Unfortunately, Lefty sez nothing more. I miss you, brother.
LEFTY'S TUESDAY TIPS: Ride Tips for Everyday!
Lefty's Tips #1:Never use the front brake first! When a raccoon or a squirrel jumps out in front of you, or a semi decides to change lanes, or maybe your exit pops up before you know it and its time to hit the brakes and slow down, never hit the front brakes first. NEVER. You must train your instincts to always go for the rear brake first. If you grab the front brake with any kind of enthusiasm while at speed, you're guaranteed to eat the pavement. This is not a question, it... is a fact. Brake first with your foot, not your hand,,,you'll be glad you did! Ride safe.
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Lefty's Tips #2:
We have all experienced it: the cage is a little too close for comfort and you find yourself driving more looking in your rearview mirror than looking forward. Try taking your clutch hand and gesturing to your tailgater in a friendly manner to back off, palm open and signaling to back off or slow down. Open palm because it won't signify you want to stop and get into it with the cage. It's a non-confrontational gesture, even though you might want to rip them apart. If it's gotten to that point, just pull over and let them go by. Cagers just don't realize that they get uncomfortably close to bikes and usually just a friendly reminder will get their attention, keeping them back a little further and at a safe distance. It happened to me today on Route 4 in Fort Ann and the issue was resolved quickly. The cager even put on his four-ways when a bunch of bikes converged from both directions to pull into McDermott's Harley. Mama always said you get more bees with sugar than with vinegar...a very strange saying, but I get it. Be nice!! Ride safe.
Lefty's Tips #3:
Riding in the autumn: Leaves look pretty until they fall from the trees. Dry leaves can pile up and hide potholes or other hazards. Wet leaves can be like riding on ice. Even with no rain, the morning dew can get the leaves on the road wet and create that icy-like condition. The nights are shorter and cooler. This is when deer really start to move. Never forget about the deer!! You may take a country road ride with no cagers to contend with, but remember the deer. They are not intimidated by a bike and can cause serious injury if you hit one. As always, ride safe.
Riding in the autumn: Leaves look pretty until they fall from the trees. Dry leaves can pile up and hide potholes or other hazards. Wet leaves can be like riding on ice. Even with no rain, the morning dew can get the leaves on the road wet and create that icy-like condition. The nights are shorter and cooler. This is when deer really start to move. Never forget about the deer!! You may take a country road ride with no cagers to contend with, but remember the deer. They are not intimidated by a bike and can cause serious injury if you hit one. As always, ride safe.
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Lefty's Tips #4:
6 Rules about Tire Traction, from a magazine for women and men who ride. (I'll add a 7th: You need air.) 1. Keep your street motorcycle on the street. 2. Wet pavement reduces traction drastically. 3. Wet pavement increases stopping distance. 4. Painted lines on a wet road are almost as bad as ice. 5. Watch out for tar strips. 6. Make sure you are able to stop within your sight distance. From www.womenridersnow.com |
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Lefty's Tips #5:
How to avoid aches and pains when riding? From www.motorcyclenews.com
If you ride a bike for long enough you can fall foul of an affliction known as carpal tunnel syndrome. The ‘carpal tunnel’ is a bracelet of bones and ligament at the base of your hand and anyone who performs a repetitive task enough times – clutch, brakes, throttle, two-finger salute – with the wrong posture will irritate these tendons and cause swelling and scar tissue. The condition gets worse when combined with cold and vibration, so time spent in the saddle puts you in the high-risk category.
To avoid it you need to look at your riding position says Dr. Yew Meng, who has been riding for six years: ”Adjust the height of your handlebars, or your rider height, so that your forearm, wrist and brake lever are in a straight line. It’s important that your wrists are in a neutral position, not flexed up or down."
Back: The position your back gets into when you’re on a bike is somewhere between unnatural and impossible. One of the worst postural habits you can have is to consistently lean forward, twisting occasionally: exactly what you do on the road. ”You need to avoid any exaggerated curve in the lower back, a posture that cramps muscles, nerves and disks. This is hard to do on a sports bike, ” says Dr. Yew Meng. When you ride any bike the muscles that run along the lower spine will get strained and pulled out of shape, most of the time they will hold out, but occasionally they will give up. This is when they will go into spasm.
"Rest or a swift visit to the osteopath is the only answer. When you get home, lie on your back with a pillow under your knees, ” says Dr. Colin Frasier. ”This position relaxes key back muscles and puts the least strain on your spine. It also helps to do back strengthening exercises."
