A noob's first day out on his own

As a brief background, I am a 26-year old guy, married for 2.5 years, and have been bicycling for ADV's sake for about 4 years. A bicycle (and my endurance ) have their limits. I wanted to get out of the city. I enjoyed rough riding, so I wanted to ride dirt. It was around this time that I discovered dual-sport motorcycles. Obviously, I had very little prior motorcycle knowledge: I didn't want a sport bike because they're too damn fast and I hate traffic, and I didn't want a pure dirt bike because I don't have a truck (plus there's next to nowhere to ride one around me). So, I assumed I'd never be a motorcyclist. After discovering dual-sports, a missing gear was slammed into place, and the machine came to life.
I started researching variations and particular models. I wanted something small. I never intended to go on an interstate. "250 looks perfect". Next, I looked at the range being offered. I had initially picked the KLX250S, but after enough review reading and recommendation, I locked onto the Honda CRF250L. It had very modern tech, reliable brand reputation, and it was clearly aimed at a starter.
I put a down payment on one 100 miles outside of town (local dealers were out of them for months :eek1), then I bought up a full set of gear, enrolled in a training class, and all the while started forum-crawling. I immediately met some great, helpful people willing to take some time to give me useful advice (www.RideDualSport.com thank you!)
So, I practiced in a parking lot near my house, and completed the BRC last weekend. Today was the day I had been planning for for weeks: my first solo ride out of town.
I geared up right after my wife left for work, and headed out around 7 am. I quickly broke through the north border of Wichita, and continued on for a bit. My experience with traffic (again, first) was very positive. People seemed to be overly cautious. I certainly won't complain about that, but also won't take it for granted. Once I turned east and was thoroughly out of town, the 55mph speed limit came up. Holy shit! How do people ride for long periods at 70?! I was a bit shocked by the force of the wind (and my hands were cold), but I gradually calmed myself down.
Not too long after, I hit my first dirt. And I captured the moment!

I VERY quickly gained an added respect for dirt riders. My arrogant self expected "soft pavement", but I'm an idiot. I tried to drill my head with the advise I had read: don't fight it, just keep the wheel in the right direction. My front tire was shifting back and forth, and I kept panicking and clinching. "No! That's the exact wrong thing to do!" My instincts and my consciousness had quite a brawl. I kept it around 25-30, and things were going pretty smoothly.


I took some breaks to enjoy the scenery and calm my nerves. Everything was going well, but I still felt strung out. I was very aware that I didn't have full control of this machine. It was going where I wanted it to, but if it surprised me, I wouldn't be ready. Luckily, this environment was obstacle-free, so I took it slow.

The road converted back to pavement for a bit, and it was headed to the junction with the interstate, so I decided this would be my turn-around point. I offset my path by a mile for a new ride back. Little did I know, the smooth sailing would not last much longer.

"Why do I keep drifting right? What the hell?" Eventually I hit build-up on the edge of the road and the front tire lost it. I later discovered that the wind was coming from my left side - that explained the mysterious force attacking me. I laid it right over and trotted to the right a bit. The right edge of the road dropped off too much for me to put a foot down, so I just planted it down. On the plus side, I got it down to first gear! It killed itself after spinning the back tire for a bit, then I flipped the cut-off switch.
I had not picked it up before, and the off-camber slant didn't make it look easy. I'm a weak guy (no shame there, it's true). I planted my MX-boot-laden feet under the frame and made a first attempt. "Oh shit". A few inches, then back down. Hm... breathe a bit. I found a couple better holds, then made a serious attempt. It was going! I heaved it upright. Then, I discovered my right hand's hold was right in the pinch point for the fork when it started leaning right. Ouch. I was able to shift it a bit, then reach over with my left hand to get the side stand down.

There's a few great things about this event: I was going almost 0mph, nobody saw me, and I needed to take a pee anyway! Nothing more than a little dirt on the footpeg. An ideal first fall I'd say.
I got moving again, and started actively fighting the wind with some left grip pressure. Works well! Like I had read here, after you fall once, you aren't as scared of it happening again. The fear of the unknown is very strong for me, and after getting a taste, I thought, "that wasn't bad at all". I immediately felt some relief. My grip felt a little softer on the bars, and my back loosened up a bit.
About 5 minutes later, I was making an S-turn at low speed, and somebody's dog decided to guard their driveway, and he headed right toward me. "Geez today is eventful." I had to straighten up some, then I sped up to avoid him. He got within a few feet from me before I got on the throttle. I was really worried he would jump and knock me off balance. That was not the case, and once I got away from the driveway, he left me alone.
As I neared town again, a little bit of traffic picked up. I saw a slow-moving oncoming minivan over a hill, then I spotted two trucks right on its ass. The rear-most truck was a true hillbilly mobile, and he wanted to pass BOTH of them just as I was riding by. I saw it coming, started braking, and made my way to the shoulder. He spotted me, but he was fully in my lane before he darted back. I came to a stop successfully and got my foot down. I assumed I'd lay it down just like the last time I encountered the shoulder, but no! Emergency maneuver #1 - check.
I made it back to pavement and got some more speed practice. My goggles were pressing quite tightly to my face, and the wind was wobbling me more than the trip out. It was warming up though, so my hands felt much better.
I hit my driveway, and felt relieved to be back safely. At the same time, I thought "gah, am I done already? I want to go back out!" As scared as I may have been, I'll be damned if it wasn't fun. I'm rarely a risk-taker, but I'm glad to be taking this one.
I knew myself too well - the excitement was masking the discomfort. I was hungry and my hands were stiff. The rest of me felt great though. The bike has almost zero vibration, and the seat didn't hurt at all.
Time to relax and think back on what I learned.
And, hopefully my story is entertaining/useful to others! Thanks for reading.

