea to continuously scan the area around and ahead of you.

• Check your mirrors often and look over your shoulders.
• Expect people to do stupid things.
• Look ahead at least 8-12 seconds
• Don’t get in a fixed stare
• Leave enough distance between you and other vehicles to have time to react.
• Avoid riding next to other vehicles on multi-lane roads as much as you can. One crank of their steering wheel and your down. Accelerate past them or slow down enough to be behind them so if they do suddenly come over they’re not gonna take you out.

I don’t like to focus on the negative, but as you know, there are a lot of stupid, ignorant people out there that are all in a hurry. To even the most experienced rider the road can be dangerous place. This just makes it that much more important to take every precaution possible.

If you have an escape plan and be attentive you will be much less likely to get in an accident.

Ride Safe… Ride Smart… Ride Sane…

Rod