Either get some training to overcome your fears or sell the bike, no need to whinge.Use the money to buy a bassboat or something. Dont kill yourself trying to do something you cant or dont want to do.

 

Take the advice of your fellow riders - take a course AND buy the "Ride Like a Pro" DVD - watch the DVD over and over. Put pads on your engine guards and then go out and practice slow turns and maneuvers in a parking lot - do it until you are very comfortable with scraping your boards. I scrape my boards on most rides at some point. I love cornering and these bikes do it very very well. A certain amount of caution (fear) is natural - too much and you're a danger to everyone out there...
Good Luck

 

I would try and buy another dirt bike (one with some weight) and ride in the dirt...get comfortable with the bike moving around under you, so you don't freak out. Many times my bikes has wiggled under me on a turn because of a little dirt or sand. However, this will not prevent you from going down if you're going to fast for conditions...but I think it will give you some confidence. I learned to ride a bike in the dirt before I rode on the black top. I think it's the best way to learn. In my yonger days, we would find the twisty roads and ride them hard and if we didn't scare ourselves a little, we were going too slow. Find a twisty road and keep riding it over and over, so you know the turns like the back of you hand...you have to learn what your bike can handle and what you can handle. It sounds like you don't have any idea what you or your bike can handle...that's why you're riding around with this fear...not good. I have a new07 RKC (my first HD) and I was suprised how well it handles...it is not a sport bike by any means, but it does handle all of my favorite roads where I live. BE CAREFULL OUT THERE!

 

Ditto on the training - start with the MSF course and then practice, practice, practice. "Healthy fear" of the machine, the conditions, and the obstacles keeps us alive.

 

MSF course and lots of pratice man, it come with time experiance and practice, i was the same way when i started riding

 

i want to thank all of you guys for your input. i will be checking into the classes here localy.
as for giving up the bike, i dont think so, aint happening, i love my bike, my wife loves the bike. since nov we have put over 5000 miles on it together. may not sound like alot to some of you or a lot to some others. i am comfortable taking the corners more and more. went to leesburg bike fest and the "ride like a pro" guys were there and watched their demonstration and i learned a lot. especially u turns in tight area. shot that is almost a breeze now. its just the higher speeds of corners. the low speeds are fine. it will take time i am certain. someone mentioned ride a dirt bike and take corners. well i have a nice scar from riding a dirt bike and taking corners to fast. it will be ok i am certain.

 

I will second this Bryan. You havent had that King for that long. In time it become part of you. Just give it time and do some other rides in the mean time. There are a lot of great rides in this country. The Dragon will still be there when you are ready.

 

i just picked up (not literally) an '07 ultra and i feel the same way about turns. but then again i only have 1100 miles on it. before this bike, like 20 yrs ago, i owned a honda 750 set up for road and took many trips on it. i also had a 250 yamaha dirt which i played in the dirt with, just messing around. i know that riding the dirt bike really helped me to learn how to handle a bike in a lot of situations. i was even know to have taken the 750 on some dirt trails. with the 750 i remember taking it out in the spring andnot taking the turns as aggresively as i had in the fall. as we went thru spring, summer and into fall, i was back dragging the pegs on theturns. this ultra, however, is twice the weight of the 750. i am also 20yrs older.so i ama long way off from feeling real comfortable. and i have the same thoughts of hitting gravel in the turn or slipping on some slippery spot or something. but i know that with time and practice, i will be back to ridinglike i should.

 

Do what PhilM said:

If you wuold like to learn and get better, I would offer the following suggestions:
1) MSF Class
2)Buy Ride like a Pro video
3) Watch it, watch it, watch it.
4) PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And to add to that...

5) Ride alone EVERY day for a month, no matter if its only 20 minutes to quickly bring up the learning and confidence curve with no outside pressure. Some people only ride on the weekends and such. How long did you drive a car before it felt second nature? After years of not riding, wind was my demon for a while. Just immersion ride and one day it often just isn't a problem anymore.

6) Find other skilled riders who understand and know of your dilemma and will sandwich you in between them while riding and then you do what the skilled rider in front of you does. You will get more confident following someone who knows what they are doing. If they are not falling over, neither will you unless you do something different. I said a skilled rider...not just someone that you know who rides!

7) Don't take a passenger until you are absolutely comfortable on that bike! Passengers (and how they sometimes react while riding behind you) can change the dynamics of any ride in a heartbeat. You have to be absolutely confident in your abilities before complicating your ride with other people and more weight. You owe it to your passenger also. They trust you with their life.

Thats it!

This Dragon you all speak of, who the heck lets these trucks on this road? Why don't you all just push the thing over the side when they get stuck. Serves em' right. And I thought that I had problems with the crotch rockets crossing the line on Highway 9. Geez!

 

thank you. this explains me