Thinking about getting into Motorcycles

"So I have been thinking a lot about riding, i don't know many that ride so it would primarily just be me by myself. But this leaves me with no one to get answers from.. I read all about the gear things, I just ordered these riding sneakers but the more I read the more I think i need actual boots... anyway what about bikes themselves, i'm pretty short, what happens when i go buy a bike new/used what if i feel like I'm too high off the ground? is there anyway to fix that or am I kind of left with being uncomfortable."

-Lisa

First, I want you to know that you are Not alone! There are so many resources online, women's motorcycle groups and more to help you get started. A few resources:

• Clubs: Motor Maids, Women on Wheels. Both of these groups are national, and have chapters all over the country. I'm sure there is a chapter in your area.
• Meetup.com: Depending where you live, you may be able to find riding groups in your area. It's free to join, it only costs money to create a group.
• Try googling for "women's motorcycle groups <yourcity>"  There are lots of women's motorcycle clubs/groups all over the country, many of them welcome new riders with open arms. If you're anywhere near Philly, please join my Facebook Group.
• Moterrific.com: I have to recommend my podcast show since we talk a lot about new riders and things that every rider wants to know about including gear, used bike shopping and more. There are lots of other podcasts that you can learn from as well including The Pace and Wheel Nerds.

If you can tell me where you live, I'm sure we can find a group / club near you.

To answer your first question, yes, I would definitely recommend riding boots. Not just sneakers. Especially one of these to give you the most traction, stability and protection that you can get as you start out. Starting with a really good pair of boots helps you gain better control over your braking, shifting and stopping so you have lots of stability when you come to a stop. I like to tell people that when you put your feet down when you're seated on a motorcycle, it sends a very strong message to your brain. Either "This is Great! I feel fantastic." or "Oh Shit, what have I gotten myself into?" Of course, this will only feel good if you're on a lighter bike that's a good match for you (think under 300lbs).

I also recommend taking the motorcycle safety class (if you haven't already), so that you get proper instruction and you'll get to ride a few small beginner bikes to get a feel for the whole experience. You may Love or Hate it after that. I think that will ease a lot of your anxieties right there. You'll also meet lots of fellow new riders in your class, and will probably make friends with some of them as well. If you've already taken your class, you've taken the first step.

Here are a few beginner bikes that I recommend looking at:

• Ninja 250R (old or new, I had a 2003 and it was fantastic)
• Yamaha TW200
• Honda CBR250R
• Honda Rebel 250
• Suzuki DR200 (although it's a bit taller than the others, it's SO light it doesn't matter)
• Suzuki Tu250
• Older standards like a Honda CB350

Since you're a new rider, everything will feel uncomfortable if it isn't short enough to let you flat foot with both feet. That's why I recommend the safety class because almost all the bikes will be short! But you will also learn lots of good techniques like smooth braking and stopping which helps you manage taller motorcycles. I know it's not easy to be patient, but if you start on the right bike for your experience level, I know you'll find it to be much easier than you expected. I think you run into trouble when you start on bikes that are way too heavy, tall or powerful to learn on.

And there are things you can do to alter your motorcycle if it's a bit too tall. I'm not a fan of lowering motorcycles but if you need to always consult a shop that specializes in motorcycle suspension, because they will know *exactly* how to lower it properly. Most dealerships don't have suspension mechanics on site. Before you do that, look into lowered seats! You can get an aftermarket low seat, depending on your bike, or you can have one custom made too.

Generally speaking, being shorter means having to struggle a bit to ride bigger bikes. There's no way around it. So it helps if we start out small and just get used to riding to work our way up. I spent more time doing this than most folks, and I know not everyone has the patience to do so but I highly recommend it. As a result I've been able to ride a lot of bikes that I never, ever thought I'd be able to ride because my inseam is so much shorter than these bikes.

As you ride more, you get better. The better you get at perfecting your riding techniques, the easier it gets to ride bigger bikes. There are so many people out there who ride tall motorcycles, it's not impossible!

