i picked up my friends bike from snow city last year to drop off at yonge and finch. i went west on ellesmere, north on birchmount, west on mcnicoll, north on bayview. from there keep heading north and make a left on 16th. less traffic, mcnicoll will turn into cummer and has some gentle curves. if you dont mind waiting until the evening i could ride with you, but i dont get off work until 830. not sure how dark it will be by then.
Need a route suggestion
- Thread starter Arkay
- Start date
Julz
Well-known member
Umm they close at 6
and you should know that lol how's your friends bike btw.Umm they close at 6
stolen, but with the money insurance gave him he got a gixxer
A) Trailer it
B) Get someone to ride it for you
Right out of the course learning to ride a brand new bike on the streets of toronto is probably not the best idea.
Julz
Well-known member
Damn didn't I tell him bikes get stolen from condos, so far for his alarm lol Well at least he got the bike he wanted this time
knucklesound
Well-known member
Everyone is obviously different and i have friends who rode the highway home on the first day, but why risk it? You might be fine but in my opinion this^^^ may be the best advice you are going to get.
I planned on riding home my first day- thought i would be fine...i had a route all drawn out, and was ready to go....then---dropped the bike doing a really slow u-turn in a tight back alley behind the shop while i was practicing. The girlfriend looked at me and asked if i was sure i was ready to ride it all the way home. Ended up getting it towed out to the country roads north of Brampton...Wish i would have done that from the start- probably wouldn't have scratched it up on day 1...haha. Even with the tow- i was riding the residential rich areas in Caledon and fearing another drop i overcompensated/ended up giving too much throttle and went a bit wide on a couple of practice u-turns as well...nothing to hit out there so it was fine, but would have been a disaster doing that in the downtown core in traffic. Between the cab drivers, streetcar tracks, pedestrians, and my lack of experience- don't think i would have made it home in one piece. There are guys on GTAM who will trailer it for you for a great rate. My 2 cents.
KarGo
Well-known member
It all depends on your confidence level, see how you feel after finishing the course. I was like his friend ^ I rode on the highway the first day I took it out on the street. I'd say go for it, put some frame sliders just in case and take it slow. Instead of wasting money on towing used it for sliders.
+ 100 to have it towed.
If I understand it right you are picking up the bike the Monday after you complete the learning curves course. Please consider a) you might not pass the course; b) unless you are very fit you will be pretty tired and sore after two days of drills during the course and may not have as big an appetite to ride on the Monday as you might think and c) you will likley be (justifiably) excited and a bit nervous heading out in to traffic with a brand spanking new bike (at least I would be).
But if you do decide to ride it I suggest you keep it simple. I'd go straight up Kennedy to 16th and head west to home. As many straight lines as possible. Further, I would have my gf drive ahead of me rather than on my tail. You don't have as much to worry about with tailgaters as you might think. I'd rather ride behind some one I trust who will help to block trouble from the front. Pick a lane and stay in it as much as possible. Not a bad idea to pre plan a couple of rest/ stop areas in advance to breakup the ride in case your hands get sore or you need to collect your wits.
There is a really great street behind snow city (nantucket). I picked up my bike last Saturday and practiced on it for 40 minutes after my orientation session. If I wasn't 100 percent confident that I could ride it home I was prepared to park it and have it towed.
Lecture over - good luck. Let us know what you decided and how it all turned out.
If I understand it right you are picking up the bike the Monday after you complete the learning curves course. Please consider a) you might not pass the course; b) unless you are very fit you will be pretty tired and sore after two days of drills during the course and may not have as big an appetite to ride on the Monday as you might think and c) you will likley be (justifiably) excited and a bit nervous heading out in to traffic with a brand spanking new bike (at least I would be).
But if you do decide to ride it I suggest you keep it simple. I'd go straight up Kennedy to 16th and head west to home. As many straight lines as possible. Further, I would have my gf drive ahead of me rather than on my tail. You don't have as much to worry about with tailgaters as you might think. I'd rather ride behind some one I trust who will help to block trouble from the front. Pick a lane and stay in it as much as possible. Not a bad idea to pre plan a couple of rest/ stop areas in advance to breakup the ride in case your hands get sore or you need to collect your wits.
There is a really great street behind snow city (nantucket). I picked up my bike last Saturday and practiced on it for 40 minutes after my orientation session. If I wasn't 100 percent confident that I could ride it home I was prepared to park it and have it towed.
Lecture over - good luck. Let us know what you decided and how it all turned out.
I rode from Orangeville to Ajax on my first day. Then I crashed. 107 km I believe was the total distance on the ODO when it happened. On my way home (Guelph at the time) after stopping into GP Bikes. Although that was almost all country roads which are not nearly as busy as city streets.
Forget about the traffic status, take the route that involves the least amount of turns. I believe the first reply to the thread is what you need. As a bonus, it involves no left turns.