Neck and shoulders: "The head is a very heavy organ and if you’ve got a helmet on top of that your neck has a lot to support, ” says Dr. Weng. About four kgs, in fact. On a bike, the neck tends to get extended at an unnatural angle and its nerves get squeezed and pinched.. The jerks and jolts of acceleration and braking don’t help either. To compound the problem they are connected through the spinal chord to the shoulders which is why neck problems will often ” refer ” the pain to the shoulder area.
The key here is to get back in balance, occasionally. It’s essential that you allow your body some posture changes and a chance to relax for a few minutes to ease the tension. That means a few more pit stops on long journeys.
Lungs: Research published last year in medical journal, The Lancet estimates that 20, 000 deaths per year are linked to traffic fumes. ” This isn’t helped by the fact that motorcycle helmets need to have air inlets where your mouth is so all the harmful dust is being channeled directly through to your mouth and nose, ” says Dr. Yew Meng. This means that chronic bronchitis and asthma will be exacerbated when you’re on your bike – especially in urban areas. The research also estimated that traffic fumes were responsible for more than 25,000 new cases of chronic bronchitis and more than 500,000 asthma attacks.
”I would always recommend wearing a pollution mask inside your helmet, ” says Meng, ”especially for journeys in congested traffic. Breathing through you nose instead of your mouth will also help filter out some of the harmful airborne particles."
Fingers: Next time you’re held up by road works and you ride past the fella with the jack hammer, don’t curse him, he’s only trying to flatten the road so that you don’t end up with the same condition that will soon force him into early retirement. That condition is Raynaud’s Syndrome, otherwise known as ” white finger ” , which refers to a restriction in the blood supply to your extremities – particularly your fingers. It comes from constant vibration and turns the fingers – usually index and middle – white, leaving them numb and with reduced dexterity and grip strength. Regardless of how good the shocks on your bike, you are going to experience a lot of vibration through the handlebars and this could eventually damage the nerves and the blood vessels in your hands and fingers. The condition is usually not severe and attacks only cause minor discomfort, but it can lead to skin ulcers and is progressive if left unchecked. It will become irreversible if you don’t cut down the vibration from your handlebars with a dampening material, like Sorbothane, or buy gloves that have a viscoelastic polymer inside.
Ears: ”Most motorcyclists will have some degree of hearing loss, whether they know it or not, ” says Dr. Yew Meng. Probably something to do with the fact that the sound of heavy traffic can rise above the 85 decibel limit that experts consider safe. Above this limit, noise overstimulates the delicate cells in your inner ears that carry sound to your auditory nerves. The cells will recover if their exposure to the noise is brief, otherwise they will be destroyed. ”The desire to have louder race cams and pipes doesn’t help, ” adds Meng.
”Helmets don’t provide adequate protection for the ears so I would always advise using ear plugs. ”
Stomach: Getting on a bike after a heavy meal can be like putting your stomach on a spin cycle. Your riding position squeezes it out of shape and the movement sends it bouncing around like a beach ball. Your stomach is a sack, wrapped in muscle and when you eat, hydrochloric acid is produced to mix with the food and make it digestible. A mucous layer usually stops the acid getting to other areas of your body and a flap seals the top of the stomach to stop the acid splashing out. Tight leathers can increase your misery as they can squeeze the acids up and out. Keep some antacids in your saddlebag.
Balls: Tight trousers and testicles don’t mix. Add a sports bike seat and you shouldn’t be too surprised if you’re getting gyp from your Jacob’s. ”Your testes hang below your body for a reason, ” says consultant urologist Maria Parsons. ” , but the problem is that on a bike the riding position often means they are often pushed into the body. ‘ Not good for comfort – or your chances of fatherhood. ‘The testicles need to remain about four degrees cooler than body temperature to produce sperm efficiently. ”Other than riding around naked, you have to compensate in other areas, particularly your diet. Certain vitamins (C and E) are thought to enhance the health of your sperm. Mineral zinc is also recommended because it’s beneficial for the prostate, where the seminal fluid is produced.
Bum: Piles are one result of giving your rear end a hard time in the saddle. These occur when the supportive tissue that surrounds your anus loses elasticity, ” says consultant urologist Maria Parsons. ”This allows the blood-filled cushions that support your anal lining to sag. ” Another unsavory effect of riding around in hot leather is ” pruritus ani ” . This is the medical term for an inflamed anus, which is supposed to be kept dry but will inevitably become moist when you’re sat on it for a while. The friction you will get from your bike saddle can inflame the skin around the anus and can lead to itching and a rash.
