Knee Down!! :)

[wiggsmeister]

Popped my (knee) cherry earlier today on Angeles Crest in LA today on my 696.

2nd time riding in my first 1 piece, nice smoooooth sweeper, stuck my knee out, focused on the turn and looking through it, and CCCRRRSSSSHHHTTT!!! I didn't know pucks on asphalt sounded so sublime!!!!

It was probably 8 hours ago but I'm still on my high . Posted the scuffed pucks on Facebook of course, sent the pic to my lil brother (cbr 600r, and who's first knee down i witnessed watching on foot in the sweeper on Mulholland), and I just had to brag here a bit.

I'm now officially hooked. I need a track day!!!!!

[The Bearded Duc]

Congrats

I remember my first!

ACH is definitely a fun place to do it, nice evenly paved roads, fast constant sweepers.....

How was ACH by the way, roads wise? Running through that area in a couple weeks for a trip to big bear and was curious what the road conditions were.

[wiggsmeister]

Yea ACH has been my favorite local road for a while.

The road was fine. The pavement was very nice up to the split to Palmdale. after the split it was a little dirty (the usual light dust and occasional rocks) but not bad.

Be careful though, each of the last three times I've ridden it there's been cops.

Got my first ticket up there last Thursday 

[The Bearded Duc]

I agree, been my favorite for about 5 years now. Was an every week thing last year but work got the better of me this year so I haven't had much time for fun rides.

Thanks for the update on the roads, figured they be about that this time of year.

The weekends are usually busy with cops. The key, if you can, is to head up on a weekday. There are usually no police and very little traffic. There was almost one accident a week last year, and I think a death, so the police started cracking down.

Maybe I'll catch you up there this year...

[wiggsmeister]

I guess  it depends what time you get up there during the week. My ticket was on a Thursday around 3pm and there was a lot of traffic on the first half before the turnoff to Palmdale. After that, it was totally empty to Newcombs.

The cop was maybe about 2 miles in, a couple turns past the fire station on the lower part of the hill.

And maybe you will catch me up there one day, I'm getting hooked for sure! If you see a rider in a black Aria helmet, black visor, red white & black Alpinestars suit on a flat black 696 that's loud as hell and probably backfiring, flag it down cuz thats me!

[The Bearded Duc]

  Will do!

[Skybarney]

I miss The Crest.  It was my primary canyon road for over a decade of pure joy.  Just a thought though?  Read about "The Pace".  I used to ride with Nick and Chuck Graves and Lance Holst up there quite a bit.  We were hands down the "fast group" on that road.  Never even put a knee out.........

While it feels good, you are not going to be any faster and most importantly you look like you are going fast and your ticket rate is going to increase.  I like to sit squarely in my seat and let my hips flick out to a side when I twist the bars into a perfect line on the first try (When I get it right  )

[wiggsmeister]

I miss The Crest.  It was my primary canyon road for over a decade of pure joy.  Just a thought though?  Read about "The Pace".  I used to ride with Nick and Chuck Graves and Lance Holst up there quite a bit.  We were hands down the "fast group" on that road.  Never even put a knee out.........

While it feels good, you are not going to be any faster and most importantly you look like you are going fast and your ticket rate is going to increase.  I like to sit squarely in my seat and let my hips flick out to a side when I twist the bars into a perfect line on the first try (When I get it right  )

Yeah, I've read about the pace. I've tried staying centered on the seat through the turns and really leaning my shoulders into it and it feels awesome and is a lot of fun. The problem is, I just got my suit, and have a tough time keeping my leg tucked since I'm no longer in jeans and shinguards/knee pads.

I'll try throwing my hip into the turn though. I never thought of that.

Lucky for me the cop was cool though and wrote me up for doing 65 in a 55 when it was really 65 in a 45... and an illegal (although TOTALLY) safe pass. This years tax return goes directly to scheduled maintenance and my first mototicket.   

[kuzemko]

I miss The Crest.  It was my primary canyon road for over a decade of pure joy. 

Agreed. I grew up in Ventura and there are tons of amazing back roads to ride on. After living in Long Beach for 2 years and Santa Monica for a year, I used to kill days on ACH. Couldn't get enough of it. Then I sold my old Bandit 600, joined the Navy, moved to the great Pacific North West, bought my 696, and a year later moved to Connecticut. I swear there isn't a single road (no matter time of day) that doesn't have some old lady in a Buick doing 10 under in front of me. I would kill for a nice abandoned twisty for a day.

[Slide Panda]

Yeah, I've read about the pace. I've tried staying centered on the seat through the turns and really leaning my shoulders into it and it feels awesome and is a lot of fun. The problem is, I just got my suit, and have a tough time keeping my leg tucked since I'm no longer in jeans and shinguards/knee pads.

I'll try throwing my hip into the turn though. I never thought of that.   

Got quite a thread going on body position
http://www.ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=58317.0

[Skybarney]

Wiggs,  Careful about that feeling.  It was but a couple of rides into wearing my first full suit when I ran a turn straight into gravel.    BTW it was about a mile south of the old mile high cafe.

The suit handled it well, my hip took a pretty good bruise, blew the visor off an Arai Helmet when I hit and luckily there were no incoming cars as my bike slid into the oncoming lane. 

Damn I miss being 25 and feeling invincible!

[ab]

Congrats.  I dream of the day I do that.  I come close but not close enough.