Performance Anxiety (first time rider)

[Rawr01]

i haven't spoke with that person and since i choose to continue my relationship with the shop i haven't requested their name. like i said, the situation was handled very professionally and if that is any indication i am pretty confident that he has been highly incentivised (i dont care if its not a real word) not to repeat that mistake. nuff said. i do understand that it was a serious situation, and i'm sure there are differing opinions on how i should have handled it, but i dont want it detract from the other stuff i posted about these past few days' experiences. any input, feedback or opinion on the rest of it?
 

[Twizted]

Does your bike have an after market clutch slave cylinder? The one I installed on mine makes it so much easier on the hand in traffic. I think mine is an MPL brand one.

[zooom]

  i cant go on freeways on account of i'm not fully licensed

either your liscenced or your not...there is no partial....a learners permit is not a liscense...it is permission to be on a roadway WITH another liscenced rider...otherwise, you are an unliscenced rider..period!

  and all that stopping, starting, shifting, and signalling? my hands were painfully numb for most of this trip. 

you are leaning on your hands to a degree, I'll bet, which weights pressure and decreases bloodflow in various pressure points which increases numbness, unless you were just riding with it being so cold with gloves that weren't protective enough from the elements.

[seevtsaab]

either your liscenced or your not...there is no partial....a learners permit is not a liscense...it is permission to be on a roadway WITH another liscenced rider...otherwise, you are an unliscenced rider..period!

In our fair state, a learners permit gets you all privileges of a licensed rider except permission to carry a passenger. No escort required. And I'm not even in New Hampshire!

To OP, sounds like you have a fairly mature approach to the whole endeavor, good luck.
Be patient getting comfortable on longer rides, my old bones took a few months to get acclimated.

[Rawr01]

why are you picking on me?

either your liscenced or your not...there is no partial....a learners permit is not a liscense...it is permission to be on a roadway WITH another liscenced rider...otherwise, you are an unliscenced rider..period!

you are leaning on your hands to a degree, I'll bet, which weights pressure and decreases bloodflow in various pressure points which increases numbness, unless you were just riding with it being so cold with gloves that weren't protective enough from the elements.

PERMIT: in minnesota a permit (yes, i know its called a permit. was just having fun with words) means you must wear a helmet, cannot carry passengers, ride more than 30 min after sunset, or on freeways. if there's light and stop signs you can ride on it regardless of the posted speed limit.

LEANING ON HANDS: if the discomfort was due to my body position or weight distribution it might have occured to me to adjust it. as stated in my post, it was 39 degrees and damp. the gloves i was wearing were an Alpinestars model called the Ventilator. if i had a choice i would have worn Gortex (which my boots are), but these are my only gloves.

as i said, i am not complaining, just posting my experiences for the benefit of others in my situation who may have shared some of my anxiety. the whole point i guess that i was trying to make is that i have logged my first miles as a new rider under less than ideal conditions and have been doing pretty f'n well IMHO. and been having a blast inspite of it.

[Rawr01]

Does your bike have an after market clutch slave cylinder? The one I installed on mine makes it so much easier on the hand in traffic. I think mine is an MPL brand one.

nope. not yet at least. definetly something to look into. also thinking of adjustable levers. and i gotta raise my shift lever a bit.

[thought]

did you adjust your levers to fit your body position yet?  dunno if you have or havent yet, but its one thing that i had to find out about after my first couple of rides due to wrist pain after the rides.  sounds like your hands were numb due to the cold though, but making sure that your levers are far down enough to be in line with your fingers when they are fully extended will help out a lot.

[zooom]

why are you picking on me?

I am not picking on you....but you say things like this....

   i drove for MANY years without a license; accidents had far greater consequences for me than for a licensed driver. 

and

..... on account of i'm not fully licensed ...

