"Set Yourself Up to be Successful"

Last weekend I took the Beginner's Riding Course offered by the Motorcycle Safety Foundation.

I signed up for the course a couple of months back, and even though I was issued my motorcycle endorsement prior to the class, I figured that taking the course was still a good idea. I'm still very much a beginner, but I was starting to wonder if I was going to be bored with the course. It turned out to be a lot of fun, and I learned a lot. Not only did I get valuable foundation knowledge on being a better (and safer) rider, it also offered a great opportunity to get some experience riding a motorcycle of the two wheeled variety (i.e., something other than the MP3). Since my MP3 has no manual clutch, no gear shift (and hence no "neutral" per se), no right foot rear brake pedal (it's on the left handlebar where the clutch would normally be), and no manual fuel valve, it was really helpful to get that experience. I was pretty much starting from scratch, but it didn't take long to get the hang of things.

Other than the online video on the MSF site, I wasn't really sure what I was walking into. I was half expecting to see a classroom full of as many people as could fit. Fortunately, the class was limited to twelve, which was, I thought, the perfect size (and explained the two month waiting list). My classmates ranged from quite young to more mature, from very inexperienced to several years experienced, and about as many females as males. Tim and Susan led the class. Tim is a good ol' coon-ass from Louisiana like me, and Susan was born and bred here in North Carolina, and has about the coolest Harley I think I've ever seen (I'm kicking myself because I forgot to take a picture of it!) There was a group of five who signed up together and really set the dynamic for the class. There was Tina, the ring leader and former bus driver (and all around ball of fire), her children Josh and Autumn, and their neighbors Eric and Candy. The way they interact you'd think they all lived under the same roof. Bickerin'est bunch you'd ever meet, but all in good fun, and great people to be around. The class would not have been the same without them.

Josh, Autumn, Candy, Tina and Erick

Tim and Susan were great as both instructors and range coaches. Tim's motto for the class was iterated over and over again, "Set yourself up to be successful." In the classroom there was a mix of material with some good natured ribbing and humor, but once we hit the bikes, it was all business. We started our first range exercises Saturday right around 7 AM to try to beat the heat of the day. As the day went on it got progressively hotter and hotter, we took short breaks between exercises to cool down while Tim and Susan set up the course for the next round. The first few exercises were baby steps, but each exercise built upon the next and by the end of the day, we were practicing slow tight turns with (some) success. Before we called it a day, we had a few more hours of class work (and some laughs).

Tim and Susan

At some point in the classroom Autumn must have been complaining about something or another, because it prompted Josh. "Tim, can you take her, please? How much would we have to pay you to take her?"

"Uh.." paused Tim, "I think I'd rather stand outside in the heat."

Tina: "You may have to!"


I went home that night, sore and heat exhausted, collapsed on the bed and dreamed of obstacle cones.

I didn't bring the MP3 Saturday because I needed the car to haul the lawn chair, umbrella, and other supplies, but today was supposed to be a little cooler so I packed up the MP3 with as much frozen water and refreshments as it could carry and rode it to the course. I couldn't use it on the range during the class, of course, but I thought people would get a kick out of it just the same. I was curious how the transition from the MP3 to the Suzuki and then back to the MP3 was going to go. They definitely have a different feel, but it wasn't a big deal at all.

Seven AM Sunday morning bright and early, and we picked up right where we left off. In one of the exercises where we broke off into two groups of six, Eric was in the first group, and I was in the second group with Candy and Tina and watched while we waited for our turn. Every time Eric came around, he had this big mischievous grin on his face, like the cat with the canary still in it's mouth.

Candy: "Look at him, the show off!"

When the ride was over, Eric (still grinning) retorted, "Now why do you have to pick on me? Can't a man just be happy?"

I seem to recall the phrase "happy my ass" getting thrown in there somewhere. I wish I could begin to remember everything that came out of Tina's mouth. She was a riot.

By noon we were ready to test, and the class decided to go ahead and get the test out of the way before breaking for lunch. Everybody picked a position, and once we lined up, Tim and Susan signaled each of us through one at a time.

When it was all over Tim gathered the class together at the staging area and asked, "Do you want to hear the good news or the bad news?"

"The bad news."

"The bad news is you all passed, so now we have to give you the written test. The good news is it's time for lunch."

I followed Tim riding his Gold wing to BK where we met Kasha and Trisha, and then we all headed back to eat in the air conditioned classroom, where everyone else was already eating lunch and/or doing some last minute reviews.

Trisha and Kasha

After the test, Tim graded the answers, while Susan went over the course results with each of us individually outside the classroom. We were given our MSF cards, and some stayed behind to help collect cones and refuel bikes.

David helps collect cones

Helping Tim prep the bikes for storage

Tim asked to try out the MP3. After briefly reviewing the controls, Tim made a couple rounds on the range and then disappeared around the corner towards the street.

When he returned, he said it was "unique" which I loosely translated to mean that he was now a scooter convert, ready to trade in his Gold wing for 250cc and three wheels because dealing with the clutch and that whole "shifting" thing is overrated.

As I said, it was a loose translation.

When we were all done, I decided to head over to Capital Blvd. to check out Ed McKay's books. I was half way down Capital in the middle of stop and go traffic when... it happened. I laid the MP3 down. The car behind me waited patiently for me to get back up, and a guy in a van pulled up to the side of me to ask if I was alright. I nodded that I was OK. A little shaken, but otherwise fine. The bike was alright, and I decided the best thing to do was to get back on the horse and go the last half mile to my destination. I was more angry at myself than embarrassed.

I stopped under a shade tree, took a deep breath and took inventory. No injury to myself, that was good. There was some scratching on the right edge of the front plastic panel. A very small scratch to the rear panel, and also a nick on the muffler guard. Not very sightly, but that was the extent of the damage. I realized that I was relying too much on the suspension locking mechanism. I thought it had locked, and by the time I realized what was wrong, the bike was already on its way down. I think the take away from this is to always stabilize after stopping. Only after confirming the suspension lock is engaged should you return your feet to the floor panels.

So now I need to figure out a way to either repair the texture on the plastic panel (sounds like a challenge, but I like challenges) or have the panel(s) replaced when I'm ready to get it painted. I've seen mention online about a product called Plastex and Flex Tex, but one is for recreating an existing part, and the other is a paintable texture medium, and neither seems applicable to this situation. I found a book entitled "How to Repair Plastic Bodywork" but I'm a little skeptical about that also. I have a feeling I may be purchasing new panels. You can bet on one thing though. It won't happen a second time.

This morning I went to WRAL's online weather site to get the "MP3 forecast" for the week, and decided to take a look at the headlines for the day.

Motorcyclist Dies After Failing to Stop at Sign

More details from the N&O:

Accident claims life of motorcyclist

It's eerie to think that just as the course was coming to a close Sunday afternoon and everyone was dispersing, this was happening not more than twenty miles away to a young man named Michael. It really hits home why I decided to take this course.

Anyone who rides, experienced or not, should take this course.