For piles a hemorrhoid cream, like Anusol, is the only answer which will lubricate the anal canal and shrink the piles. To avoid pruitus ani, try to keep the area as dry as possible – a squirt of talcum powder can help
Knees: Our most vulnerable joint doesn’t get an easy ride on a bike. Racers will twist their knee to an abnormal angle in order to get the racing line on corners and off-roaders will know what a battering their knees take.. ” Bikers are particularly vulnerable to cartilage tears, ” says Richard Battle, a motorcycle paramedic for the London ambulance service. ” He says that you will know if you’ve pushed your knee too far because you’ll experience a sharp pain at the joint line when you move, after which the only option is surgery.
Joints: The older you get the more susceptible you are to tendinitis causes causing joints to swell and become painful. It occurs in the major joints where the tendon attaches to the bone and by the time you hit thirty those tendons will already have begun to weaken. So after a particularly long ride it can strike your shoulder, elbow, knee, or heel.. ”
” There are no real preventative measures, ‘ says orthopedic surgeon Dr. Colin Frasier. ‘you just have to accept that it will hit occasionally and rest accordingly. It should calm down after a day or so. Once it stops hurting you can get back on your bike. ”
Legs: Varicose veins are caused when the vein walls in your lower body begin to slacken. These veins are lined with valves that help blood return to the heart. When the wall of the vein becomes slack, the vessel dilates and the valves don’t close entirely so that the blood flows backward and pools in the veins. Heat from the bike can also cause the veins to open up, bringing more blood to the legs and keeping it there. To avoid ending up with legs like your gran, just get your legs moving after you get off the bike. Leg muscle contractions help return blood to the heart against the pull of gravity.
Dehydration: If you’re wearing leathers on a tarmac-melting day then you can guarantee your body is going to dehydrate. It is common to have sweat losses of up to 2-3 litres per hour on very hot days (just under a gallon per hour). ” If you lose just two percent of your body weight in water, through sweating, you’ll lose 20 percent of your body’s performance, ” says Dr Yew Meng. At four percent, tiredness and nausea will kick in and that isn’t good when you’re handling 170 bhp of motorcycle. You are also at greater risk from muscle cramps. . When you’re dehydrated you will sweat out your body’s store of electrolytes along with the water and these electrolytes are responsible for carrying electrical charges to the nerves that signal muscles to contract and relax. A good way to tell if you are keeping up with fluid losses is to check your urine is clear. If it is not, keep drinking. “Pee white” is the saying in the army. Take care, some time out to neck a drink with ” isotonic ” on the label. This means that the drink replaces the fluid and minerals that are sweated out at the same rate that you lose them.
Road Stress: Adrenaline is the reason most of us get on a bike in the first place, but too much is not good for you because it’s a stress hormone and readies your body for impending danger. Your coronary arteries narrow, cutting down the flow of blood to the heart, increasing your pulse and blood pressure. So, even though your body is going into overdrive you’re just sat still in the saddle doing nothing about it
Another stress hormone, called catecholamine, kicks in when you under pressure from wayward car drivers, speed cameras and other idiot road users. It makes your blood thicker and more prone to clotting, thus increasing the risk of heart attack. Chronic stress will also dampen your immune response leaving you open to attacks from viruses and allergens in pollution. So try not to take that ticket too personally
Helmet Hair: We’ve all been there. The lid comes off and your hair looks like it’s been sat on by a sumo wearing lard underpants. Helmet Hair isn’t the only thing you should be wary of. If the scalp becomes hot and perspires in the helmet it can lead to blocked hair follicles as dead skin cells, oil, dirt and hair cosmetics are compacted. Once all this stuff gets trapped in the follicles it gives the bacteria in the sweat something to survive on and this will lead to the hair beginning to smell or, at worst, causing limited patches of non-growth. ” The trick here is to shampoo every day so that you get rid of the waste materials in your hair, like dried sweat and shedded skin, ” says consultant trichologist Glenn Lyons, at the Philip Kingsley hair clinic in London.
Stretch If getting on the bike is your first energetic activity of the day have a stretch beforehand. And when you get off to help stop muscles stiffening up
Relax: You need to keep blood circulating through strained muscle fibres so take a pit-stop every two hours – at least – to allow them to return to their normal elasticity without stiffness setting in.
Drink: Pre-empt the dehydration you will experience on a long journey by pre-hydrating with water. Drink up to half-a-litre, a few hours before twisting the throttle, to fill up your body’s water tank.
Breathe: Stay away from synthetic fibres and stick to lightweight natural fibres; cotton in summer and wool in winter. Synthetics don’t allow the body to breathe (especially inside leathers) and even a small percentage in your clothes can send the sweat glands into overtime.
