rmk_racer

Member
Jun 28, 2007
20
0
Hey KaTy M!

I don't have any advice for you because I'm still struggling with the same things! Congrats on the bike though. Where do you live? I'm having a hard time finding people to ride with.

Glad you are healing up! I'm finally able to sleep on my left side! Had a little set back when I thought I should swing on monkey bars with sore ribs! Couldn't hardly move the next day!!!! Feeling better again now though.

Getting a new rear tire Friday and hopefully going to try out a fairly easy track over the weekend! Can't wait!

Anyone have suggestions for tires????

S
 

KaTy M

Member
Aug 1, 2007
21
0
Hey, thanks! I live in Maryland which is an awful place to live if you want to ride mx! We have 4 acres and my husband buit a track with his Bobcat... some birms, jumps and so forth so it's pretty good practice but I want SOOOOO BADLY to open it up in 5th gear and not have to stop before visiting my grouchy old neighbor who has nothing better to do than b@%^!!!! Just wanna go fast! When my neighbor called the police (AGAIN) cuz of the dirtbike noise the cop was cool and I asked him if i could PLEEEEEEZE just go on the road ONE TIME so I can get into 5th gear and if he would pretend not to see me while he's shooting radar. He laughed! He was cool. Where are you from? and bike???? family??
 
Apr 30, 2007
657
0
KaTy M said:
So my question is how and when am I going to feel comfortable with sharp turns and ruts without having to slow down too much? The bike feels so light but has so much throttle it wants to just leave me behind!!! Any advice would be great!

Welcome to DRN :)

As for advice, I offer this: Keep your eyes up, and keep riding!

Do a search on this site for "cornering tips" )or something similar), and I'm sure you'll get quite a few good results. However, the biggest thing I've learned since starting racing this summer is that the only way to get better is to keep riding and practicing.

One of my fellow(ette) racers had talked to Travis Pastrana once, and that was the advice he gave her. "It's all about saddle time!"

If you can, talk to people at the track you're going to visit. I'm sure they'd be willing to offer tips and hints or even show you the ropes by taking a lap or two with you!
 

KaTy M

Member
Aug 1, 2007
21
0
Thanks for the tips! I did just buy the Moto Fundamentals dvd this week and started watching that. Sorta helped a tiny bit but it's hard to understand things such as the best positioning for certain things when your watching guys fly by on the track on the tv and while trying to let that sink in they're on to something else. I think I need a personal trainer to come over and show me. Hey, Travis doesn't live to far from me!! Wishful thinking!
 

RiDiNGCRF

Member
Jul 16, 2007
16
0
Hey Katy M...

Just one little pointer... Just stay on top of the gas tank with your body and you should be in control of the bike and it shouldn't feel like it wants to leave you in the dust. Also, as mentioned above... Ride AS MUCH as you could. Try out different riding styles until you find the one you're comfortable with and then stick to it. Everyone is different, so really, taking advice isn't really worth it in the long run. It's all in what you prefer and how the bike responds to it. All in all, good luck with everything and you'll get a hang of it in no time! :)
- Heather
 

rmk_racer

Member
Jun 28, 2007
20
0
I'm in northeast Nevada, just outside of Elko. Pretty much right between Reno and Salt Lake City. I'm learning on a WR400F, I'll figure it out eventually, if I survive that long!

I'm single but have several 4-legged kids: one dog and two cats. LOL...the boyfriend became an "ex" on the same day I broke my rib.
 

KaTy M

Member
Aug 1, 2007
21
0
advice

Yeah, i try to stay up towards the tank and grip w/my legs but, and this might sound strange but I have to move my entire leg so that I'm able to shift, like i cant just lift the front of my foot i have to use the very top a few inches towards my ankle and behind my toes. does this make sense?Is this weird??? Honestly? I just think the whole bike is not really set up right for me I don't know! I cant sit up at the tank and be able to shift it's impossible After getting my boots the shifting was alot easier but I still miss second gear too much which is embarrassing when you think your in second and give it full throttle! a sound that instantly tells people you missed a gear!!!
 

