You are going to just pick a ride on some quieter roads ,and i would say fifty miles or more ,get out on the bike and come back with a huge grin on your face ,all doubts and worries dispelled, and very quickly planning your next ride , look forward to reading how you get on , and if you have not already ,see where your nearest Ducati owners club meets, go along and enjoy the craic and join the club ,
Hi, More than once I have got togged up and not ridden. Gut feeling, 6th sense or dark thoughts call it what you like. For me its a hobby so I don't have to do it and if something says no, I listen. Be in the moment. Kindest Regards
If it doesn't feel right don't do it. I would suggest taking the Ducati out when the roads are drier even warmer so you get a feel of what it's like which should then give you confidence in all weathers.
Go for it ! I haven't had a blast out for ages due to a stiff old neck Anyway, had some treatment and it's good enough for a lifesaver. Just had 45 minutes in this dull cold but dry weather and it was such a great feeling to be out again. The missus wasn't so happy, probably because I'd had such a long time with the neck problem but it's been a good day. I only noticed one other rider out , on the M1. I got off that onto some local roads and the bike felt great under me. Take your time and enjoy being alive.
the roads are a bit vile at the mo, they gritted around my way and yesterday the roads were horrid, even in the car you can feel a lot less grip if you push it , its horrid on a bike, we all know that, especially shitty gritty roundabouts with the odd pot hole take your time, i look forwards to you first ride, im thinking dog 2 dicks
This time of year tyres don't warm up. I've had a few close calls with the rear breaking away on cold tyres. Depends on the type of tyre I admit. Unless you feel super warm leg and arm muscles can go a bit stiff.
Having been out in the car today I decided that the roads are absolutely not suitable for a novice rider like myself and I will reluctantly have to wait until Spring. Wish I lived in Spain
One step at a time! Spain is nice, probably too hot for leathers in the summer? Swings and roundabouts.
Dead right about Spain, the weather now is perfect for riding, mostly dry (320 days of sunshine per year) I only ride off road now, Husky 300tpi October to April, electric mountain bike May to September, in June, July and August I ride the mtb first thing in the morning, by 11am to noon it's blistering, I honestly don't know how people ride motorcycles in summer here, even with vented clothing it's far from pleasant.
In what seems like another life, I recall our trip to Frejus in 1983. We travelled down on the 750 Honda fully laden with panniers, top box and tank bag. During the trip we enjoyed a ride up to Monte Carlo and back down the coast road through Antibe and Nice. In those wonderful days riding around the south of france was to die for with little need for a helmet. We essentially wore shorts and tee shirts and sat on a towel covering the saddle. OMG thank you for such memories. Im sure many of you hd similar experiences.
When I lived in California a lot of the riders in the summer had these undergarments that were like a t-shirt with deep vertical ridges sewn in. These created air channels and held your jacket off your body. (The 'ridges' were probably 3cm off the t-shirt surface). I've looked for them again in recent years, but never managed to find them...very effective for riding in blistering heat.
I disagree, these conditions are ideal for understanding how to ride a bike smoothly and with anticipation. I would book yourself a post test/ return to riding lesson with a good riding school to give you the confidence to get back on the bike. You've already wasted 3 months of potential riding why wait for another three or four, it will only add to your anxiety and if you wait for that perfect day every time then you will have very few days of riding and the roads will be full of everyone else who only pulls their bike out on those perfect days. At the end of the day you can only gain confidence with experience and training so bite that bullet and book the lesson.
i agree with helmet, it does sharpen you up, and there might be times on a trip where it rains and you have no choice but to ride wet mode drops the power to 50 bhp or something, all snap goes from throttle, it just bogs down
I completely hear and understand the various sentiments about building confidence but having been out a few times in the car over the last couple of days I would have to say (as an old git) that one would have to be insane to venture out on a powerful bike as a returning motorcyclist. In fact I think as a returning motorcyclist I would be at even more risk because I would likely still remember how things were and would be less cautious. For me, I want to say that I appreciate all the very good and honest advice given but I think I will wait until Spring time.
No way I would be heading out anywhere in this weather on a bike at the moment. Wait for some nice sunny spring weather with dry roads. And yes I did used to ride all winter in my younger days with rubbish clothing and crap tyres.
Nor me. Fell on my arse last night going out to put some stuff in the recycling bin. Back yard looked wet but it was a sheet of black ice. Still frozen this morning. Will be going out to spread some salt in a moment so the postman stays upright. No way I'd be riding any bike on the roads up here today.
If it's icy: no. Otherwise the main thing that concerns me is the necessity of giving the bike a thorough clean on returning - when cold and wet you absolutely do not want to stay out getting even wetter. But you'd be a fool to leave a Ducati plastered with winter road shite. Otherwise I might go out just for the practice. You'd have to be so distracted you shouldn't drive anyway, under any circumstances, if you could get on a bike in midwinter and not instantaneously appreciate how carefully you need to ride. This is still letting imagination get away from you. I'm not the only one, by a long, long way, who's been a courier, riding day in, day out, in city centre traffic and busy motorways, right through winter. And I didn't ride at all for 16 years, then got a Ducati 999. And rode it home in the rain. Admittedly I'd had a Jota approaching 30 years previously, so had experience of something only 20mph or so slower; with triple Brembos, if circa 1979's. I think the main difference between me and someone who wouldn't believe they could do it is that I do. That's all it is. Not, perhaps, thinking, that of the tiny no. of bikers who're going to fall off today, one of them will be me. Rather of the vast majority who aren't going to fall off today, it's obviously doable, so I will too. But not wanting to get cold and wet, or to get home and have to wash salt off the bike, are good reasons for waiting for spring.
