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The Eagle has landed

mrwog

mrwog

New member
Picked up my 014 ST Limited on Fri. evening and the ride home was interesting to say the least. After 40 years of riding motorcycle with many many track days under my belt it was/is very hard to stop counter-steering. Sat I put 150 miles on it and it took about 100 miles to start to get the joke on how to ride this thing and on Sunday put 163 miles and by then it was really settling in. It's amazing to me that even the slightest input into the bars will make it react and sometimes it's quite a reaction so one must figure out just the right amount of input into the bars it takes in different situations. Any way I have much time to figure it's likes and dislikes in the handling department but so far it's growing on me in a HUGE way and it's a sweet machine.
I put the BajaRon sway-bar and the SmooothSpyder backrest on yesterday and heading out in a bit to give it a run. Only 43 degrees at the moment so this old fool will wait till the temps jump up a bit....lol

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Congrats

mrwog said:
Picked up my 014 ST Limited on Fri. evening and the ride home was interesting to say the least. After 40 years of riding motorcycle with many many track days under my belt it was/is very hard to stop counter-steering. Sat I put 150 miles on it and it took about 100 miles to start to get the joke on how to ride this thing and on Sunday put 163 miles and by then it was really settling in. It's amazing to me that even the slightest input into the bars will make it react and sometimes it's quite a reaction so one must figure out just the right amount of input into the bars it takes in different situations. Any way I have much time to figure it's likes and dislikes in the handling department but so far it's growing on me in a HUGE way and it's a sweet machine.
I put the BajaRon sway-bar and the SmooothSpyder backrest on yesterday and heading out in a bit to give it a run. Only 43 degrees at the moment so this old fool will wait till the temps jump up a bit....lol

411143027.jpg

411143021.jpg

411143017.jpg
Click to expand...

Congratulations on the new Spyder. I too am going through this learning curve and slowly getting there. I still loved my Harley and Goldwing but had to realize that I could no long handle the weight comfortably.
 
Congratulations..!!

that is one sweet machine...:2thumbs: your going to be happy with the change in handling with BajaRons swaybar. Once you get comfortable and relaxed you will be doubling that mileage....:thumbup:
 
Chupaca said:
that is one sweet machine...:2thumbs: your going to be happy with the change in handling with BajaRons swaybar. Once you get comfortable and relaxed you will be doubling that mileage....:thumbup:
Click to expand...

All my secret roads in the hinterlands are destroyed from this winter so I'm stuck for now doing more open roads for now with less damage.
 
They quicker you release the death grip on the handlebars the more control you will have. Enjoy the new ride

Cruzr Joe
 
Welcome!

I had similar issues with the Spyder when I first rode one. I did a Can-Am demo ride in 2010. Had no problem with the obstacle course that BRP setup to "test" you before going out on the road. Once on the road (Lake Lanier Islands Park, north of Atlanta, GA), my lizard brain kept yelling "COUNTER STEER." Well, the hands would counter steer then the rest of the brain would say, "gee, we are headed the wrong way, steer the other way" Needless to say, I had a severe Rider Induced Wobble going on. Got off the RT and said that I hated it.

Two years later, I purchased a sidecar rig in an attempt to get SWMBO out on the road as her hip was in need of replacement and she did not feel safe on two wheel (hip pain affected ability to mount bike, hold it up, and to engage the rear brake). She like the sidecar but found it wasn't the same. She, too, had tested the RT in 2010 but she had liked the ride so we started looking for a spyder last summer.

She bought her RTLtd 3 weeks before she had her hip replaced. I did the test ride and rode it home from the dealer. The sidecar training directly correlated to the spyder. Steer, don't counter steer. Loose grip to let the suspension do its job. Learn the pitfalls of an off camber, right hand turn, though, with the spyder, it's any off camber turn. The two items that don't translate well to the spyder are flying the chair and braking/acceleration dynamics.

The Do's and Dont's stickied at the top of the Gereral Sub-forum are very useful. If you would like or want a different approach, I would highly recommend the David Hough book "Driving a Sidecar Outfit." The book gives you much of the same info as does the Do/Don't thread, it just lays it out in a different sequence. The rig dynamics are a bit different but principles taught give you the same basis, retrain your brain to drive the rig and learn how it responds to different road conditions.

Oh, and welcome to the family.
 
:congrats: on your new ST. A beautiful looking :ani29:. Looks like you are eating up that 500 mile "learning curve."

The lighter your grip, the more control you will seem to have. I tell others to pretend there are eggs between your gloves and the handgrips. Do not break the eggs. Push/pull works nicely on turns.

Cornering tip: For less "g's," plant the foot (on peg or floorboard) on the outside of the turn, grip the tank with your knees, and lean slightly into the turn. It is amazing how the "g's" will just seem to go away.
 
For me at about 1500 miles I found the sweet spot

After 46 years two wheeling it was tough

Thought cruise was worthless
Couldnt get a drink of water
& was a bit stressful

All that is in the past
Even the (first five mil) jitters are gone if u kno what I mean vern
 
I put another 88 miles on today and did much testing with rider technique. Baja sway bar was a good improvement and probably better as I figure this thing out. I did notice using my knee for support in the corners helped and lightning up my grip and also relaxing my shoulders and dropping my arms down helped allot instead of having my arms out straight and leaning forward as Im use to on my bikes. Lots of motorcycle habits need to be deleted from my brain for sure and I'll have it figured out in short order as its better each time out.
 
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