What the heck….mental hesitation…

[xrljoel]

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That's pee on my cornflakes.

Some of the other posts had me thinking about a light, maybe 250cc blue plate and low speed gravel or dirt road excursions. Getting to the roads without the encumbrances of trailers would have to be worked out.

My uncle was a mechanic in WWII and when the roads were rough he said the dispatch riders preferred the light bikes because if they had to hit the ditch to avoid the enemy they could pull the bike out on their own. Once the areas were secure they liked the Harleys and Indians. I have no desire to pull a Goldwing out of a ditch.

I was envisioning a bucolic ride and the smell of the forest. Now it's beer buggys and mayhem.

Get the 250 and enjoy the fresh air. The yahoos with the beer coolers are fewer and farther between than you think. From my experience, if you're in an area where they have to trailer their ATV/SXS to the trail head they're pretty much nonexistent.

As Mike said, you can plonk around for hours east of the city and have a great day of exploring.

 

[AFJ]

I have been riding motorcycles for a good many years. And every year in the early spring when I do the usual "spring service and overhaul" on the bikes, I wonder about the increasingly stupid actions by car and truck drivers that seem to be more common year-by-year. Long ago I started the practice of "reading up" on motorcycle rider safety in various books I came across just to refresh my mind on how the experts say we should ride in order to "stay safe".
An old book but full of good info is "Ride and Stay Alive" by Davis & McCarthy, Clymer Publications, 1973.

The crown jewel of this sort of book is "Motorcycle Roadcraft, The Police Rider's Handbook" (from Britain you have to remember the advice is for driving on the left - so you have to transpose.) many editions - still revised and updated every few years.

"Proficient Motorcycling" D.L. Hough 2008

One critical rule in safe riding that I have followed for many years now is to ride within the "Limit Point" - no faster than you would be able to stop safely on your own side of the road and within the distance you can see ahead to be clear. (This is one of "Motorcycle Roadcraft's significant pieces of advice.

And intersections where an oncoming car or truck might be going to make a left turn but does not have a turn signal on - look to see if their left front wheel is slightly turned. (an oldie tip from the days before electric turn signals.)

AFJ

 

[mimico_polak]

Good tip @AFJ and to add to it, some things I do when riding:
- on a single lane roadway, I actually keep to the right of the lane in case someone blows through a yellow line around a bend / hill (tip provided here by someone many years ago)
- when coming up on potential left turners I do a quick wiggle so the front light catches their eye
- when coming up on potential left turners I keep an eye on the wheels as they'll start rotating a split-second BEFORE the car follows suit

Outside of that...head on a swivel, and ATGATT for me (except for 2 days ago when I just put on a helmet to see if all is OK on the bike.

And of course a few short shake down rides to get the cobwebs out of my mind / body with reaction and physical familiarization of the bike and physics.

 

[xrljoel]

Good tip @AFJ and to add to it, some things I do when riding:
- on a single lane roadway, I actually keep to the right of the lane in case someone blows through a yellow line around a bend / hill (tip provided here by someone many years ago)
- when coming up on potential left turners I do a quick wiggle so the front light catches their eye
- when coming up on potential left turners I keep an eye on the wheels as they'll start rotating a split-second BEFORE the car follows suit

Outside of that...head on a swivel, and ATGATT for me (except for 2 days ago when I just put on a helmet to see if all is OK on the bike.

And of course a few short shake down rides to get the cobwebs out of my mind / body with reaction and physical familiarization of the bike and physics.

The riding in the right of the lane is a great tip and one that I practice religiously.

2 years ago it saved my life. On the Thousand Island Parkway heading east with the setting sun behind me I was approaching a fairly long line of cars coming west. I was at or near the speed limit. Suddenly some impatient doofus in his ford ranger swung out to pass the line forcing me onto the shoulder without a lot of room to spare.

I can see where hesitancy to continue to ride comes from. Just typing that made me a bit nauseous.

 

[xrljoel]

Beware of all the idiots on off road vehicles!
A friend of mine worked at a shop selling side by sides.
Every customer that came in the door had done their research to determine how many beer the storage compartments held!

Judging by all the empty beer cans and cannabis store packaging I pick up out of the ditch in front of the farm, I'd be more worried about that on the road.

 

[guzzirider]

That's pee on my cornflakes.

Some of the other posts had me thinking about a light, maybe 250cc blue plate and low speed gravel or dirt road excursions. Getting to the roads without the encumbrances of trailers would have to be worked out.

My uncle was a mechanic in WWII and when the roads were rough he said the dispatch riders preferred the light bikes because if they had to hit the ditch to avoid the enemy they could pull the bike out on their own. Once the areas were secure they liked the Harleys and Indians. I have no desire to pull a Goldwing out of a ditch.

I was envisioning a bucolic ride and the smell of the forest. Now it's beer buggys and mayhem.

Sorry for peeing on your cornflakes!
As an ex trials bike owner my attitude has been If you can't lift it out of where your stuck it's TOO HEAVY.
A 250cc Dual purpose bike is capable of doing hi way speeds.
Specialized enduro bikes usually have first 4 gears set up for off road and then big jumps to 5 & 6 for higher speeds.
A trailer hitch carrier also is an option.
I even had mine set up for class 2 hitch (1 1/4 reciever )
I also have one for sale cheap

 

[Mad Mike]

That's pee on my cornflakes.

Some of the other posts had me thinking about a light, maybe 250cc blue plate and low speed gravel or dirt road excursions. Getting to the roads without the encumbrances of trailers would have to be worked out.

My uncle was a mechanic in WWII and when the roads were rough he said the dispatch riders preferred the light bikes because if they had to hit the ditch to avoid the enemy they could pull the bike out on their own. Once the areas were secure they liked the Harleys and Indians. I have no desire to pull a Goldwing out of a ditch.

I was envisioning a bucolic ride and the smell of the forest. Now it's beer buggys and mayhem.

You can carry a 250 on a $100 rack that plugs into a trailer hitch receiver. 250s will plod along all day at 80KM, and can burst to 115 when needed so riding to your playground is certainly possible unless you want to use freeways.

As for beer buggies and mayhem, you're not going to see much. I spend a lot of time on ATVs and 2 wheels, hooligans are usually playing deep in the muck, not on the bucolic trails.

 

[backmarkerducati]

A good level of self preservation is a good thing. In my case, in my youth when I looked at a sport bike it was all excitement about speed so I did not buy a bike (or get my license). In my 30s I was at the bike show and when I walked up to an R1 on display I felt serious sinking fear/dread in place of that excitement. That is when I knew I could get a motorcycle/license.

Hesitation can be a good thing in this context when it comes from place of situational respect.

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