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Good beginner drills?

Vagabond Vivant

Vagabond Vivant

Dapper Hobo
Joined
Jan 26, 2016
Location
Pleasant Hill
Moto(s)
XR150L + TBD
Name
mike
Hi all! I'll be getting my first bike shortly and am planning on spending as much time as I can just drilling exercises in an empty parking lot. I've found some great resources in this sub for dirt training / exercises, but can't seem to find any for standard riding — what are some important skills to practice in addition to those covered in BAMT class (swerving, stopping, cornering, etc)? What's a good youtube channel to tune into for demos of things I should be doing?

Also, if anyone knows of good spots in Pleasant Hill / Concord where I can find a lot of asphalt to practice on, I'd love to hear about it. Thanks! :)
 
I know the parking lot in front of the old KMart off of CCB used to be a great place to practice, but I believe it is blocked off now for construction. You could always try the Buchanan Airport parking lot, as there is usually a big wide open area in there.
 
Spartan925 said:
You could always try the Buchanan Airport parking lot, as there is usually a big wide open area in there.
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I was actually wondering about Buchanan. I'm right nearby so it'd be easy for me to get to without having to deal with too much road traffic. I'll be sure to check it out!
 
Hard braking #1. Learn your bike. Learn how to brake hard without laying it down. Arnold Industrial street in Concord. LEO's have a little leniency with shenanigans out there. Don't ask how I know.
 
Also practice U-turns, with emphasis on looking where you want to go and keeping your feet off the ground.
 
U turns, circles and figure 8s at low speed with emphasis on working towards smaller diameters. Along with learning your brakes.
 
Spartan925 said:
Also practice U-turns, with emphasis on looking where you want to go and keeping your feet off the ground.
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Oh man,yeah. This was the one area I had most trouble with during the course. I did pretty well everywhere else, but I had trouble managing slow, sharp U Turns without the aid of my feets. Thanks for the reminder!
 
I'd say, get to the Alameda Sheriff school for civilians and all the Doc Wong free clinics.

The parking lot exercises are important, but you need so much more...
 
R9698_d_2.jpg
 
One drill that really helps you get the handle on the clutch and friction zone is to master leaving a dead stop in first then move on to doing the same thing in second and finally in third without stalling the bike.

Clutch control/feel is a huge part of getting the most out of relatively slow turning drills in a parking lot.
 
ooh I like that one
 
dowlinginchico said:
Hard braking #1. Learn your bike. Learn how to brake hard without laying it down. Arnold Industrial street in Concord. LEO's have a little leniency with shenanigans out there. Don't ask how I know.
Click to expand...

Protip: "laying it down" = crashing. If you have time to "lay 'er down", you have time to brake/maneuver, etc. Unless you're Colin Edwards on a flaming Ape, your chances of having to "lay it down" are minute.

As a n00b, you'll get lots of different info, often conflicting, from different sources. Take it in, use what works, toss what doesn't. I know it's old, but Twist of the Wrist II is a useful book. Helped me.

Take classes, listen to other riders and plain ass just get out and ride.
 
Take some cones or something else to mark off an area.

Place a cone where the bike will be when you start, another where you will apply brakes and then three other cones.

Practice accelerating to approximately the same speed when you hit the second cone, (something that feels comfortable for you...adjust the first "start" cone accordingly), make a bunch of passes and brake with the rear brake first and then use a cone to mark you "best rear brake only stopping place."

Do the same but the next bunch of passes using only the front brake, (don't snatch the brake as you apply pressure apply progressively), do this a bunch of times and place the second cone where your best "front brake only" stopping place is, (it should be much shorter than the rear brake only cone).

Lastly do the same using both brakes and mark that position.

When using the rear only you may find it easy at first to lock up the rear which will help you learn where the point of lockup is.

When using the front only if you "chirp" the front tire be sure to partially release and then reapply the brake so as not to slide the front.

It's easy to save a locked up rear but not so much a locked up front.

Have fun.
 
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These are all great suggestions, thanks! GAJ — I'll definitely be giving these a run, especially the braking ones. I was able to start from a dead stop in second (and also from first without using the throttle) but I never started from a dead stop in third. I'll be sure to work my way up to that.

Thanks again, all, these are all great (and keep 'em coming ;))!
 
Vagabond Vivant said:
These are all great suggestions, thanks! GAJ — I'll definitely be giving these a run, especially the braking ones. I was able to start from a dead stop in second (and also from first without using the throttle) but I never started from a dead stop in third. I'll be sure to work my way up to that.

Thanks again, all, these are all great (and keep 'em coming ;))!
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What sort of bike are you getting?

You may want to take a friend with you just in case you drop it at slow speed...which you will certainly do several times within your first few months. :laughing

EDIT: Also use the cones to set up a slalom course to test your countersteering confidence; they have to be reasonably far enough apart so you are able to achieve 30 or so.
 
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Great! Find a good safe spot to practice. I use our local college's parking lot for that. I'd say start practicing what you know and have been taught first.

Take it easy and progress as you feel comfortable. As soon as you have difficulty, cut it back and make it slightly easier. It's the fastest way to learn, go slow. ;-)
 
The pointers above are good, but I'm going to add don't look at the ground when performing the exercises/drills that have been previously mentioned. Looking at the ground will hinder your skill development.
 
Consider doing a class similar to Z2 trackdays Roadrider 2.0. I tried to practice drills like you want to do and ended up practicing some wrong things. It was not that I read some bad advice/instructions and followed it. But more not fully understanding what the writer meant. Can't beat having an instructor who knows correct way watching you and correcting you from practicing/ingraining the wrong habits.

What I gained from that class was learning the proper drills to practice. It is only really helpful if you continue to practice regularly though.

disclaimer: I am a below average rider with not much experience
 
Before you go practicing a bunch on your own, I highly recommend taking a class and doing it with a friend if possible. It's hard to self-evaluate when practicing on your own, that's why classes are nice for any skill level. Having someone who understands the technique watch you and advise you of what you are doing wrong is the best way to to improve, otherwise you might find yourself practicing the WRONG way and making bad habits.

After the class, you and your friend can go to a parking lot and critique each other on the exercises from the class and that will be practicing the right way.
 
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