KaTy M

Member
Aug 1, 2007
21
0
advice

OUCH!! Hope your heart wasn't broken as well!!!! Ya know, animals can be much better company and alot more caring than men, oh, I mean people! .....dont want to make enimies already. No hard fellings guys! :laugh:
 

RiDiNGCRF

Member
Jul 16, 2007
16
0
KaTy M said:
Yeah, i try to stay up towards the tank and grip w/my legs but, and this might sound strange but I have to move my entire leg so that I'm able to shift, like i cant just lift the front of my foot i have to use the very top a few inches towards my ankle and behind my toes. does this make sense?Is this weird??? Honestly? I just think the whole bike is not really set up right for me I don't know! I cant sit up at the tank and be able to shift it's impossible After getting my boots the shifting was alot easier but I still miss second gear too much which is embarrassing when you think your in second and give it full throttle! a sound that instantly tells people you missed a gear!!!

If you can... Which I realize some people can't do this depending on which boot you run. Alpinestars is the best for this... When up on the tank... just shift with the very back ((heel)) of your boot. Sometimes there's a lip on the back of the boot and shifting with that will put that lip to good use. Again, this may be out of one's comfort zone to shift like that, and it may be impossible if your boots are just super flat on the back. That's just my 2 cents! Hope all works well!
 

rmk_racer

Member
Jun 28, 2007
20
0
Thanks Katy M! The hearts fine, just the ribs are still sore! The relationship was young, 5 or 6 weeks. There had been several things that hadn't gone well and that day riding woke me up. His behavior and attitude just aren't what I'm looking for in a man. Best to move on.

Getting 2 new tires today, Dunlop 739's. Have to go pick it up soon. Hope to make it to a track on Sunday!

Hope you figure out the shifting! I do alright sitting and am getting better with it standing, but still working on it. This dirtbiking will be a work in progress for a long time! Maybe if you turn your knee out it will turn your foot at the same time allowing you to pull up on the shift lever with the inside of your foot?????

Have a great and safe weekend ladies! :ride:
 

KaTy M

Member
Aug 1, 2007
21
0
WOW! I've never heard that.(not that I've heard a whole lot! I'll check my boots, I have the Tech 6's -also heard you can move the shifter up (adjust it)?? I mean how can you be sitting way up front at the tank, your foot is gonna be behind your butt and lift your toes to shift?? Doesn't seem physically possible unless something is adjusted or am i just a freaK???!!! :bang:
 

medwaste

Member
Dec 1, 2006
289
0
Happy Birthday KaTy M. Glad you found dirt riding. I started last year and haven't gotten past 3rd gear on my small track. Keep practicing and keep safe.
 

KaTy M

Member
Aug 1, 2007
21
0
Thanks med--- There's only been a couple of times when I thought I wasn't gonna be able to stop, but the worst thing that can happen is I'll be in the neighbors yard. So I guess it depends on what you have at the other end of your property and worse case scenerio huh? Dont think I would open it up in 4th if I had a road or wall waiting for me, but I guess that would only add to the adreneline rush huh? (sure I butchered that word)!!! :ride:
 

KaTy M

Member
Aug 1, 2007
21
0
Hit 5th!!!!!

YEAH!! Finally got into 5th gear yesterday!! What a rush! Although when I stopped The whole bike slid sideways! I Stopped shaking about an hour afterwards but WOW, Talk about an adrenaline rush!!!!! :)
 

SpeedyManiac

Member
Aug 8, 2000
2,378
0
rmk_racer said:
Anyone have suggestions for tires????

S

Next time you're getting tires, look for Maxxis IT tires. Very good tires for a variety of terrain and they wear really well. I use Maxxis IT's for practice (and the front for racing as well) but use a Kenda Milville on the rear for racing.
 

rmk_racer

Member
Jun 28, 2007
20
0
Thanks Speedy, I'll look at the Maxxis next time! The new tires made a big difference, much better!

