[long response for novice, just scroll on bye
also excuse typos etc, typed direct no edit]
mate, books have been written on motorcycling,,
but a few tips to start with; sit on it, move around,
feel it [close your eyes] with care, find its & your c of g..
plant your feet both sides, move thighs, glutes etc
around to really settle into the seat and onto bike..
move from one foot to the other [carefully] taking
weight bit by bit.. [this is where novices may drop it]
get comfortable with this simple interaction
between rider an motorcycle..
keeping shoulders, elbows relaxed a bit
hold bars and push it forward, and back,
using legs,, then do same turning it
in a slight curve, forward and back..
[this is practice parking etc, but
also excellent into for brain and
body to combined dynamics]
hop off the bike, holding bars leaning
forward into bike, hips low, knees bent,
['ready'] start pushing her forward a bit,
stopping with one finger on front brake..
do this until bored.. incl backwards both sides..
find a quiet place without traffic or little traffic,
settle in then start feeling how he clutch works
in first.. feed it out a bit at a time, then in..
do this until you feel in control of the clutch
which is a primary control of the bike..
start riding her up and down or around
the block etc, of that area..
just do it over and over again..
the more you repeat this, the more
and faster your brain and body will
become relaxed in riding [important]..
if anything doesnt feel right, go back and
do it again, starting carefully, until it does
feel ok.. best repeating skills until bored..
[boredom releases tension]
just as a touch typist doesnt look at the keyboard
you should practice without looking down at your
feet or levers, or hands etc, rather practice
'eagle vision', ie, look forward and ahead
from under your eyebrows, which is best
for peripheral vision and general sighting
and will tend to balance your head,
which helps your balance mechanism..
where your head points to, the bike will
tend to go, as turning the head causes
a cascading sequence of movements
thru your body, down your spine etc..
thus to turn left, say, think of turning
your head, left, looking ahead thru that
turn.. as your head turns, peripheral
vision will continue to feed photons
from [now] the side, into brain..
[ie, its ok and good, to do this]
once you are confident riding somewhere
safe without traffic, and it gets easier
and more fluid, start practicing riding
- slowly - starting off slowly, then
coming to a stop or almost stopping,
slowly.. deliberately try to slow down
as much as possible, to walking pace,
yet keeping her moving...
at any time, practicing, you can pull in
the clutch, throttle off, lightly brake,
and glide to a slow stop.. [control]
if you can find a large open space to use,
practice riding in large circles..
if its square shaped or rectangular,
round off its corners progressively
until riding around in a circle..
do this until your ears fall off..
then repeat the other way round..
trust the motorcycle in this..
dont go too, slow turning
[remember gravit can be your
friend, but not turning at
slow speeds]
get the feel of how leaning a bit
to the side [hips an inch or so over
the seat] bending the inside elbow a bit more,
looking around the corner [etc] inner foot
secure up on the footpeg [away from ground]
using the clutch whenever you need to
release the drivetrain from the power
or to add a little more power..
at this point, your brain and nervous
system and bodily movements will have
learned enough to be able to do this
fairly comfortably.. trust yourself,
and trust the motorcycle too..
if rider magically disappeared off
his bike, it would continue on
as single track vehicles tend to do,
in a more or less straight line,
responding to road cambers etc,
causing it to continue in a curve..
it wont, simply stop dead and fall over..
when your on it, with your weight etc,
holding the bars with feet on pegs,
thighs on seat side and top,
you will be in control of
this movement..
when relaxed, it isnt easy to
make the bike unstable once
it has gained some momentum[!]
ie, trust the bike, you have
physics on your side..
when you approach the bike and when
you leave her, go thru the same habit
sequence, go to her left, hop off
to her left.. make a habit of every
little thing, such as feeling the bars
with hands and levers with fingers [etc]..
make a habit of gently finding neutral..
be [gently] decisive in finding gears..
only a small clutch movement is needed
changing gear, and a gentle foot
pressure only on gear lever..
practice using rear brake coming
to a stop.. you can also practice
using one finger front braking
when moving her around
stop starting while parking etc..
imo its worthwhile doing a little
stretching, releasing tension in neck,
moving your ankles and wrists and
making fists a few times before
hopping on the motorcycle..
before long, depending entirely
upon you and your attitude to
practice riding and riding
generally, you will become
a skilled motorcyclist, thus,
enjoy the innate pleasure of
riding a single track vehicle..
in your cbr250r you have one of
the finest motorcycles of its type..
enjoy it !
