Advice and suggestions for curves and Twisties?

[Easy Rider]

If you're having to work to keep the Spyder stable in gusty winds or on uneven roadways there is something wrong somewhere, either with how you're handling it or the steering of the Spyder.

I'm pretty sure it is the operator, at least most of it.

After riding on 2 wheels for a bit over 50 years, a really LOT of things become automatic.
You don't realize how much until you get on something that has an entirely different steering "geometry" and stability requirements........like a riding lawn mower with steering "bars" or a motorcycle with 3 wheels.

You CAN teach an old dog new tricks but if you first have to UN-learn some old tricks it becomes MUCH more difficult.
I think I need more miles on the Spyder......and to finally get rid of my Vulcan and stay off of 2 wheels during the transition.
Younger riders may be able to do both but I think it's pretty obvious that I can NOT.

[UtahPete]

You CAN teach an old dog new tricks but if you first have to UN-learn some old tricks it becomes MUCH more difficult.
I think I need more miles on the Spyder......and to finally get rid of my Vulcan and stay off of 2 wheels during the transition. Younger riders may be able to do both but I think it's pretty obvious that I can NOT.

Well said. Let us know how it goes.

[jerrydonna]

How long have you been riding.......a Spyder......on two wheels ??

Despite the protests of some here, the handling of the Spyder is VERY quick (twichy) and is entirely different than a 2 wheeled machine.

I came from about 50 years on 2 wheels......and now have about 700 miles on the Spyder.
Some days, my riding is smooth and steady; other days it feels like it wants to jump off the road every time I need to "steer".

I think time and experience are your friends.
I also think that no two people are exactly alike and you NEED to ride your own ride.

I suspect that some folks never get completely comfortable with the different feel.

Take a ride up to Skyline Drive. It is only 35mph, but, plenty of gentle curves to practice on. For further excitement, just run up and down RT 211 on either side of the Drive a few times. 35mph on the east side, but 45mph on the west side and plenty of tight turns. Plus, the scenery ain't too bad either........

Most of us have moved on from two wheel to this three wheel cruiser.
At 56 we have had our spyder 7 months, my Vulcan 900 still sits in the garage waiting to be started. I am the last of my brothers to leave two wheels. Harley trike, and a Goldwinger.
My wife and I just just spent two weeks in Maggie Valley with my harley brother and took all the best known routes they the mountains and valleys. We aren't speed freaks any longer and though I tried hard to relax and enjoy the rides. I was always at the end of day thanking back a few years when we did the same roads on two wheels and how really more relaxed I was.
Don't get me wrong the spyder 2012 rt limited did very well up against both brothers trikes (Honda-Harley) as they could not really keep up if I was leading and made it a point to out run them turn to turn. They both understood what I was feeling, tired arms....
They had moved to 3 wheels years (5), and had been telling me it wasn't the same...... And when shopping to to pick up a three wheeler they both loved the bike they rode but thought if I picked up a used Spyder I would once again get my WIFE back in the saddle also.

A week from now its going to be a little colder but we will back in Maggie Valley to meet one brother/wife to drive blue ridge and skyline drive from south up.

thanks for the great posts on this web site all together it helps

Jerry Donna

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

I'm pretty sure it is the operator, at least most of it.

Thanks for the response. I was concerned you might come back with some self-defensive argument that it has to be the bike and not the rider! Attitude is all important. When one is open to the idea that things are just different it is a lot easier to learn new ways. You are there!

After riding on 2 wheels for a bit over 50 years, a really LOT of things become automatic.
You don't realize how much until you get on something that has an entirely different steering "geometry" and stability requirements........like a riding lawn mower with steering "bars" or a motorcycle with 3 wheels.

Let me digress for a bit. My youngest brother bought a HD trike a few years ago. He said dealers told him that the riders who had the most difficult time making a transition were those who had spent years and years riding only on two wheels. In another case our local GW chapter director told of a couple guys who went to buy trikes, Hondas I think. The dealer suggested they slowly ride around the parking lot to get used to them. Both of them said they had ridden motorcycles for years and didn't need any freakin parking lot training! Promptly, before they got out of the parking lot one ran into a building wall and the other into a ditch!

You CAN teach an old dog new tricks but if you first have to UN-learn some old tricks it becomes MUCH more difficult.
I think I need more miles on the Spyder......and to finally get rid of my Vulcan and stay off of 2 wheels during the transition.
Younger riders may be able to do both but I think it's pretty obvious that I can NOT.