Congrats on 5th gear Katy! Bet that rocked!

I made it to the track Sunday. Went with the 17 year old daughter of a guy that I work with. Wow, she's awesome! She was beating up on all the guys there except for 2 and she was hanging right with one of them. Most of them wouldn't race her!! :laugh:

At least I know what it's supposed to look like when you ride a track, even if it's not what I do on it!!!! I did play on 2 little jumps and had fun on those.

We hit the trails for awhile too and I conquered the wash that I had my rib "incident" in. Felt much better about that!!

Towards the end of the day I was beat and my camelback was empty. Liz wanted to hit the track again so I was watching. When she took a break we were sitting there watching this guy who just showed up and holey crap was he fast!!!!

He's a real tall kid riding a YZ250F. He was hauling butt down hill through some whoops and a little kid on a YZ85 entered the track going the wrong way........ You guessed, head on! The bigger kid broke a couple of fingers and about cut the tip of one off, GROSS!!! It knocked the little guy out and put a big gash in his forearm where his handlebars snapped in half.

Both ended up okay considering how it could have turned out. They both got hauled to the hospital which was about a mile away. But it scared the crap outta me seeing the little guy lying there not moving and bleeding all over the place!

I'm sure I'll try the track again but not on a weekend, I'll stick to during the week when there aren't so many people there! Think I'm mostly a trail rider, gotta be in one piece when snowmobile race season comes around!!!!!! :worship: the snow Gods!!
 

KaTy M

Member
Aug 1, 2007
21
0
hey rmk_racer thanks! Yeah it was great but I really need to get to a track, anyone can go fast straight , ya know? It's going fast and turning that's a problem! O.K., Now for my "poor me" story.....I had my son get a couple pic.s of me on my bike and just let me say, when I saw the pic. I was like ..OH MY GOD!, I look way too big for it!! I look stupid! I was (and still am) devistated! I told my husband and he said, well we have to adjust the shock (swag) then I was like "oh great! My big butt squished the bike!" "Why didn't you tell me I was too big for it before we bought it"?!!! (poor guy). I'm actually not big though, 5'5" 118lbs. but I look big on the bike, when I sat on it at the dealers my toes just touched the ground! My husband just keeps saying "honey, that bike is way more than you can handle as it is, you can't handle a bigger bike!" which made me even more angry. I know, I sound like a spoiled brat, but how depressing, it's not like I can take it back and now I'm always gonna feel self consious (butchered that word huh) as if I didn't already- being new and all. So that's my sob story for today! Poor me I know :(
 

sigurd

Member
Jun 24, 2007
77
0
Questions.

Let's set aside your husband's comments and focus on some different questions.

Is the bike about how you look on it in a picture, or how you feel on it? How connected do you feel when shifting your weight on it? How does it respond to your touch? How do you feel when you turn the throttle and it goes? Do you like that feeling of being able to put your toes on the ground when you come to a stop?

Women are notoriously self critical about looks. I'm sure that criticism can even taint dirt-biking, sadly.

Answer the questions above and you'll know whether you bought the right bike. If you didn't, or your abilities or desires have changed, you can always trade in your bike when funding allows. No bike is forever. At 5'5" and 118 you are no behemoth.

Meanwhile, tear up (or delete) the picture if it bothers you that much. ;) You don't have to look at yourself when you ride. Good Luck.
 

medwaste

Member
Dec 1, 2006
289
0
KaTy M, should we listen to sigurd about how the bike feels? Similarly, I've had my heart set on a crf 150r until someone brought over a kx 100. WOW! So nimble and fast, easy to pickup and start. It challenged me and felt right. And all the birdies and squirrels say I look good on it. But red really is my color. Now what should I do?
 
Apr 30, 2007
657
0
I believe, now that the racing season will be over in a while, there will be quite a few 150s for sale at some pretty good prices...

Have you ridden a 150 yet?
 
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