Hello all I am just starting out on this forum (and biking). At the end of Sept I went on holiday, came back and with the money I had left I went and bought jacket trousers helmet and gloves. On 20 Nov got a heads up about a Triumph Sprint ST 1050, 2006 plate with 11000 miles, full luggage, Trident carbon and titanium backbox and in beautiful nick. I put a deposit down there and then. CBT Booked 20 Nov - Obtained 22 Nov Booked theory test 22 Nov - passed 24 Nov. Booked Mod1 on 24Nov and passed on 2 Dec. Booked Mod 2 on 2 Dec and passed 9 Dec. Rushed through Road tax insurance and finance on 11 Dec and brought my baby home. Now I am commuting on it and looking forward to long hot summer days. I am always interested on hearing from people with a similar level of noobiness and hints and tips from veterans. well that is my noob story, Seasons Greetings to all.
You have a great bike in the Sprint, I had mine for six years. Now for some safety advice, you are very green and the bike is far more capable than your current skill level. Please do ride very carefully and book youself into any riding course you can find in your area, Police are a good starting point as many forces have a training session there is also the IAM, TOMCC is a national Triumph biker club, check out them for your local group plenty of great advice from seasoned bikers. Get plenty of safe riding under your belt and then next Summer a long tour will no doubt beckon Heated grips are a useful addition at this time of year if your ST does not have them or heated gloves are an alternative, being an old guy I need to use both when I ride in the Winter as its the back of my fingers that feel the cold more. Always lock your baby up with a disclock when leaving her unattended and carry visor cleaner and a microcloth. My ST or probably me had a range of 160 miles before I need to stop for a pit stop and tank fill. The only issue I had with the bike was the swing arm bearing which had two recalls so make sure yours is OK and has no play in it. Adjusting the chain is a pain as the adjustor design and spanner in the toolkit is a poor design and fiddly to slacken/tighten. The absolutely worst thing about the bike is the lights which are next to useless, everything else is brilliant when you are capable of handling the torque and power of the engine you will love the delivery, but do not be in a rush to max out its performance Enjoy the ST
Hi and welcome to the forum well done on passing your test You will only gain more experience the more you ride but do take care on those frosty mornings
Hi welcome and congrats on passing your test. Great advice from Collamb, my advice through the winter is if's snow and ice outside leave the bike parked up. Take care and enjoy the bike:upyeah:
An impressive start, congratulations :smile: As Col has said, take it easy and look for extra training as soon as you can (probably easier said than done at this time of year but I remember my first course with the police was in the middle of January)
welcome to the forum best advice I can give from 38 years riding is to go out on your own for a while at your own pace, it's easy to be tempted to ride beyond your experience when in a group. once you are confident and meet up with fellow riders make sure you know where they will end up then you can get there with out the pressure of keeping up if they are quicker than you.
I thought i was impulsive :upyeah: I commute all year around too....Its freezing and horrible when wet but the car just bores me. Take your time keep on top of your tyres and enjoy....Last years summer was amazing and it will soon be here again. Good luck, stay safe.
Very sage advice from Col. Take care and enjoy your motorcycle. As my old instructor said to me so many years ago, "There are bold motorcyclists and old motorcyclists, but very few old bold motorcyclists.":wink:
Thank you all for the welcome and advice. I should probably explain that I used to ride 30 odd years ago before starting a family. However I was fearless, young(sighs) and could be described as wreckless as I had no licence or insurance. I describe myself willingly as a novice as 30 years off the saddle and 30 years of technological advancement make riding now a completely different experience so I look forward to sharing my journey and any and all words of wisdom. Ride safe Noob
Hi and welcome to the forum from another noob. Passed my test in May this year and bought the Bonneville 2 days later - just build up your skill level carefully, especially at this time of year with the frosty mornings and slippery road surfaces. Good advice as ever from other members on the forum.
Hi and welcome to the forum. Best advice is enjoy your riding and never try and force your self to keep up with anyone you are riding with. Cheers Steve
hiya ,I dont know what area you're from but Bikesafe is always worth a go with the local feds , and they will give good advice and point you in the direction of local IAM people . Best of luck for your biking future
