Driving/Riding a Motorbike

Intro

I went from driving cars to riding bikes the hard way - no formal training and strictly trial-and-error. My thanks go to my good friend Nigel Wilcox who as an experienced (and qualified) bike rider did tell me the most important dos-and-donts.

Controls

On a standard bike both hands and feet have a role. Broadly your right side does speed control and left the gears. Accelerator is on the right hand as a twist grip.
Image shows front brake lever, accelerator, engine Run/Stop switch and starter (red button bottom left)

Unlike a car, front and rear brakes are independently operated. The front brake by a lever controlled by your right hand, the rear a pedal by the right foot. Both brakes should normally be used simultaneously, with the emphasis on the Front. Coming from a car it is tempting to over use the rear brake (same foot)- resist this! It is quite easy to lock the rear wheel, the bulk of your braking force should applied via the Front.

Changing Gear

Most bikes have at least 5 gears, and no reverse. The gearbox is sequential, which means you can't skip from 2nd to 4th as you can in a car. Broadly, to change Up your left toe kicks the gear lever up, to change Down you press it down. The clutch needs to be disengaged during the change - pull left lever, change gear, release slowly.

If you're used to the manual shift on a car you'll likely find the clutch on most bikes straightforward. I found it a lot easier to master.

One complication here - changing between 1st and Neutral

1st and Neutral: If you picture the 5 gears as equidistant in an arc rising upwards, then Neutral is halfway between 1st and 2nd. The consequence of this is that to go from Neutral to 1st your left foot kicks DOWN. To go from 1st to Neutral is half a kick up. On some bikes it appears to possible to go from 2nd to Neutral, though I understand that this should not be the case

Neutral can be very hard to find on some bikes. In practice many riders appear to simply ignore Neutral and hold the clutch at lights, leave it parked in First etc. (seems a bit dodgy to me...)

Fuel Switch Most bikes have a three position fuel switch, labeled On, Off, and Reserve. Usually this is situated below the fuel tank. Baffling, until you realise that most bikes don't have a fuel gauge. Experienced riders seem to be able to open the tank, slosh it around a bit, and judge how much is there. By leaving the switch in the On position you reserve a bit of fuel for when you run low. If the bike starts stuttering turning the switch to Reserve gives you about a litre's worth of mileage...

Starting

Before you even consider starting the bike you should ensure that it's in Neutral. With both feet firmly on the ground try to rock the bike backwards and forwards - if it's in gear you'll encounter a lot of resistance. If you do find it's in gear disengage the the clutch (pull left lever), kick it all the way down to 1st and then half a kick up should find you in Neutral. Release clutch and repeat the rocking.

Turn the ignition on (key) and check the Engine Run switch (right thumb) is in the run position. If the weather and/or the engine is hold you may need to pull the choke out.
Being the paranoid person that I am, I like to disengage the clutch whilst starting. If you've an electric start then pressing that little red button should now start the engine, sometimes a little twist of the throttle can help it into life. At this point I grab the front brake whilst releasing the clutch. Hold the engine at a constant speed and adjust the choke until you get a smooth sound and hopefully low revs.

Moving off

Doing this the first time is scary, and you're on your own, nobody can help. The key seems to be to throttle the engine speed a little higher than idle and release the clutch gently but not to slowly. When you take your feet off the ground you must avoid having to put them down again and this means gaining enough momentum to give you stability.

I never used to understand why bikes pulled away so fast. Now I do - it's simply easier.

At the learning stage control your low speed stuff with the clutch, not the throttle. Later and with more confidence you'll learn how to balance the two better.

Cornering

If you're used to driving a car then try to put that out of your mind - everything about cornering on a bike is different. I still don't feel experienced enough to be telling others how to do this, so what follows is what I've found out the hard way and what others have told me.

At anything above parking speeds you don't turn the handlebars to corner, you push with one hand. If you're cornering right you push with the right hand, likewise to go left you push with the left.

There will be times when you feel you're not going to make it round at corner. If you try to think logically you may decelerate mid-corner, if you panic you might put your foot down - DON'T. Both of these actions can be catastrophic !
What you should do is accelerate harder and push harder. Yes, the exact opposite of what you might think. It takes a lot of guts to do this the first time, but it does work - thanks Nigel!

On the approach to a corner try to position yourself to see as much round it as possible. If you're driving on the left side of the road then a right corner would be approached from the left edge of the driving surface, and a left corner from near the centerline.

Sand, oil and other debris on the road are particularly hazardous whilst cornering. Assuming it's unavoidable then the only way I've found of coping with this is by sacrificing your line and bringing the bike as near to vertical as possible whilst driving through it.
I'd really welcome some professional advice on this subject.

Stopping

When I first started on a bike I likened my stopping to landing a plane - not so much of a landing as a controlled crash ! I'm better now, practice make perfect as they say...

It may sound stupid but as you approach a situation where you may have to stop you need to actually decide whether you're going to stop or flip into low-speed mode. This is another area where bikes & cars are fundamentally different. Driving a car at low speed is easy - they've got 4 wheels and don't fall over. A Bike needs some reason to stay vertical - either forward momentum or your feet.

In the simple case of a red traffic light you brake up to the point the bike is nearly stationary, pull the clutch and put your feet down slightly ahead of you as the bike comes to a stop. Keep the front brake applied to keep from rolling on, or back. If you stop perfectly you won't have to move your feet from the precise location they landed in.

Tips

Low speed riding I found the most difficult aspect of riding a bike. What stability you have on bike comes from your forward momentum and the flywheel effect of both wheels and at low speed these are minimal. The temptation is to use your feet and "paddle" - you must resist this. Your feet are incredibly vulnerable to injury on a bike. Riding at low speed involves holding the engine at a constant speed and using the clutch to control road speed. The 'dragging' of the rear brake whilst applying power also improves stability.

When Parking the bike on a slope endeavor to park it pointing up the slope. If you park down the slope than at some point you will find yourself having to physically push the bike up it in order to move away - no reverse gear...

Do's and Don'ts

Do check the bike's in Neutral before starting. It should move freely when you rock it back and forth. Be double-safe by disengaging the clutch (pull lever) when starting, and only release it with front brake applied firmly. BTW The Neutral light cannot be trusted.

Do use your mirrors and take frequent looks around you.

Do oil that chain regularly. If it starts squeaking then get it replaced. A chain breaking at speed can take your leg off....

Do not put your feet down whilst you are moving. At some point they will get trapped between the ground and the bike - your feet will lose.

Do not over use the back brake. It is very easy to lock the rear wheel by over braking and doing so will lose you control of the bike.

Do not forget to cancel turn signal's promptly. There is no such thing as auto-cancelling signals on a bike and neither is there an audible reminder.