If you are a beginner motorcycle rider, or even if you are the oldest, you may have been a beginner at some time. If all of us don’t make the same mistakes, we tend to have some or another to do something wrong while riding. It is easy to get overconfident when it comes to riding a motorcycle, but you must be cautious about a few things before you hit the road.
This write-up is especially for beginners, just to make them aware of the mistakes that they should avoid while riding.
Before we go ahead with the article, you must know practice makes a man perfect, this is a common saying and it even applies when you are riding a motorcycle. Practicing and getting used to all the in and outs of motorcycle riding makes you a pro.
Picking the best bike as per your requirement and then getting a license is the first step of starting your motorcycle ride journey. You must know how to ride a motorcycle like an expert and don’t let the bike get control over you, the difference needs your patience, experience, and prudence.
16 Common Mistakes Motorcycle Riding Beginners Make
Stalling
The most challenging task that you may face while you are learning to ride a bike or a car, is its conventional transmission, which is stalling. Stalling means you have to synchronize fuel flow, which means you need to push the clutch slowly to prevent sudden stopping of the engine, it usually happens due to lack of torque. It is all a matter of getting used to throttle and clutch lever. Usually, many beginner motorcycle riders tend to do this mistake, they don’t understand why it is important to do stalling, it also gives you immense power to your engine and enhances the performance of an engine. Usually when a rider is a beginner, then doesn’t understand what is stalling and also gives extreme power with clutch lever, this has to be taken care of to ensure you have a smooth ride. As every bike has a different clutch and throttle, you will get used to it with two to three times of practicing it.
Incorrect Gear
Understanding gears is the most important thing when you are learning or riding a motorcycle for the very first time. No matter if you want to ride a car or a motorcycle, make sure you know how to handle gears.
When you are stopped in any place, make sure your gear is in neutral and when you want to start a motorcycle, you must start with the first gear. As you keep moving, shift to second to third to fourth and then last gear level. Whenever you are riding in the city, you need to be sure about the gears and choose gears wisely. Engines help in accelerating faster, so when you want to ride at a high speed, check for the right gear otherwise it will damage your gears and affect the performance of an engine. When you want to reduce the speed, come to a lower level of gears gradually so that the engine retains the motorcycle. Also, it is important to know that you must not waste the braking capacity, by pushing the brakes without the clutch.
Clutch Lever
If you are a beginner rider, the first thing you must know is clutch and gears go hand in hand. A professional biker thinks he has more control over a motorcycle if he squeezes the clutch and then only uses the brakes. But you must note, only at a low-speed level, you can play with the clutch to prevent stalling. The engines must be engaged always so that you do not lose control over the motorcycle and get the right level of traction of the rear wheel.
Incorrect Speed
When you are starting the bike, you may want to take it slow, but it is recommended to ride at moderate speed, which is usually safe and more comfortable. Over time, your flow will become used to and movements will be in flow gradually and the speed will become automatic. Eventually, you will become confident and start riding at a higher speed, but it is advisable to respect speed limits as mentioned by government rules. You must also consider riding at higher speed on roads as other vehicles are also at higher speed, this prevents unnecessary mishappenings. You need to adapt the speed of your motorcycle as per the road you are riding on.
Skills
For the first time, don’t worry about the skills, after all, you are a beginner and first, you need to gain confidence in riding a motorcycle. First, you need to concentrate on safety and other techniques that make your ride safer, like body position, counter-steering, and more.
Feet And Hands Out Of Place
Don’t remove your hands from the handlebar, otherwise, you will lose control of your motorcycle. Also keeping constant hands on the handlebar will keep you ready for reacting to any challenges that you may come across in the roadways. It also helps you to keep your fingers on the brake and clutch. The same is the case with feet. The sole of your foot must support the corresponding footrests so that you can keep your feet correctly and it is the most comfortable and natural way to come closer to the rear pedal brake and gear shift.
The Kickstand
Motorcycles are well designed to ride with a kickstand open, which is really dangerous when you lean down your motorcycle. You need to fold your kickstand before you go ahead.
Don’t Turn Your Indicators Off
Beginners usually tend to focus more on riding their bike safely and sometimes they miss little things. This scenario happens with indicators a lot of times. A beginner turns their indicator on while they are turning but they usually forget to turn it off. Although the situation is dangerous, it can be confusing for other riders. However, nowadays, most motorcycles are coming with automatic indicators, where it gets turned off automatically after a few seconds.