Without any practice whatsoever and 2 months after RTI, I picked up a Ninja 250, and I brought it home in rush hour traffic right away. The only issue for me was the speed. Riding 60km/h felt like I was flying, and it was scary, in a good way tho =) So, stop & go traffic may not be the best thing, but it's not a bad thing either, IMO. You would ride much slower ( == safer ), and get to practice a lot of clutch and gears, which would add to your confidence during the ride.
Not sure why all the fuss from more experienced riders on the thread.. perhaps they forgot how much they teach at the course.
Without any practice whatsoever and 2 months after RTI, I picked up a Ninja 250, and I brought it home in rush hour traffic right away. The only issue for me was the speed. Riding 60km/h felt like I was flying, and it was scary, in a good way tho =) So, stop & go traffic may not be the best thing, but it's not a bad thing either, IMO. You would ride much slower ( == safer ), and get to practice a lot of clutch and gears, which would add to your confidence during the ride.
Not sure why all the fuss from more experienced riders on the thread.. perhaps they forgot how much they teach at the course.
Thanks for all the helpful replies everyone.
If after the course I'm sore or whatever it doesn't have to be a Monday pickup could be Tuesday at the same time but after that it would be rush hour time pickups so I want to get it either the Mon or Tues.
As for feeling like your riding fast... Oh yaa I rode a CBR 600 before down the street and back and going 60 felt like 90 lol. I have driven manual cars since I was 16 so I understand how clutches and the alike work but using your hands of course makes it different. First time I rode I never stalled or take off uncontrollably it was actually very smooth the owner of the bike told me.
I really want to ride the bike home but I guess I'll see how I feel after the weekend. Straight is the best based on the advice you guys have given and as for my girlfriend driving in front of me instead of behind.... Why is that? So I can tell her to not brake ever hard and brake far in advance to give me time to react?
Thanks all.
If after the course I'm sore or whatever it doesn't have to be a Monday pickup could be Tuesday at the same time but after that it would be rush hour time pickups so I want to get it either the Mon or Tues.
As for feeling like your riding fast... Oh yaa I rode a CBR 600 before down the street and back and going 60 felt like 90 lol. I have driven manual cars since I was 16 so I understand how clutches and the alike work but using your hands of course makes it different. First time I rode I never stalled or take off uncontrollably it was actually very smooth the owner of the bike told me.
I really want to ride the bike home but I guess I'll see how I feel after the weekend. Straight is the best based on the advice you guys have given and as for my girlfriend driving in front of me instead of behind.... Why is that? So I can tell her to not brake ever hard and brake far in advance to give me time to react?
Thanks all.
OP
The rationale for my suggestion that your gf to ride ahead of you is based on the following. I am sure others will have a different opinion, but here it goes.
Only about 3 percent of mc accidents happen where the rider is hit from behind
Something like 70+% of collisions happen from the front. Mostly by cars turning left in every scenario you can think of. Eg oncoming drivers; drivers turning from side streets from your left or right.
So if you look at your risk factors you are far more ahead managing the risks you are heading in to than those coming from behind.
By sticking to the left lane ( of at two lane road) following a car (and you trust the driver), said car effectively protects you from a lot of the hazards you might encounter ( assuming you do not follow too closely aka tailgate). You also need to be willing to stick to the lane. Even if there is a traffic slowdown. If you let your gf be your advance eyes, she can regulate your pace so that you can get your bike ( and you) home safe and sound. That's the objective - right?
Don't forget to instruct her to bias towards stopping on a yellow single light at intersections. This will ensure you will not get in a situation where you end up running a red - which is not cool at all- at all.
My guess is you will have enough to manage just operating the bike to get it home. Why not build in as much of a safety bubble as you can?
Besides - I'll bet she is better looking than most of what you will see along the way
The rationale for my suggestion that your gf to ride ahead of you is based on the following. I am sure others will have a different opinion, but here it goes.
Only about 3 percent of mc accidents happen where the rider is hit from behind
Something like 70+% of collisions happen from the front. Mostly by cars turning left in every scenario you can think of. Eg oncoming drivers; drivers turning from side streets from your left or right.
So if you look at your risk factors you are far more ahead managing the risks you are heading in to than those coming from behind.
By sticking to the left lane ( of at two lane road) following a car (and you trust the driver), said car effectively protects you from a lot of the hazards you might encounter ( assuming you do not follow too closely aka tailgate). You also need to be willing to stick to the lane. Even if there is a traffic slowdown. If you let your gf be your advance eyes, she can regulate your pace so that you can get your bike ( and you) home safe and sound. That's the objective - right?
Don't forget to instruct her to bias towards stopping on a yellow single light at intersections. This will ensure you will not get in a situation where you end up running a red - which is not cool at all- at all.
My guess is you will have enough to manage just operating the bike to get it home. Why not build in as much of a safety bubble as you can?
Besides - I'll bet she is better looking than most of what you will see along the way
So how did it go?
