My suggestion would be to take a rider safety course. There you will learn good fundamentals. You will gain confidence and learn the limitations of both yourself and the bike. It's usually done over a weekend and well worth the time and effort. Be safe and keep ridin'

 

+1 on that intermediate course suggestion, I was going to say the same thing.

Personally I think that's a lot of bike for someone fresh out of MSF class to start out on.

Get some practice in an empty parking lot as suggested.

 

That bike is too big for a novice. Why be scared shitless every time you get on it? Just my opinion but, first take a MSF course and learn some basics, then spend some money on a used Honda or Kawasaki 250 and ride it for a couple of months and get the basics down and get some confidence. When you sell it you'll be money ahead considering the repairs and med bills from dropping or crashing the big bike. Good luck.

 

even after passing a course, some riders find that it is just not for them. practice and study up is all I can say.

I was a self taught rider- and learned in my 30's that I';d been doing it wrong- ...cause I took the advanced course. It made me an instantly better rider.


aside from controlling your vehicle you must also be better at assessing what other drivers are doing



I'd suggest getting another ride that will not kill your wallet- a mid weight bike- to practice on


more than once I have seen new riders who scared themselves, caved to family pressure or otherwise decided to get out of it

this is the same advice I gave my own Brother...who at age 60 decided to buy a motorcycle--- he is a fantastic driver- not so much a motorcyclist.
I loaned him my mid weight BMW and on that easy to ride bike, he decided it was not for him.

Mike

 

+1 on too big of a bike. You probable should find someone with a smaller bike that you could practice on before continuing riding on the SG.

 

I would look into a course like "Ride like a Pro" or a similar course. In our area there is a civilian course taught by the sheriff's department. It's similar to the techniques taught to the motorcycle police, but not as intense. With practice and good instruction you will improve your skills and confidence. In the course I took by the Sheriff's department I was able to rent a ex-cop bike (Kawi 1000). I'm glad I rented because I dropped it a dozen times throughout the day long course.

 

Congrats on your new ride. Get the motorlessons book emailed to you, study it front to back, get some small cones or cut tennis ***** in half, find a big empty parking lot near you and practice practice practice. Don't venture out into congested traffic until you are comfortable, take your time and it will come to you. After you are comfortable I suggest an experienced riders course or get the ride like a pro CD, a 5" girl throwing a bagger around like nothing, watch it over and over, practice practice practice, it will come to you before you know it and you will be whipping your bagger like nothing without thinking about it. Hurry up and post some pics of your new sled!Good luck, stay safe.

 

I'm thinking that you are fine at speed, it is the low speed manuvers that give you problems. My advise - spend some time in an empty parking lot. Do not be intimidated by your bike. Confidence and skill will come with practice.

 

Good advice on the courses. Take the MSF course AGAIN.

Always keep your vision up and look where you want to go. Don't look down.

Take off the saddlebags, wrap the saddlebag supports and highway bar in foam (like pipe insulaton) and tape it and then try the parking lot maneuvers.

Wear gloves, FF helmet and body armor jacket (and pants if possible) when practicing (or better, all the time).

 

Lot of great advice here (probably better than the advice of your buddies and salesman, BTW). I would say DO NOT sell your FLHX. If you can pick up a small bike to toss around and get comfortable on go for it. Otherwise, as discussed, strip your bike down, pad it up, gear up, and hit an empty parking lot. You will gain a lot of experience in the parking lot and with that experience comes confidence.

I also recommend the MSF Experienced Riders Course. It's very similar to the BRC, just at a little higher speed.

In addition to keeping your head up and looking where you want to go, consider your lane position when making those challenging 90 degree turns. Much like they taught you in the BRC, you should enter turns in the "outside" of your lane (opposite of direction of turn), be on the inside of your lane at the apex, and exit towards the outside of the lane. Don't do this in the rain though because the oil patch in the center gets "pretty slippery."

Applying that technique to your slow 90 degree turns, position yourself on the side of your lane opposite the direction of the turn. As you make the turn, look at the outside of the lane you're turning into and aim for that. Right turns are probably tougher than left turns for you because they are tighter and you don't go forward much before turning. Using this method will minimize the tightness of that right turn.

Good luck and ride safe!