There very well may be more benefit to staying off the 2 wheels for a few weeks than any of us realizes! Some here have commented that they are able to switch back and forth and the proper habits automatically take over, but I don't know how long it took for them to get to that place or how long they stayed off the two wheels while learning the Spyder.

For me, the transition was short, about 200 - 500 miles, but there were two big reasons for that. I knew it would be different based on the comments above, and I had a fair amount of experience riding an ATV. But I also am somewhat adaptable. I took to my CPAP machine in two nights. My older brother fought it for 6 to 9 months. So maybe DNA plays a part, who knows? And for whatever impact it may have been, I was ready to leave two wheels and not go back. I might ride something like a Honda 90 around a field, but a Goldwing, no.

I don't recall what sort of experience you've had with ATVs, if you have mentioned it even. On a two wheeler your body and the bike are pretty much a single unit, moving together, leaning and going up and down as one. On an ATV your body is connected to the machine with flexible joints. As you corner you move your body one way or the other. As you ride over rocks and depressions on the trail the machine moves around under your body. Here's an idea. The next time you get on the Spyder think of it as a three wheel ATV, not a three wheel motorcycle. That may help your brain make the change! You know an ATV isn't the same as a two wheeler. Instill that thought in your head when you get on your Spyder.

In a few miles, or a few hundred miles at most, it will all be second nature.

[Easy Rider]

my Vulcan 900 still sits in the garage waiting to be started.

Sad. I have one too. Best bike I've ever owned, by a long shot.
Started mine and took a short ride a couple of days ago.
It goes up for sale next week.
Somebody is going to get a REALLY good deal.

[Easy Rider]

I don't recall what sort of experience you've had with ATVs, if you have mentioned it even.

None. Probably would have been helpful.
No snowmobile of jet ski either.

[ARtraveler]

Originally Posted by jerrydonna my Vulcan 900 still sits in the garage waiting to be started.

Easy Rider:
"Sad. I have one too. Best bike I've ever owned, by a long shot.
Started mine and took a short ride a couple of days ago.
It goes up for sale next week.
Somebody is going to get a REALLY good deal."

RE: Vulcan 900's I recently bought another one. Traded the previous one off to get Linda her new 2011 . Missed two wheels. Got the hip fixed and now good to go again.

Per the above discussion: A whole different ride from the . Done enough of the two different types, that I don't find any problems. I remember which has the clutch and handbrake and which does not--so far anyway. After five years, that first clutch shift was as smooth as butter. Some things, we just don't forget. And I am glad.

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

None. Probably would have been helpful.
No snowmobile of jet ski either.

As you know by now many of us on here had ATV, snowmobile, or jet ski experience before getting on a Spyder. So of course we said the Spyder handles a lot like an ATV. Now, in contrast, when you get a chance to ride an ATV for the first time you are going to say, after a few miles, "Wow, this thing handles a lot like a Spyder!"

[ncmedic]

I know that the rider's experience level plays a huge part, but just generally, how does the Spyder stack up to the GW or a Harley on the twisties? Is it about the same, a total dog, or somewhere in between?

Assume riders of equal experience on both machines.

Thanks!

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

I know that the rider's experience level plays a huge part, but just generally, how does the Spyder stack up to the GW or a Harley on the twisties? Is it about the same, a total dog, or somewhere in between?

Assume riders of equal experience on both machines.

Thanks!

I would say about the same, if not better!

[UtahPete]

I know that the rider's experience level plays a huge part, but just generally, how does the Spyder stack up to the GW or a Harley on the twisties? Is it about the same, a total dog, or somewhere in between? Assume riders of equal experience on both machines. Thanks!

Are you asking about Spyder vs those bikes in the trike configuration or the 2-wheel configuration?

[ncmedic]

That's great news, because my Wing was awesome in the twisties for a big bike.

The Harley, not so much. LOL

[asp125]

A Spyder would be hard pressed to keep up with this GW

[mark4Jesus]

A Spyder would be hard pressed to keep up with this GW

Dude knows how to ride his Wing!

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

Dude knows how to ride his Wing!