NOW, I will admit, I was a bit harsh in my response basing on how my experience with how the DC/MD/VA laws are written in regards to a rider with a permit, because they are not allowed to ride solo...they can ride along side another fully liscensed rider, but in riding by themselves with only a permit, they are considered as straight up unliscensed riders...I did not realize Minnesota was different in that regard and for that I apologize...but when seeing a streak of repetative behavior that tends towards the less than legal, I tend to be a bit harsh in my response because it is guys around here that do similar things and often are the buttheads that bring a high profile of enforcement with the LEO's due to it and their actions surrounding those circumstances

[Rawr01]

yep, did all of that. levers are fine. honestly, i usually just hold the clutch in rather than bother with neutral while i am waiting for lights. if my hand gets tired i switch into neutral, but i've held the clutch thru some pretty long lights and it hasnt been an issue. body position not an issue either. i have clip-ons below the tripl, i'm only 155 lbs with lots of upper-body strength and my back hasnt been even a little sore, not even after my 2 hr chilly morning ride. i keep my elbows tucked in and on a plane withe my bars/grips, and sometimes i rest a little weight on the tank; in this position i feel i have the greatest control. as far as the death grip, my grip is such that i can manage the brake and throttle simultaneously. no vibration either. i have bar end signals and mirrors which seem to dampen any resonance. even at speed (80ish) there is no felt vibration and the image in the mirror is not the least bit IZ_. i havent had to adjust the mirrors yet either, if thats any indication.

the reason for my hands being "painfully numb" was they were just cold, that's all. not fatigue. i've made a snowball before so i so i know the difference. the solution is obvious: goretex gloves. maybe next season. rite now i'm just looking forward to the nicer weather and enjoying the bike. [moto]

[Rawr01]

Zooom:

i drove wo a license bc getting it back was prohibitively expensive and i was being a bonehead. but read between the lines: the potential consequences of even a parking lot fb that wasnt even my fault made me learn to be a better, safer, less aggressive and more defensive driver.

i am 100% legal now: license, full coverage insurance, and will have my mc endorsement on monday after completion of MSF course, which began last nite.

[stopintime]

License or not, be careful and enjoy

[thought]

think you mixed me up with zooom

and yeah, it's suggested to keep it in gear at all lights too... i rarely pop it into neutral.  they'll cover it in the msf course, but for me... i mentioned it in the "how many mirrors do you use" thread, i'm paranoid about a truck/car plowing into me from behind at a light.  about when i started riding, there were a rash of incidents like that... and that freaked the hell out of me.  look for some and there are videos of it happening

when it's in gear, you at least have a small chance of getting away if you're paying attention to your mirrors.

[Rawr01]

yep. i fixt it. kinda thought maybe he is a policeman? hey, i admitted to having broken the law. anyone can take issue with that. point is i dont do that anymore and i still have the skills and instincts i developed when i did.

and double yep. ppl rear-end cars all the frkn time. why not motorcycles? i got a pair of 50mm bar end blindsights (one aimed to my left side for the merge, the other covering my tail. my idea). i may upgrade to 1 or 2 lanesplitters which are much wider. i stand slightly when i do my shoulder/head checks too, but still can barely see my six. i track everything i pass, if i lose some one i look for them, at least til im confident they are really gone.

[zooom]

yep. i fixt it. kinda thought maybe he is a policeman? 

NOPE...not a cop.

and double yep. ppl rear-end cars all the frkn time. why not motorcycles? i got a pair of 50mm bar end blindsights (one aimed to my left side for the merge, the other covering my tail. my idea). i may upgrade to 1 or 2 lanesplitters which are much wider. i stand slightly when i do my shoulder/head checks too, but still can barely see my six. i track everything i pass, if i lose some one i look for them, at least til im confident they are really gone.

I offer a suggestion for some other piece of equipment to add to safeguard your six then....

http://www.bugeyes.com/

[Rawr01]

I offer a suggestion for some other piece of equipment to add to safeguard your six then....

http://www.bugeyes.com/

those are cool... or maybe they're not. i can't decide. i got my mirrors set up pretty good now tho. if i look in my right mirror, which covers my right side and my six, then turn my head to my left and see nothing there, whatever i missed is directly dead center of my left mirror. i tested it during my rides tracking traffic behind me and havnt spotted anything that wasnt in the mirrors; still do head checks tho. its a process. like i said, may get myself a lanesplitter for the right side. we'll see.