07-29-2016, 10:41 AM
As stated in my new member post, the CB11 is my first bike. As in, first ever. Naturally, there is a learning curve to climb and here is one early lesson among many that have come my way: I was commuting to work and riding just a bit cocky this morning for no earned reason and I came around a corner to a yellow light. I didn't realize how fast I was traveling until I hit the brakes, and my front brake a little too hard at that. My bike slipped on the plastic white arrow in the road and I watched over my right shoulder as my rear wheel began to catch up with the front. I noticed that the driver in the intersection waiting to make the left had noticed the trouble I was in and, thankfully, was no longer interested in beating me through the light. I released the brakes and hit the throttle and my bike straitened up and glided through the intersection. This was my first real close call and I was shaken, but made it to work unscathed. In the parking lot of the office I grabbed for the brake instead of the clutch while parking and ran away from danger as my bike slammed to the ground. I rode home cautiously with a bent brake lever, and that weekend went to work because as they say on tv, a man never lets another work on his motorcycle. I'm no mechanic, but I think I learned to love working on my motorcycle through this simple task. I know I learned to pull over after a close call.