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--- ADV stickers coming soon

Slow and easy, thats the way to learn when on the road, congratulations on your first few lessons. Now you have to get that bike in some mild off road location and get the feel of it in the soft stuff. Good luck and be safe.

Awesome!! Keep going out by yourself and get more acquainted with the environment. I thought that bike would of at least had wimpy handguards. I'd look into getting some good handgaurds for it. Look into Cycra's that bolt into the triple tree instead of the bars.
How much psi do you have in the tires?
Congrats on poppin your cherry!

Nice to see a thread with the CRF250L! Hope you're enjoying it. I've thought those things looked pretty awesome, I wouldn't mind picking one up sometime. Hope you enjoy it, don't let a little spill get you down!

22. After I got back, I concluded that was why it felt so slippery. The delearship told me they put it that high because they're supposed to, but he suggested dropping it to 16-18. I will try that my next time out.

Thanks for the supporting replies.

congratulation's on getting out their and enjoying the dirt..

I'll share some of my mistakes on outfitting my bike.

i have the older one 2008 CRF 230 L

on my hand guards i bought cheaper ACERBIS (RALLY PRO) dirt bike hand guards.
their small so they don't block the wind very good. i should of bought bark busters.

i also bought a cyclerack , the quality is top notch, my problem with it is it rubs the back of my calf's . it seems on all of the other bike's that they make a rack for ,
they attach to the passanger foot pegs,
but on the crf230l it attaches to the cross gusset just behind the brake / shifter , level..
it sucks/ bothers my calf's after 2 minuets standing on the pegs of rubbing on the calf's .

Congrats on your first solo ride!! As you ride more, it will become easier.'
Just to throw a few things out that may help with your bike.
As it is a new bike, you should check all of the fasteners on it that could(and will) vibrate loose. New bikes have a bad habit of doing this.
Loc-tite if if is metal. Also keep an eye on the chain tension..

Go have fun..

This time of year I keep the psi high because they do more sitting than riding. If you plan to do alot of highway I'd go higher than 22, plan to do more gravel 18 is good. It's surprising how much difference you notice going from 20 to 18.

There are lots of good roads all around Wichita with very little traffic to practice on and get more comfortable.

I am on the west side of Wichita but would meet up with you wherever to ride around the area.

Well, now that you got that out of the way...have fun!

Congrats on your first dirt ride! Now when someone is bla, bla, bla ing you, just think of the fun you had and you'll be smiling through it.

I enjoy your style, the riding part and the writing part. The bug has bitten you.

The bad news is it takes a bit of time to get your balance and find your comfort zone - just take your time and enjoy it all, because the GOOD news is for 99% of people who ride, your first bike will not be your last!

Once you catch the motorcycle bug (an IMO dirt especially) - you cannot go back to being normal. You, my friend are now an inmate and will stay this way serving God-knows how many years in the moto pen. Bravo!

-Larry

Congratulations, yer on yer way!

One thing you learned, whether you realize it yet or not, is that when you drop it on the right side, it's helpful to deploy the sidestand before you pick it up.

Good report and ride! Keep at it and it will come as I'm sure you've been told. If you don't drop the bike you're not riding hard enough is what I always say.

casey great write up. now that you have sorta scratched the new off of it go out and learn the bike and the conditions you want to ride cause now you won't be worried about scratching it already done. now you can just go out and have fun that's what it is all about. lots of guys in and around wichita when your ready to get out. have fun Mike

Even though I haven't ridden one, I think you picked a great bike to start out on. It's not too light so it should be stable on-road, not too heavy so it'll handle the rough stuff and be easier to pick up, should be geared to cruise the road all day.
If you're buying handguards, I'd get these. They cost more but you want the ones that mount to the triple tree to save room on your handlebars. You'll run out of room later on.
http://www.rockymountainatvmc.com/p...a-CRM-Racer-Pack-7-8%22-Bars/cycra+handguards
Call rckymtn and have them send you their 2013 catalog. Its nice to refer to.

To make you feel better, the 1st time I took my KLR out it went about the same. It was a little windy in town, but when I got out in the wide open it was very windy. I was trying to stay in the main/smooth track but the wind kept blowing me onto the side in the loose stuff. The bike still had the stock/junk tires and I wasn't use to riding a buffalo, so it was more of a stressful ride instead of a fun, relaxing ride.
Now I can blast along on gravel doing 65mph while standing.
You'll get there!!

Great job on your first RR!! I also like your writing style. And great bike choice too! I'm glad somebody's out there getting to ride. It's rainy and cold here. :)

Rob

Thanks for the great write up!