Now we can talk about packing. This is the biggest challenge, and many people have many different ways of packing their bikes. Again, this is my way. It works for me and has served me well for thousands of miles, but it’s not the only way, and I have refined my process over many trips. …
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Distance Riding: Planning the Trip
There are many ways to plan trips, and you can be as detailed or as general as you want. Personally, I plan each riding day of my trip – and a lot of my trips are ride, spend the night, ride again, spend the night, etc. For each day that I ride, I reserve my …
Distance Riding: Training for That Long Trip
Anyone who knows me, knows I love nothing better than packing one of my bikes, and pointing it in a direction away from my house. I LOVE riding distance. I don’t care about twisty roads, or how fast I can go. I just like to GO. Just like anything else about a motorcycle, traveling for …
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Group Riding: Am I Ready?
Riding with a group can be the best or the worst riding experience, depending on two things. One – are you ready to ride in a group situation? And two – how does the group behave? Part 1: Your Skill Let’s look at your own skill level and preparedness first. Can you execute these maneuvers …
Riding at Night
There is something wonderful about gliding through the night on a bike. You see the landscape so differently, and often the air is cooler and smells cleaner. However, dark roads can hide all sorts of traps for motorcycles, so you can enjoy a nighttime cruise, but you have to know how to do it as …
Riding in the Rain
Strategies for Gear and Approach to Riding: I don’t know anyone who truly likes to ride in the rain. Now, on a scorching hot day, riding through a quick passover shower feels great, but I’m talking real rain. Dark clouds, rain pounding the pavement, everything is soaked. That kind of rain. No one likes riding …
Road Conditions: Anticipating & Preparing
Road conditions are something we deal with minute by minute every time we ride. Surfaces that we think nothing of when we are in a car, all of a sudden become treacherous when we are on a bike. Since all bikes are different – size, weight, center of gravity, horsepower, tires/tread – it is difficult …
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Riding Techniques You May Not Have Been Taught
Doubtless you have learned the basic riding skills and techniques, but there are a few things that often don’t get taught at first. Mostly because coaches try to keep the information simple for new riders. Learning to ride is overwhelming, so keeping things simple is a good strategy, but once you get the basic skills …
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Parking: Why is This So Hard?
This sounds so simple, but the reality is that parking on two wheels requires a bit more thought and planning, especially for a newer rider, than it does when you are in your car. Why? First, you do not have a reverse gear. YOU are reverse. So that’s fun. Second, unless you have a center …
Street Smarts: Navigating Traffic
When I ride, especially on the highway, I go into what I call “beast mode.” Although it sounds aggressive, it is not. It is the idea that I own the patch of pavement, AND the safety buffer around me, at all times. I own it, I control it, and I will not give it to …
Coach Karan's Corner 