If you ride a bike for long enough you can fall foul of an affliction known as carpal tunnel syndrome. The ‘carpal tunnel’ is a bracelet of bones and ligament at the base of your hand and anyone who performs a repetitive task enough times – clutch, brakes, throttle, two-finger salute – with the wrong posture will irritate these tendons and cause swelling and scar tissue. The condition gets worse when combined with cold and vibration, so time spent in the saddle puts you in the high-risk category.
To avoid it you need to look at your riding position says Dr. Yew Meng, who has been riding for six years: ”Adjust the height of your handlebars, or your rider height, so that your forearm, wrist and brake lever are in a straight line. It’s important that your wrists are in a neutral position, not flexed up or down."
Back: The position your back gets into when you’re on a bike is somewhere between unnatural and impossible. One of the worst postural habits you can have is to consistently lean forward, twisting occasionally: exactly what you do on the road. ”You need to avoid any exaggerated curve in the lower back, a posture that cramps muscles, nerves and disks. This is hard to do on a sports bike, ” says Dr. Yew Meng. When you ride any bike the muscles that run along the lower spine will get strained and pulled out of shape, most of the time they will hold out, but occasionally they will give up. This is when they will go into spasm.
"Rest or a swift visit to the osteopath is the only answer. When you get home, lie on your back with a pillow under your knees, ” says Dr. Colin Frasier. ”This position relaxes key back muscles and puts the least strain on your spine. It also helps to do back strengthening exercises."
Neck and shoulders: "The head is a very heavy organ and if you’ve got a helmet on top of that your neck has a lot to support, ” says Dr. Weng. About four kgs, in fact. On a bike, the neck tends to get extended at an unnatural angle and its nerves get squeezed and pinched.. The jerks and jolts of acceleration and braking don’t help either. To compound the problem they are connected through the spinal chord to the shoulders which is why neck problems will often ” refer ” the pain to the shoulder area.
The key here is to get back in balance, occasionally. It’s essential that you allow your body some posture changes and a chance to relax for a few minutes to ease the tension. That means a few more pit stops on long journeys.
Lungs: Research published last year in medical journal, The Lancet estimates that 20, 000 deaths per year are linked to traffic fumes. ” This isn’t helped by the fact that motorcycle helmets need to have air inlets where your mouth is so all the harmful dust is being channeled directly through to your mouth and nose, ” says Dr. Yew Meng. This means that chronic bronchitis and asthma will be exacerbated when you’re on your bike – especially in urban areas. The research also estimated that traffic fumes were responsible for more than 25,000 new cases of chronic bronchitis and more than 500,000 asthma attacks.
”I would always recommend wearing a pollution mask inside your helmet, ” says Meng, ”especially for journeys in congested traffic. Breathing through you nose instead of your mouth will also help filter out some of the harmful airborne particles."
Fingers: Next time you’re held up by road works and you ride past the fella with the jack hammer, don’t curse him, he’s only trying to flatten the road so that you don’t end up with the same condition that will soon force him into early retirement. That condition is Raynaud’s Syndrome, otherwise known as ” white finger ” , which refers to a restriction in the blood supply to your extremities – particularly your fingers. It comes from constant vibration and turns the fingers – usually index and middle – white, leaving them numb and with reduced dexterity and grip strength. Regardless of how good the shocks on your bike, you are going to experience a lot of vibration through the handlebars and this could eventually damage the nerves and the blood vessels in your hands and fingers. The condition is usually not severe and attacks only cause minor discomfort, but it can lead to skin ulcers and is progressive if left unchecked. It will become irreversible if you don’t cut down the vibration from your handlebars with a dampening material, like Sorbothane, or buy gloves that have a viscoelastic polymer inside.
Ears: ”Most motorcyclists will have some degree of hearing loss, whether they know it or not, ” says Dr. Yew Meng. Probably something to do with the fact that the sound of heavy traffic can rise above the 85 decibel limit that experts consider safe. Above this limit, noise overstimulates the delicate cells in your inner ears that carry sound to your auditory nerves. The cells will recover if their exposure to the noise is brief, otherwise they will be destroyed. ”The desire to have louder race cams and pipes doesn’t help, ” adds Meng.
”Helmets don’t provide adequate protection for the ears so I would always advise using ear plugs. ”
Stomach: Getting on a bike after a heavy meal can be like putting your stomach on a spin cycle. Your riding position squeezes it out of shape and the movement sends it bouncing around like a beach ball. Your stomach is a sack, wrapped in muscle and when you eat, hydrochloric acid is produced to mix with the food and make it digestible. A mucous layer usually stops the acid getting to other areas of your body and a flap seals the top of the stomach to stop the acid splashing out. Tight leathers can increase your misery as they can squeeze the acids up and out. Keep some antacids in your saddlebag.
