Greetings from the other Vancouver.

[Stereordinary]

Hello all.

My name is Paul and I’m the proud new owner of a ‘90 Zephyr 550. Only had it for about three weeks now, and haven’t put hardly any miles on it yet. Why? Well I guess I’ll get into that.

I’m not an experienced rider. I had a bike before, and I took a beginner motorcycle safety class, and passed, but that was almost two years ago. The bike I had was a project, mostly because I stupidly made it that way, so I never got to ride it. Fast forward to about a month and a half ago when I sold it, and started searching my local Craig’s List for a new bike. I skipped over the Zephyr at first, because I saw four cylinders and assumed it was 1000cc. Way too much bike for me. But at some point I just wanted to look, because it was in my price range, and a very good-looking bike. As soon as I saw that it was only 550cc, I messaged the seller. Two trips down into Oregon later, I brought home my new Zephyr.

Somehow, and I still don’t know what was going on, but the front brake seemed to be dragging so bad that just pushing the bike felt like I was pushing 10,000 pounds. I figured it needed a full front brake service, so being cautious, I didn’t ride it until I got the FSM in the mail, and the supplies I needed. About a week and half goes by and my good friend Jim comes over. He wants to ride it. I say I wish he could, but you know the front brake… well he sits on the bike and it’s floating around weightless like nothing was wrong. And nothing was wrong. He rode it around my neighborhood, and then in to the highway. Hit 70mph on an on-ramp. He resoundingly says that there is nothing wrong with the bike, and that it’s “ridiculous.”

So that’s good news! I have since got on the bike only a couple of times, just around my block. My skills from that safety class are basically gone. I need a lot of practice. But I’m determined to keep at it, and I’ll probably be taking another class or two. Or three. You can never learn enough right?

One thing I will say about the bike, and this is probably just my inexperience, but getting off the gas in first, the engine compression really slows the bike a lot. Like so much that I find it lunges me forward. I’m just trying to manage my speed when approaching a stop, and the slow down when rolling off the throttle is like an on/off switch. Anybody have any tips or thoughts on this? I’m guessing it’s probably just my technique and something I need to learn to use correctly. But if there is a way to smooth out that slow speed throttle response, I’d love to hear it.

Other than that, I’m a bicycle mechanic, and I used to be a professional guitar maker. So if any of you want to chat about that stuff, I’m in.

Here’s my bike!

[bunyip]

Use the friction zone i.e ease the clutch in a little, it counteracts the abrupt throttle.

[Stereordinary]

Thanks! I’ll definitely try that.

[Adam]

Paul,
Did you do the safety class on a much smaller bike? Bigger engines have much more 'engine braking' as well as acceleration.
I think it's something you just need to get used to, and use to your advantage. It will get easier with practice!

Out of curiosity, how do motorbike licences work in your part of the world (Vancouver WA?) ? From what you wrote, it sounds like you've just done a safety course, and now you are riding a 550cc bike. Don't you have to pass a driving test and get some experience before you can do that?
If you want to see what new riders have to go through now in the UK, have a read of this:
https://www.rac.co.uk/drive/advice/moto ... e-licence/
Regards
Adam

[Stereordinary]

Thanks for the tip!

To answer your question, yes, here in beautiful Vancouver WA, your safety course and your test are rolled into one. I think I spent two eight-hour days half in a classroom, half on a little 125cc Honda twin in a parking lot, and I left with the endorsement. Frankly I didn’t think I was gonna pass. I could do the low-speed maneuvers fine, barely hit 3rd gear or 25mph. Even worse, there was a few riders in my class that did worse than me, and they passed too. And there’s no limit to what you can ride after the class. So I don’t think it’s a great system, but it’s the system that we have. I always planned on taking additional classes, and doing lots of parking lot self-training anyway.

[Adam]

Paul,

That's an incredibly low barrier to entry for biking where you are.
Even the CBT, which new riders in the UK have to do before they can ride a 125 takes you out on the road.
Once you've done that you still have to pass a practical test and a theory test (if you haven't already got a car licence) within 2 years or you have to do another CBT - and still only ride a 125cc!

Is this the same across the USA or does each state have its own rules?
Is getting a car licence just as easy?

Adam

[Stereordinary]

I hear ya. Frankly I don’t like it either. Getting my regular driver’s license took more lessons, but similarly it was far from comprehensive. Going through the processes of getting both my license and endorsement gave me little confidence that I was safe on the road. As in, I wasn’t good at either, but they gave them to me anyway. If I could do that, so could other people. And I don’t want to be on the road with other people that are as bad at it as I am.

But I digress, practice makes perfect, and I’m still slowly puttering around my neighborhood to get my skills up. I’ll definitely be taking more classes, and doing everything I can to not be a danger on two wheels.

[Adam]

Slow but sure is definitely the way to go.
There are also loads of YouTube channels with lots of good advice for the less experienced.

Some I've been watching are:
FortNine: https://www.youtube.com/c/FortNine
Yammie Noob: https://www.youtube.com/c/yammienoob
DanDan the Fireman: https://www.youtube.com/c/DanDanTheFireman

I'm sure there are more out there, but these are the ones that standout for me.
Enjoy!

[Ivor]

Welcome sterio