As far as buying a used bike, here are a couple resources for you to read with regards to used motorcycles:

1. AMA Used Bike Checklist
2. Article about Shopping for Used Motorcycles
3. Moterrific Podcast Episode about Used Motorcycles

Ride Report: Central Pennsylvania

Our first road trip through Pennsylvania. Having just moved from CA, I knew that finding worthy twisty roads was going to be a challenge.  

The Gear

We loaded up the bikes, each of us carrying 20L of Kriega Packs on our backseat. Because look at those backseats, they're tiny! Since we were preparing for hot weather, we both packed ultra light. (3 nights, 4 days in 20Liters; not normal for me. I usually need all 40L). On the Speed Triple, we have 2 US-10 Liter packs and on the SV I have one US-20. I offered to carry all of it but someone was being chivalrous. Honestly, I can't tell the difference between having just one or all 3 even fully loaded!

As far as myself, I wore my hybrids, Revit Galactic and Gear 2's, which were perfect for the 70s-80s that we were riding in. Looking back I should've worn my Schuberth C3ProW but decided to go with my Arai Vector-2 since it flows so much more direct air. I was expecting a really hot weekend of riding so I opted for the lighter option. It was my first time riding a considerable distance on my new to me ride, without a fairing and windscreen. We also spent a lot of time on more scenic roads and the winds were pretty miserable. I know the Schuberth would've been quieter and a bit more stable at speed; and since it was cooler than I expected less wind in my face!

For the man, we picked up a new mesh Dainese Air-3 jacket (Euro 54; 5'11", 210lbs) for him, which he says flows an incredible amount of air. Definitely too much for 70s-80s but perfect for the hottest riding conditions. A pair of Alpinestars GP Air gloves  followed him home as well, a really nice pair of summer gloves with a nice balance of protection and ventilation.

Sidenote: this jacket is available all the way down to Euro 44 / US Women's 6. If you dont have a huge hip differential (more than 2-3 inches between the difference of your waist and hip measurements) then it's a great option for women too.

I also want to mention this cute little handlebar bag that the man wanted for his S3 instead of a tank bag. It had just enough space to keep basically what you see below; wallet, keys, small necessities. The GiantLoop Zigzag Handlebar Bag, $52.25 on Revzilla.com.

Friday July 4

I prepared a mighty route, mostly off the interstate/turnpike. Lots of local roads. We spent about 30 minutes on Interstate 76 before reaching 422.

The highlight of the route was 125 to Shamokin. It was definitely the longest stretch of a twisty road, maybe 10-15 miles? I figured out how to make a step by step map via google maps! It's 225 miles, about 6-7 hours from start to finish with quick breaks here and there.

Actually a really nice mix of sweepers and a few tight turns. I'd call it more of a beginner road, not really technical. This was one of the nice stretches of open space on 125, just beautiful. After we got to Shamokin, it was late so we decided on a more direct route from 61 West to 15 North and didn't get to explore the route I planned after that point. :(

Budget Inn Williamsport

I would say that most of the roads were very scenic, with some nice sections of twisties here and there. Being a California girl, my standards are high. Probably too high. But it was definitely one of the best roads I've ridden in PA so far. We also made a point to ride it again on the way back home.

However, one thing that did meet my expectations was the motel we stayed in. Motel price, but much much nicer than other motels I've stayed at. It's a family owned motel, very reasonably priced (less than $80/night), non smoking, and pet friendly! We were able to park right out front too

Since we rolled in rather late on 4th of July we ended up ordering from Little Caesar's Pizza, the only thing open in town. We planned a route for Saturday, pretty ambitious because our goal was to ride as many of the twisty roads we could find. A couple weeks before we left, MadMaps generously sent me a set of maps for Pennsylvania! Check out everything they have to offer on their website.

Saturday July 5

The day started with breakfast at the Texas Diner in nearby Lockhaven (tasty and cheap!). We decided to ride a few different parts of several different routes. We definitely found some fun stretches, lots of scenic routes that really showcased how beautiful the state of Pennsylvania is once you leave the big city.