Balls: Tight trousers and testicles don’t mix. Add a sports bike seat and you shouldn’t be too surprised if you’re getting gyp from your Jacob’s. ”Your testes hang below your body for a reason, ” says consultant urologist Maria Parsons. ” , but the problem is that on a bike the riding position often means they are often pushed into the body. ‘ Not good for comfort – or your chances of fatherhood. ‘The testicles need to remain about four degrees cooler than body temperature to produce sperm efficiently. ”Other than riding around naked, you have to compensate in other areas, particularly your diet. Certain vitamins (C and E) are thought to enhance the health of your sperm. Mineral zinc is also recommended because it’s beneficial for the prostate, where the seminal fluid is produced.
Bum: Piles are one result of giving your rear end a hard time in the saddle. These occur when the supportive tissue that surrounds your anus loses elasticity, ” says consultant urologist Maria Parsons. ”This allows the blood-filled cushions that support your anal lining to sag. ” Another unsavory effect of riding around in hot leather is ” pruritus ani ” . This is the medical term for an inflamed anus, which is supposed to be kept dry but will inevitably become moist when you’re sat on it for a while. The friction you will get from your bike saddle can inflame the skin around the anus and can lead to itching and a rash.
For piles a hemorrhoid cream, like Anusol, is the only answer which will lubricate the anal canal and shrink the piles. To avoid pruitus ani, try to keep the area as dry as possible – a squirt of talcum powder can help
Knees: Our most vulnerable joint doesn’t get an easy ride on a bike. Racers will twist their knee to an abnormal angle in order to get the racing line on corners and off-roaders will know what a battering their knees take.. ” Bikers are particularly vulnerable to cartilage tears, ” says Richard Battle, a motorcycle paramedic for the London ambulance service. ” He says that you will know if you’ve pushed your knee too far because you’ll experience a sharp pain at the joint line when you move, after which the only option is surgery.
Joints: The older you get the more susceptible you are to tendinitis causes causing joints to swell and become painful. It occurs in the major joints where the tendon attaches to the bone and by the time you hit thirty those tendons will already have begun to weaken. So after a particularly long ride it can strike your shoulder, elbow, knee, or heel.. ”
” There are no real preventative measures, ‘ says orthopedic surgeon Dr. Colin Frasier. ‘you just have to accept that it will hit occasionally and rest accordingly. It should calm down after a day or so. Once it stops hurting you can get back on your bike. ”
Legs: Varicose veins are caused when the vein walls in your lower body begin to slacken. These veins are lined with valves that help blood return to the heart. When the wall of the vein becomes slack, the vessel dilates and the valves don’t close entirely so that the blood flows backward and pools in the veins. Heat from the bike can also cause the veins to open up, bringing more blood to the legs and keeping it there. To avoid ending up with legs like your gran, just get your legs moving after you get off the bike. Leg muscle contractions help return blood to the heart against the pull of gravity.
Dehydration: If you’re wearing leathers on a tarmac-melting day then you can guarantee your body is going to dehydrate. It is common to have sweat losses of up to 2-3 litres per hour on very hot days (just under a gallon per hour). ” If you lose just two percent of your body weight in water, through sweating, you’ll lose 20 percent of your body’s performance, ” says Dr Yew Meng. At four percent, tiredness and nausea will kick in and that isn’t good when you’re handling 170 bhp of motorcycle. You are also at greater risk from muscle cramps. . When you’re dehydrated you will sweat out your body’s store of electrolytes along with the water and these electrolytes are responsible for carrying electrical charges to the nerves that signal muscles to contract and relax. A good way to tell if you are keeping up with fluid losses is to check your urine is clear. If it is not, keep drinking. “Pee white” is the saying in the army. Take care, some time out to neck a drink with ” isotonic ” on the label. This means that the drink replaces the fluid and minerals that are sweated out at the same rate that you lose them.
Road Stress: Adrenaline is the reason most of us get on a bike in the first place, but too much is not good for you because it’s a stress hormone and readies your body for impending danger. Your coronary arteries narrow, cutting down the flow of blood to the heart, increasing your pulse and blood pressure. So, even though your body is going into overdrive you’re just sat still in the saddle doing nothing about it
Another stress hormone, called catecholamine, kicks in when you under pressure from wayward car drivers, speed cameras and other idiot road users. It makes your blood thicker and more prone to clotting, thus increasing the risk of heart attack. Chronic stress will also dampen your immune response leaving you open to attacks from viruses and allergens in pollution. So try not to take that ticket too personally
Helmet Hair: We’ve all been there. The lid comes off and your hair looks like it’s been sat on by a sumo wearing lard underpants. Helmet Hair isn’t the only thing you should be wary of. If the scalp becomes hot and perspires in the helmet it can lead to blocked hair follicles as dead skin cells, oil, dirt and hair cosmetics are compacted. Once all this stuff gets trapped in the follicles it gives the bacteria in the sweat something to survive on and this will lead to the hair beginning to smell or, at worst, causing limited patches of non-growth. ” The trick here is to shampoo every day so that you get rid of the waste materials in your hair, like dried sweat and shedded skin, ” says consultant trichologist Glenn Lyons, at the Philip Kingsley hair clinic in London.
