Third Day Of Rider’s Edge Course Done

With the rain that we had yesterday, the temperature was was great. Today, on the other hand, was uncomfortably hot. Definitely a day to be playing in the sprinklers, or staying indoors, or doing anything but finishing the last day of the Rider's Edge motorcycle safety course.

Everyone was a bit anxious, including me. From what I heard, some people didn't sleep much the night before, worrying about the written test that we were going to take today, or worrying about the riding skills test.

I wasn't really worried, but kind of a little...on edge. It was hot and I hadn't slept between 2 in the morning and 4 in the morning because I had some great idea that absolutely had to be worked on right then and there instead of waiting for the morning.

We'd all done the motorcycle scenarios, learned the techniques, ridden around a bit and gotten more or less comfortable with the bikes. Still, some people were still having problems with starting out and easing out on the clutch. They were stalling and having to restart the bikes, which threw some people off their game.

We did an exercise where we rode around in a circle, crossing 2x4's using the proper technique. Nobody had any problems. We did a few other exercises without any problems. Everyone was doing well.

The class started the organized practice run for the actual test after a short break. The test was going to consist of doing a figure 8 at low speed in a small box, then going up to 2nd gear and swerving to avoid an obstacle while coming to a stop and braking correctly. After that, we were going to do a braking test where you had to stop in the shortest distance possible after your front wheel passed two cones. After that, we were going to do a turning test where we had to stay in the lines of a wide turn while in 2nd gear and then coming to a stop on a line.

Not especially difficult stuff. We'd all done it before. The problem was that this time, it counted. You could lose points for putting your foot down, or missing a line, or not going fast enough, or anticipating the stop, or stopping late, or taking too long to stop. You'd automatically fail if you dropped the bike, or did something else that was unsafe.

I went first and evidently passed the first evaluation with flying colors. I thought I hit a line during the figure 8, but I guess the instructors didn't see it.

The second person went and passed, then the third, then the fourth.

Then, at some point, one of the girls taking the course used her front brake while turning through the figure 8 and went down hard.

Since she'd dropped the bike, she was done. And, since she was done, we were all left thinking about how easy it would be for us to screw up and end up having gone through these three days for nothing. So I think I speak for everyone else when I say that we were all biting our nails while we finished the rest of the tests.

Nobody else failed.

So we took a quick lunch break and came back to take the written test, which wasn't hard at all. Everyone passed that too, which was a relief to all of us.

Our Group Tour Of Dillon Brothers Harley Davidson

After we were notified that we'd passed, it was time for our tour.

Regularly, Dillon Brothers Harley-Davidson General Manager Mike Bischof is the guy who gives the Rider's Edge classes their tours of the dealership. He was busy that day, however, and sent his substitute:

Jason Davis. My sales guy.

Jason walked us all around the dealership, answering question after question and being patient with new riders.

I've been around the dealership before, but this was a good little tour. We went into the service department where I saw...my bike, being brought out to be worked on.

Yes, I've finalized my deal with Dillon Brothers Harley-Davidson and Jason Davis. We came to some numbers I could live with, added a whole slew of parts (that will probably be followed up with by a whole lot more) and set the delivery date.

I get my bike on Friday. At noon.

Sharp.

Yeah, I'm a little excited.

The tour finished up on the Dillon Harley sales floor, where Jason Davis went through all the bikes, explaining what they were all about and the differences between them.

I learned that the bike that Dillon Harley sells the most of is the Ultra Classic, followed by the Heritage Softail Classic.

I learned about Buell bikes, which Jason happens to ride. He's a big proponent of Buell motorcycles, and after hearing his spiel on why they rock, I'm inclined to agree - Buell bikes are pretty damn well-thought-out. And their most expensive model is something like $10,000 or so. Not too expensive.

Jason showed us the VSRC - the V-Rod. I actually didn't like that bike before for some reason, but after Jason showed it to me and went over it somewhat, I started having second thoughts about it. Maybe as a second bike. Who knows?

Once the tour was done, we all went back upstairs to have cake, get our certificates and some other goodies. We each received a $25 gift certificate to Dillon Brothers, which will be gone very quickly in my case. We also received a bike coaster, to keep the kickstand on a motorcycle from sinking into hot asphalt.

That done, I left, drove over to the DMV and had them put the M in the endorsement section of my driver's license. That cost $5 and...I was done.

I am now an authorized rider of motorcycles in the state of Nebraska.

Just Starting The Work On My Motorcycle