badinfluence63 wrote:
I was having a hardtime turning right up a hill from a dead stop.
One of the funniest things that ever happened to me was on a up hill stopped right turn...
back before I owned my bike I had the average skill set on a big V. We went to Maui and rented Harleys and first thing after the paper work we went outside to "meet" our bikes. The mechanic gave us a few minutes of instruction on all the controls and when you're ready he starts the bikes and gets you pointed in the right direction for a test ride to make sure you're happy with your choice. The test ride is down the end of the road where the UPS depot is, BIG brown UPS trucks in and out all day... The shop has a parking lot with 10' high hedges surrounding it, once you leave the lot you are out of view. I get on my rental, go out the lot and stop at the top of the hill to turn right. The road I'm turning on to has just been paved there is a 2 inch edge where the new black top stops.. Just as I get to the corner a UPS truck also stops in the other direction. I hit the gas, the bike - no choke - hasn't quite warmed up jet - burbs - hits the edge - stops dead - stalls - falls over - out of the saddle bag rolls an empty bean/tin can from a previous renter and starts rolling down the hill and making the greatest sound... just roll a can down the street.. its like a cartoon sound after a wreck...
Well my buddy and mechanic come running around the corner and stop dead in their tracks with the most baffled look on their faces... We thought you got hit by the truck and when we came around the corner and saw you standing next to the bike trying to stand it back up we didn't understand what happened...
They though I get hit by the truck and that the bike was in pieces rolling down the street... we all had the best laugh.
Needless to say the bike shop tried to stop me from renting and I convinced them I had enough experience to take the bike. My buddy suggested I spend an hour in the parking lot doing slow speed circles and figure 8's... the next morning we rode them to the 10,000+ foot high Holyokala observatory... scraping floorboars like a pro, put almost 200 miles on those bikes in one day... on a 30 mile long island...