Stretch If getting on the bike is your first energetic activity of the day have a stretch beforehand. And when you get off to help stop muscles stiffening up
Relax: You need to keep blood circulating through strained muscle fibres so take a pit-stop every two hours – at least – to allow them to return to their normal elasticity without stiffness setting in.
Drink: Pre-empt the dehydration you will experience on a long journey by pre-hydrating with water. Drink up to half-a-litre, a few hours before twisting the throttle, to fill up your body’s water tank.
Breathe: Stay away from synthetic fibres and stick to lightweight natural fibres; cotton in summer and wool in winter. Synthetics don’t allow the body to breathe (especially inside leathers) and even a small percentage in your clothes can send the sweat glands into overtime.
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Lefty's Tips #6:
Stay in your lane, don't ride over your ability. These pics show a rider going too fast for his ability and unable to stay in his lane. Same goes for group riding, but remember, your lane gets a little tighter and you need to be aware of the riders in front and behind you at all times. Ride safe. |
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Lefty's Tips #7:
We've all heard what loose gravel can do to a bicyclist. Add the speed and weight of a motorcycle to the equation and things can get a lot worse really quick. Always be mindful of road construction and the possibility of gravel, dirt, and other obstructions. Highway Riding: Always scan the cage drivers a head on the highway. A driver will normally look first, either with a turn of the head or a look in the rear view mirror before signaling and turning into a lane. The Left Turner: Again, body language is very important for that cage who might be turning left in front of you. Scan the head and the hands on the steering wheel for indications of them turning in front of you. Also keep a eye on the wheels and which way they are pointing. |
Lefty's Tips #8:
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Lefty's Tips #9:
I'm not sure if my tips are helping, I even found myself not following them the other day. Here are new tips that might help: Intersections, never launch from a red light, try to use a car or truck next to you as a block. If someone is running a red light it's better they hit them, not you. Left turns in front of you, if possible, keep a eye on the drivers hands on the steering wheel. This will give you advance warning if that left turn is coming before or after you've passed the cage. Of course always try to make eye contact as well. |
Lefty's Tips #10:
If, for one reason or another, you find yourself in the Road Captain riding position, at the lead of a group ride, remember that as lead bike you should ride in the left portion of the lane. There are a few reasons for this, but the main one is visibility. Visibility is our friend, let's help it along by remembering this tip.
If, for one reason or another, you find yourself in the Road Captain riding position, at the lead of a group ride, remember that as lead bike you should ride in the left portion of the lane. There are a few reasons for this, but the main one is visibility. Visibility is our friend, let's help it along by remembering this tip.
Lefty's Tips #11:
I know we don't want to think about it, that's why I get the big Bucks. It's my job to think of it and have some sort of plan in effect. We've talked about it before, and even had to put the plan into action. What do we do if someone goes down??
For those around a downed rider, the first thing to do is be sure your safety isn't compromised. That means getting your bike off the road and for you to be very aware of a fluid situation. The Road Captain(s) will give instructions for specific duties. If you're EMS trained, you should assist the downed rider, while others should be prepared to protect the scene. This might be from onlookers, but mostly from traffic. There may be a need for traffic control until the proper agency gets on scene. It may also mean directing emergency units to the scene. Anyone who can't offer assistance should continue on to the next stop so the area is not congested. This is a very quick snapshot of what needs to be done if the situation arises. The bare basics, attend to the downed rider, protect the area, assume traffic control and be very aware of your own personal safety!!
I know we don't want to think about it, that's why I get the big Bucks. It's my job to think of it and have some sort of plan in effect. We've talked about it before, and even had to put the plan into action. What do we do if someone goes down??
For those around a downed rider, the first thing to do is be sure your safety isn't compromised. That means getting your bike off the road and for you to be very aware of a fluid situation. The Road Captain(s) will give instructions for specific duties. If you're EMS trained, you should assist the downed rider, while others should be prepared to protect the scene. This might be from onlookers, but mostly from traffic. There may be a need for traffic control until the proper agency gets on scene. It may also mean directing emergency units to the scene. Anyone who can't offer assistance should continue on to the next stop so the area is not congested. This is a very quick snapshot of what needs to be done if the situation arises. The bare basics, attend to the downed rider, protect the area, assume traffic control and be very aware of your own personal safety!!