Your Motorcycle Range
Most motorcycles come with a fuel indicator and even tell you how much distance you can travel by the amount of fuel you have on your bike. While other bikes just have a light that turns on when bikes go in reserve range. Being a beginner, you may face this difficulty in knowing the distance range, to solve it, you must fill the tank and when it comes to reserve, you will have an idea about how much distance it lasts. Obviously, it is going to be an approximate figure, since it changes depending on various factors. You must repeat the process many times to get an average to get an idea of how far you could ride without refueling the bike.
Maintenance
While you ride a motorcycle, you are responsible for its maintenance. Follow the instructions that are well given in the owner’s manual, which includes, oil change, drive chain, tires, and more parts that need to be updated to ensure better performance of a motorcycle.
Riding In Shorts and Sandals
When you choose to ride a motorcycle, you must wear appropriate clothing and gear to keep yourself protected. Some states have rules and requirements to wear a helmet, face shields, and eye protection when you are riding a motorcycle. So, wearing safety gear is not a style statement, but your safety comes first and it is important to get the right gear and clothing while riding a bike. Still, we see many people on the road with shorts and flip-flops, but the point is it is a dangerous part of riding a motorcycle, it can be a case of road rash. So being a beginner, you must keep in mind the right clothing for a motorcycle. Although leather is a stereotypical feature, in reality, it is a safety measure. Wearing leather shoes over your pants adds an extra layer of protection and saves your skin from accidents.
Riding Like You Are Driving A Car
If you are a beginner at riding a motorcycle, you must know it is not the same as driving a car. The only thing is a car driver and a motorcycle rider need to follow the same traffic rules of the state. Motorcycle riders are more visible and vulnerable on the road. Most drivers expect to see other cars or motorcycles in their mirrors, so you do need to be careful while you ride a motorcycle.
Going Too Fast Into A Turn
Conventionally, there are two instances that take place:
- You are going into the turn too fast, slide off the road and then crashes into something, or
- You brake hard, lock the wheels, slide off the road, and crash.
Either, you slide off and crash. Until you know the corner limits of your motorcycle, you must ride slowly on turns. If you can’t make the turn at a speed and lean angle when you start it, you can always lean a bit more and have a tighter turn. The key is to have a turn smoothly and gently.
Using Only One Brake
Motorcycles come with front and rear brakes. A front brake level usually operates the front brake on the right handlebar grip and the rear brake is controlled by the rear foot. Typically, both brakes are applied together to maximize the stopping power. Although most riders are so used to one brake pedal, they end up relying on rear brakes to stop. It gives you a fraction of stopping power, also this slams harder on rear brakes. Unfortunately, when you slam so hard on the rear brake, there is a high possibility of locking the tires and can end up with high and low side accidents. In simple words, you are going to hurt yourself. Never grab the brakes suddenly and harshly in a panic situation, it can lead to accidents and injuries.
Tinted Visor At Night
Just like you don’t wear sunglasses at night while riding, the same is the case with visors. Tinder visors are great for reducing eye fatigue and glares when you ride in bright sunshine. But if you are riding at night, do not use tinted visors, instead get a clear visor. This is a common mistake that most beginner riders make while riding a motorcycle at night. So make sure you get a helmet that has a clear visor for a smooth and safe ride at night.
Bald Tires
In cars, the other three tires are there to support one bad tire till the time you get it fixed. But when it is about motorcycles, worn tires are fatal. Checking your motorcycle tires is an important part of a motorcycle’s maintenance. Airing them up is not sufficient, you need to check the overall condition of tires before you hit the road. Why are tires important to check? Because your safety relies on them. Tires not only offer to brake, accelerating and turning, but it also serves as a part of the suspension. No matter if you are a pro or a beginner, you must check, if you have bald tires, you must get it fixed immediately to have a smooth ride.
Enjoy Your Motorcycle Ride and Don’t Get Carried Away
Are you excited about your motorcycle ride? The first thing you must know is, it is not the same as driving a car, so don’t be overconfident if you know how to drive a car.
As per studies, we have seen many beginners doing the above-mentioned mistakes, luckily, when you read this write-up, you are well aware of such common mistakes that give you a better idea of what to avoid while riding a motorcycle.
