Got vice grips. Will try! On Thu, Aug 4, 2016 at 4:11 PM, Graham Rogers <grahamjoanrog...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Dan, the gear shifter indeed can be bent back. If you have a vice and vice > grips you can do it. You may even be able to do it with it still on the > bike. > > > On Thursday, August 4, 2016, Dan Cook <drylightn...@gmail.com> wrote: > >> I introduced myself here a week or so ago... >> >> I’m a 44 year old male and have always been insanely curious about riding >> motorcycles. I never had a dirtbike as a kid, though I got to ride them >> (and couple scooters) on occasion and loved the feeling. So, each summer >> for the past decade or so I’ve considered taking the local MSF course to >> learn how to ride and get a sense of whether I’d be comfortable moving >> forward with this. This year I decided to do it. My oldest son is going to >> college and my youngest is starting high school. Time is marching on. >> Mid-life crisis behavior is in order! >> >> I took the class in mid-July. It was difficult, and after the very long >> first day I was questioning the whole idea. The class was difficult! But >> the second day went better and I passed, losing points only for not quite >> being able to do a figure 8 without going outside the lines. I ended up >> buying a bike a little over a week after the class – a used Honda Nighthawk >> 250, the same bike I rode in class. >> >> We live on a dirt/gravel road in a small town that has only one main >> highway going through it. It’s a 45-50mph road with lots of twists and >> turns. hat bothered me at first because I wanted to go slower, say 30mph, >> to get comfortable. In fact, I was literally shaking the first time I took >> the bike out and got the speed up to 45 mph because I felt like any little >> movement would send the bike (and me) to the ground. I thought about this a >> read a bit and realized that I could relax – the bike isn’t nearly as ready >> to topple over at those speeds as I feared. So, a few days of riding on >> that road made me feel much better. I did very little slow practice, though >> I did stop in a parking lot for a few minutes (after riding about 8 miles >> going 50 mph…) >> >> I’d had the bike for about a week and decided to drive to work for the >> first time yesterday. The road for the first half of the trip is very >> similar, the same road that I take in town. Two lane, twisty, tree-lined >> highway with 45-50mph limits. Then some slower roads, and not too much >> traffic – one light! – and then I’m at work. So I made it to work. I even >> stopped off and got the bike inspected on my way in. I wore my gear >> (boots/pants/jacket/gloves/helmet) and changed and worked all day. >> >> Then came the ride home… >> >> I was in a bit of a hurry because we were having “family night” (with the >> oldest off to college, this is one of our last full family nights and we >> were going to see a movie.) I don't think that affected my driving, though, >> and everything was going fine, as I’m sure it usually is before an >> accident. Then, on a 35-40mph road that I have driven the car on daily >> for 17 years now, I completely underestimated a curve. I probably should >> have entered the curve at 15-20mph, but must have entered it at 35mph or >> so. There came a point that I remember distinctly when I realized that I >> had messed up. Perhaps if I had more experience I could have leaned more >> and made the turn. But I decided to just brake while going straight off the >> road. The second I hit the dirt/grass on the side of the rode, I went down >> hard on the pavement. (I was hoping to stop in the grass but the bike had >> other ideas.) Pretty much instantly I knew that I was okay. Nothing hurt >> much, and I got up and moved the bike off the road. The car behind me >> stopped and helped. Of course, I was embarassed beyond belief and shaking >> with panic, but assured the guy behind me I was okay. I called my wife (who >> is not a big fan of this motorcycle thing, by the way) and told her what >> happened. I couldn’t ride the bike because the gear shifter had bent too >> much. She came with my eldest son and we were able to roll the bike into >> our pickup truck and take it home. We even made it to the movie, though a >> later screening than we’d planned. >> >> Obviously, I’m feeling a complete lack of confidence. I’d like to get >> right back out, but there was some damage to the bike (the gear shifter >> mentioned, also one of the front blinkers broke, and possibly other >> problems I haven’t noticed.) I need to get it to a shop since I’m not >> mechanically-inclined at all. My main takeaway from this, other than BE >> CAREFUL ON CORNERS, is that I’d have been hurt much more if I didn’t have >> all that gear on. I have a nice big raspberry rash on my arm and can only >> imagine how bad that would be without the jacket’s protection. I have a >> sore left wrist, a bruised rib, and a slightly sore left ankle. But it >> could have been so much worse. >> >> I know the saying – there are riders who have dropped their bikes and >> those who will drop their bikes. But I didn’t want this to happen within >> two weeks of buying my first motorcycle, on the very first day I decided to >> drive to work. I thought I had cornering fairly well under control… >> >> I have no specific question (though – can a gear shifter be fixed by >> bending it back??) but mostly just wanted to share my experience. My >> decision not to lean further but to go straight off the road and stop there >> did not turn out well. And I know the real problem was going too fast into >> the curve to begin with. >> >> So, please share your thoughts as I try to regain the confidence to get >> back out there once I’ve healed up (and gotten the bike healed.) Sorry for >> the length! >> >> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "Nighthawk Motorcycle Lovers!" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to nighthawk_lovers+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. >> To post to this group, send email to nighthawk_lovers@googlegroups.com. >> Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/nighthawk_lovers. >> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. >> > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Nighthawk Motorcycle Lovers!" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to nighthawk_lovers+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > To post to this group, send email to nighthawk_lovers@googlegroups.com. > Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/nighthawk_lovers. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Nighthawk Motorcycle Lovers!" group. 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