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Lefty's Tips #12:
We've all had an experience where a cager has pissed us off. I know personally it's for a stupid reason. Like during a club ride someone got blocked so the group could go thru the intersection. They weren't having it and they kept rolling through the stop sign. Luckily, on that day, everyone got through without conflict, BUT, consider this cager's state of mind!! If he's going to roll at a group of bikes, he's already in an unstable frame of mind. Should we antagonize him more?? Pretty sure that's what happened here, and you see the end result. It's so much easier to just put unstable cagers in your rear view mirror than confronting them. |
Lefty's Tips (Review) #13:
After a nice ride of about 650 miles to and from the Yank me Rally using the new headsets for communication, I will say that overall the ride was safer. In the beginning, the first leg of the trip was a rehearsal trying to get them dialed in. On the second leg of the trip, it was a well choreographed dance of bikes at 72 miles per hour. The front, middle, and end all in communication and working well together to get the club to a safe destination. It must have looked impressive also as the lanes of traffic were cleared and everyone could change lanes back and forth together. The headsets will also be a plus for the Cannonball Run, even if for the simple awareness between front, middle and back of the pack. Shout out to everyone on the ride and especially my communication brothers, Joker, Spider, and Cherry...thanks!
After a nice ride of about 650 miles to and from the Yank me Rally using the new headsets for communication, I will say that overall the ride was safer. In the beginning, the first leg of the trip was a rehearsal trying to get them dialed in. On the second leg of the trip, it was a well choreographed dance of bikes at 72 miles per hour. The front, middle, and end all in communication and working well together to get the club to a safe destination. It must have looked impressive also as the lanes of traffic were cleared and everyone could change lanes back and forth together. The headsets will also be a plus for the Cannonball Run, even if for the simple awareness between front, middle and back of the pack. Shout out to everyone on the ride and especially my communication brothers, Joker, Spider, and Cherry...thanks!
Lefty's Tips #14:
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Lefty's Tips #15:
If it feels good, do it!! Lefty's Tips #16:
Way too busy with family obligations to get this out on Tuesday. I know you're all just waiting for it, right? lol RIDE YOUR OWN RIDE. What does this mean? It means many things. Ride at your experience/comfort level, don't over ride, or put yourself in danger. Watch for hazards (not Hap) in the road like roadkill, pot holes, traffic merges, etc. Don't rely on hand signals from the riders in front of you. Be aware of your surroundings at all times, the riders around you, animals near the road, bicyclists, any and all things that could impact you personally, and keep and maintain a 2 second gap from the rider in front of you. If you feel the need to ride single file, pass your intention back with a hand signal until you're comfortable again riding in the standard staggered formation. RIDE YOUR OWN RIDE ! and enjoy the ride. |
Lefty's Tips #17:
Group riding with RKMC NY III at times will mean we need blockers. If you're not comfortable blocking, don't!! If you do block, when complete, fall in at the end of the group. Do not race up to the front.
Group riding with RKMC NY III at times will mean we need blockers. If you're not comfortable blocking, don't!! If you do block, when complete, fall in at the end of the group. Do not race up to the front.
Lefty's Tips #18:
If you see a car or truck on a side street or driveway that could potentially pull out in front of you, keep and eye on the front wheels. If you see the wheels start to roll, then you know the car is on the move and could pull out in front of you. On the highway, always do a head check when changing lanes to be sure no one is in your blind spot. Using your mirrors is a must, but a quick head check will ensure the lane is safe to enter. When group riding on a highway with merging traffic, there are 3 options for the Road Captain you should be aware of:
1. Slow down so the car enters in front of the group
2. Speed up so the whole group can clear the car before it merges.
3. Change lanes to avoid the car.
Regardless of the Road Captain's signals, you are responsible for your own safety at all times, RIDE YOUR OWN RIDE!
If you see a car or truck on a side street or driveway that could potentially pull out in front of you, keep and eye on the front wheels. If you see the wheels start to roll, then you know the car is on the move and could pull out in front of you. On the highway, always do a head check when changing lanes to be sure no one is in your blind spot. Using your mirrors is a must, but a quick head check will ensure the lane is safe to enter. When group riding on a highway with merging traffic, there are 3 options for the Road Captain you should be aware of:
1. Slow down so the car enters in front of the group
2. Speed up so the whole group can clear the car before it merges.
3. Change lanes to avoid the car.
Regardless of the Road Captain's signals, you are responsible for your own safety at all times, RIDE YOUR OWN RIDE!
