As a new Rider I have no delusions of being an expert. I understand that as a new rider you have to stay vigilant at all times making sure you don’t take things for granted. I hope that by sharing my experience you may learn from my mistake.

I have been riding since September of last year and have gone approximately 2500 miles.  One of my difficulties is keeping control at slow speeds.  I have worked on this by going into parking lots and doing maneuvers at slow speeds. I find it amazing that a large motorcycle (Electra Glide Ultra Classic) handles so well.  Now I have another issue. My driveway is gravel, slopped, and curved.  I take my time and make sure I go slow enough and don’t panic (which makes me go tense and thus unable to turn). I think in the time I have been riding I have done fairly good at coming in and out of my garage, and riding on the gravel. Well one day I was heading out to do some running around, I came out of the garage, and my mind went blank. I did not get on the back brake as usual and panicked.  Which made me go tense and I was unable to turn.  I ended up heading for the left side of my driveway towards a creek and tree. Well just before hitting the tree I managed to stop, but the bike fell over twisting and trapping my ankle under it… (yep broken) What happened? I think I must have gotten complacent and stopped being vigilant. As a new rider yes you must relax, but do not get too comfortable where you forget what you are doing like I did.

I would like to thank Alan for sharing his experience.  If you have an experience you would like to share, please e-mail Reine at reineknobbe@gmail.com