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I got bike fever for the first time in over 30 years last Spring when I read an article in Popular Mechanics about the Hypermotard. For years, even without "the fever", I'd stop the car & look at Ducatis parked on the street - drove my wife crazy. But I had the mistaken impression that they cost $20-30K new. So for almost a year I tried every tactic that ever worked to rid me of other obsessions: going to the dealer; riding private parties' bikes for sale; and most dangerously, cruising CraigsList.
I bought an '04 ST4s ABS in April that I first emailed about last December. Flew to LA to check it out & what a rush! Even though I promised myself & even told the seller "no freeways", I ended up on a sort of on-ramp on a Sunday morning & think I saw 90 in 3rd.
Back to reality, I decided I would do this the safest way possible: gear, practice, & training. Got a new full-face helmet, CE armor jacket & pants, & signed up for a beginner class with a retired police force motorcycle trainer.
I taught myself to ride as a kid & did it without a license. The day after I bought my 1st street bike, I called in sick to work, practiced riding all morning & passed the driver's test in the afternoon. I never had any instruction or even information beyond what I could glean out of Dirt Biker and the like.
Just completed the 2-day MSF course yesterday & couldn't be more impressed. Decided that my day-glo yellow jacket isn't enough & ordered one of those annoying "wig-wag" headlight controllers, a 24-LED brake/stop light & annoying controller for it, & brighter LED bulbs for the turn signals. Only the legally blind will overlook me.
But the most important safety move is my commitment to put what I learned last weekend into action. I have friends in their 70s that have ridden since high school and have never had an accident. That is no accident.
Will I imagine bonehead moves by all the cage drivers around me? You bet your a**. Will I crack the throttle once a day when the road is clear and so is my mind? Same response.
I'm not disappointed I lost a vital part of my life for half of it, just grateful I found it again.
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