T-CLOCS
Motorcycle Inspection Check: T-CLOCS Pre-ride inspections should be a regular part of every motorcycle rider's routine. The T-CLOCS acronym is a helpful reminder of the essentials every motorcycle rider should check weekly and before a long ride.
The T stands for "Tires, wheels and brakes."
The C stands for "Controls."
The L stands for "Lights."
O stands for "Oil."
C stands for "Chassis."
The S stands for "Stands."
The T stands for "Tires, wheels and brakes."
- Tires: Check for tread depth, wear, weathering, bulges, and embedded objects.
- Air Pressure: Check when cold and adjust to load.
- Wheels: Check for bent, broken, or missing spokes. Check the tension at the top of the wheel. If it rings, it's OK; if it thuds, there is a loose spoke. Check the cast for cracks or dents. Verify the rims are true 5mm or out of round. To check the bearings, grab the top and bottom of the tire and flex: there should be no click between the hub and axle, and no growl when spinning. Check the seals for cracks, cuts or tears, excessive grease on the outside, or reddish-brown around the outside.
- Brakes: Verify that each brake alone can keep the bike from rolling.
The C stands for "Controls."
- Levers and Pedal: Review for broken, bent, or cracked parts. Check ball ends on handlebar levers for proper adjustment. Ensure the pivots are lubricated.
- Cables: Check ends and interior for fraying, kinks, and proper lubrication. Ensure there's no interference or pulling at steering head, suspension, with no sharp angles. Make sure the wire supports in place.
- Hoses: Review the condition for cuts, cracks, leaks, bulges, chafing or deterioration. Ensure the routing has no interference or pulling at steering head, suspension, with no sharp angles. Make sure the hose supports in place.
- Throttle: Ensure the throttle moves freely, snaps closed, no revving when handlebars are turned.
The L stands for "Lights."
- Battery: Check the terminals, make sure the battery is clean and tight, held down securely, and with proper electrolyte levels. Make sure the vent tube is routed properly, not kinked or plugged.
- Headlamp: Check for cracks, reflector, mounting and adjustment system. Make sure it aims at the proper height and right/left. Check the hi beam/low beam operation.
- Tail lamp/brake lamp: Make sure it's clean and tight, with no cracks, and that it activates upon front brake/rear brake application.
- Turn signals: Make sure they flash correctly.
- Mirrors: Check the swivel joints and mounts. Look for any cracks.
- Lenses & Reflectors: Make sure they are not cracked or broken, with excessive condensation, and that they are securely mounted.
- Wiring: Look for any fraying, chafing and insulation wear. Make sure the routing is not pinched and that there is no interference or pulling at steering head or suspension, wire looms and ties in place, connectors tight, clean.
O stands for "Oil."
- Engine Oil: Check the levels, warm on center stand on level ground, dipstick and sight glass. Check the gaskets, housings and seals for leaks.
- Hypoid Gear Oil, Shaft Drive: Check the transmission, rear drive and shaft levels. Check the gaskets, seals and breathers for leaks.
- Hydraulic Fluid: Check the brakes, clutch, reservoir or sight glass levels. Check the hoses, master cylinders and calipers for leaks.
- Coolant: Check the reservoir and/or coolant recovery tank levels - only when cool. Check the radiator, hoses, tanks, fittings and pipes for leaks.
- Fuel: Check the tank or gauge levels. Check the lines, fuel valve and carbs for leaks.
C stands for "Chassis."
- Frame: Check for cracks at gussets, accessory mounts, and any paint lifting. Make sure the steering-head bearings have no detent or tight spots through full travel. Raise front wheel, check for play by pulling/pushing forks. Check the swingarm bushings/bearings. Raise the rear wheel and check for play by pushing/pulling swingarm.
- Suspension: Check the front forks for smooth travel, equal air pressure/damping, anti-dive settings. Check the rear shocks for smooth travel, equal pre-load/air pressure/damping settings. Make sure the linkage moves freely and is lubricated.
- Chain or belt: Check the tension at the tightest point. Makes sure the side plates are lubricated when hot (the belts should not be lubricated). Make sure the sprockets' teeth are not hooked and securely mounted.
- Fasteners: Make sure there are no missing bolts or nuts and that they are threaded tight. Check for broken or missing clips and cotter pins.
The S stands for "Stands."
- Make sure the center and side stands are not cracked or bent, and that they spring in place, with proper tension to hold their positions.
STANDARD MOTORCYCLE HANDSIGNALS