One of the pitches made for GW is its a road bike with sport handling. On something like Deals Gap I think Nanny is more likely to prevent running as fast as a Goldwing rather than the bike design, given comparable rider skill levels. After all, there is more rubber to road contact with a Spyder. I've had my front tires squeal on corners as they slide a bit. Don't think I would want a GW front tire to squeal from sliding! A couple of months ago I was leading 3 or 4 GW 1800 riders on some curvey roads and left them quite a ways behind. I don't know if the first one of them was being cautious, just didn't like to push it, or didn't feel safe riding faster but after awhile I slowed way down so they could catch up. Since this was a GWRRA function I didn't think it would have been appropriate to ask. GWRRA stresses safety above all else, and says to ride at the speed the slowest rider is comfortable with.

[cruisinTX]

I know that the rider's experience level plays a huge part, but just generally, how does the Spyder stack up to the GW or a Harley on the twisties? Is it about the same, a total dog, or somewhere in between?

Assume riders of equal experience on both machines.

Thanks!

Let me start off saying this is with very limited experience on a Spyder, so my opinion could change as I get better on it. For now though, there is no way I can get through twisty roads on a Spyder even remotely as fast as I can on any one of my oilheads. Keep in mind though, I have over 435K miles on motorcycles compared to only about a 1000 on a Spyder. In another 5 or 6 thousand miles, I might have a totally different take on it.

[CarolinaSpyderRyder]

I've yet to meet a cruiser I can't keep up with or leave behind. 27,000 spider miles though, for about the first thousand, I didn't really know what my Spyder was actually capable of.

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

I've yet to meet a cruiser I can't keep up with or leave behind. 27,000 spider miles though, for about the first thousand, I didn't really know what my Spyder was actually capable of.

For me, limited guts and lack of daring keep me from pushing my Spyder to its full capability! I can't say I relish the sound of tires squealing on a turn!

[trucker1]

Some days you can ride it like you stole it. Others you need to ride like your paying for it. Ride what feels comfortable to you. Just don't over ride your limits. Pain hurts. Body parts are hard to replace. Some you can't. Just enjoy it. Ride safe my friend and ride often. Happy trails.

[cruisinTX]

I've yet to meet a cruiser I can't keep up with or leave behind. 27,000 spider miles though, for about the first thousand, I didn't really know what my Spyder was actually capable of.

Please don't take this as a challenge or in any way doubt of your abilities, but I truly would like for someone with your kind of experience to come ride with me through some twisty roads. I think if I saw it actually happen, I would feel very much better about a Spyder some day being as much fun for me as my two-wheelers are.

as just a side note: The BMW R1200C is no ordinary cruiser. I usually surprise most sport-tourers and sport bike owners with how well I can keep up with them when on my C.

[mark4Jesus]

One of the pitches made for GW is its a road bike with sport handling. On something like Deals Gap I think Nanny is more likely to prevent running as fast as a Goldwing rather than the bike design, given comparable rider skill levels. After all, there is more rubber to road contact with a Spyder. I've had my front tires squeal on corners as they slide a bit. Don't think I would want a GW front tire to squeal from sliding! A couple of months ago I was leading 3 or 4 GW 1800 riders on some curvey roads and left them quite a ways behind. I don't know if the first one of them was being cautious, just didn't like to push it, or didn't feel safe riding faster but after awhile I slowed way down so they could catch up. Since this was a GWRRA function I didn't think it would have been appropriate to ask. GWRRA stresses safety above all else, and says to ride at the speed the slowest rider is comfortable with.

I've owned a couple of 1200 Gold Wings. They handle very well in the curves. Most folks that ride GW's aren't into riding like the guy in the video.

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

I've owned a couple of 1200 Gold Wings. They handle very well in the curves. Most folks that ride GW's aren't into riding like the guy in the video.

Yeah, the one time I scraped a peg with my 1800 it scared the crap out of me.

[trucker1]

Yes yellow wolf knows how to ride the gap. He use to take videos of riders on the dragon. Either from the front or the rear of that wing. You just had to keep up with him. He's a really cool guy. I think now he sets on the side and takes pictures. He could probably ride it in reverse if he had to.

[cmbspyderrss]

Whoa Nelly. That Yellow GW was insane but don't care how sticky your tires are or how good a rider you are when that steps out there is no saving it and hopefully no car is coming the other way when it does.

[Peter Aawen]

...... Either from the front or the rear of that wing. ..... He could probably ride it in reverse if he had to.

What, ride his GW thru there in reverse?!? That might be some skill, but with the reverse on GW's it'd surely take him most of a year!









I reckon I'd like to see that!!