Our goal that day was to check out the Pine Creek Gorge, aka Pennsylvania Grand Canyon. Our route started out like this out of Williamsport:

220 North --> 44 North --> 144 North --> 6 East --> 362 East

Since Sue was leading us into the park entrance, I'm not entirely sure where we entered. We took the turnoff from 6 and then entered on the North end to Leonard Harrison State Park. There was even free motorcycle parking right in front.

Unfortunately my mind is a blur as to what our return route was back to Williamsport. All I know is that we rode about 400 miles that day and it was a lovely ride back. Since we rolled in around 7pm we decided to pick up sandwiches and enjoy a nice meal outside.

Sunday July 6

I don't want to mention breakfast because it was rather sad, not nearly as good as the Texas Diner, so go there! Sunday's route was a little different:

After we all got our photos in, we decided to head back. Unfortunately this is where we decided on an improvised route. All I can remember is that we got over to 219 South and stopped at 22 for a gas break. :-(

Monday July 7

The good news, I saved my ride route back home! I overlapped a few roads without knowing it.

I basically looked at google maps and picked the twistiest routes I could. Of course, we had to do 125 again. The best part was stumbling upon 2018 and the covered bridge! It was beautiful, just like in the movies. I've never ridden or driven through one before. We found it off 143 just south of Lenhartsville. It's on the left, less than 2 miles south. You need to look for it because if you don't, you'll pass it. We were so excited we forgot to take pics of the front. But here are some awesome pics of the back!

Looking at the map, the road behind the bridge looked really fun too.

We hit some traffic on the way back into Philadelphia so the entire day was a long one, leaving at 10am and getting home at 6:30pm. I'd say we were out riding every day from 9am to 6pm. Overall we rode ~1,100 miles and I enjoyed almost all of it, except for my horrible stock seat. We can't wait to send our seats to this guy in Florida: A Great Day to Ride. The riders on the Triumph Rat forums swear by him, and for the price I can't say no. Especially since we can do both of our seats for the cost of one Sargent or Corbin.

I also have to mention my wonderful friends, Sue and Gin of the Women's Motorcyclist Foundation. Between the two of them they have well over 1,000,000 miles (literally) under their belts from all the roads they've ridden over the years. They won't stop riding even though they technically "should" due to them being at the age of "retirement". Not likely, anytime soon. I've learned so much from these two, I'll never stop riding until I absolutely, positively have to. They're living proof that riding motorcycles keeps you young :)

To sum it all up, I have to rate the riding as scenic, and nothing like the technical riding we have in CA. I know that there were a LOT of roads we didn't explore, because they didn't appear to be fully paved. If we all had dual sport bikes, I know we would've been more adventurous to find out what all these little roads were like. I found a TON of twisty routes in my atlas but none of them were clearly paved. I don't mind exploring every now and then and may do that on my next ride because I don't care if I hit some sand or gravel. If it's too much I'll just uturn. But I feel like there were a lot of potentially amazing roads that just need a slightly different bike...

Next Trip: Either up north to NY mountains or south to VA. Stay tuned!

Tankbag Alternative, Giant Loop Zigzag Handlebar Bag

To prepare for our first ride across PA, the man wanted something smaller than a tank bag, but not a tank bag. He found this on Revzilla.com (there's always SO much stuff on that website :P) by Giant Loop, the Zigzag handlebar bag. I love their description at the bottom: FITS THESE MOTORCYCLE MAKES & MODELS
• BMW, KTM, Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha, Kawasaki, Ducati, Husqvarna, Triumph
• JUST ABOUT ANY MOTORBIKE

Indeed, it fit his S3 perfectly. It doesn't take up much space, you can barely see it here on his bike (right):

Custom Fit Motorcycle Helmets

Ever wish you could have a custom molded helmet, specifically scanned to YOUR head? Well, now's your chance. Bell Helmets is rolling into WSBK Laguna Seca and will be offering custom fit head scans all weekend.  The Star Carbon is Bell's top of the line, ultra lightweight street helmet.