Who dropped their first bike?

[skahigh]

So now I have completed my direct access course and got my full bike license, I'm on the lookout for my first bike.

I see a lot of posts on the net from people saying 'you WILL drop your first bike' but I'd be interested to know how true this is (lots of the posts are on American forums where they don't really have the training that we do).

So, who dropped their first bike? Was it a crash or just a silly drop-it-in-the-garage type of thing? Would I be really stupid to consider a relatively expensive bike as a first bike (£6-7k potentially brand new).

[MotorsportTom]

I'm terrible with bikes, I dropped my first twice on the first night riding it home (in fairness it was freezing and around 3am)

I've dropped my second more than I should have too.

Yes it's probable but it isn't a rite of passage, if you're going to spend that much just be prepared to fix it, and spend a lot doing so, should it happen.

Oh and congrats on the pass

[Mastodon2]

I've never dropped my bike, though I did manage to lowside it less than 2 months after getting it. Good thing I didn't buy a brand new one! It needed a new tyre on the back, new rear light and a new rider's side foot peg.

The old saying does say that "you'll drop your first bike", and I think that after a while you do get used to not dropping it while moving it around, or riding it at low speeds. However, a crash is worse than a drop, and it seems that crashes are not limited to first, second, third or indeed any number bike.

Personally, as your first bike I wouldn't get anything get anything mint, just in case you do mark it as it will just be additional heartbreak, and don't get anything you're afraid to put the miles on, as you'll want to ride it a lot.

[tom54]

A mate let me practice on his bike for a few weeks before my cbt on a bit on land he had. I thought this was easy, how could I drop something as light as a 125! Cue a couple of months later, some mates, and a Tesco car park. Trying to see how much we could lean I ended up on my arse.
Dropped my first 600 which was a pre diversion xj 600 so I wasn't too bothered. When I bought my 07 SV I forgot about the disc lock and on pulling out of the uni car park heard a clunk followed by a slow motion topple. Only a light scuff but I was pretty annoyed.

I haven't made the same mistakes since though. Touch wood

[theshrew]

Yup Ive dropped mine luckily I was in my garage pushing the bike tripped over something and it fell against my push bike. Luckily the push iron had a cover over it and it didn't fall very far ( pretty much still upright) = zero damage.

Once they go your not pulling it back up again.

[muffinmenace]

Mine fell off the stand

That's my defence and I'm sticking to it.

[carmadgaz]

Not yet but I'm only 2months in!

[mpusch]

Yup, dropped a bike only one time in three years, my first bike. Was practicing slow speed maneuvers and just lost balance gradually. Slowest "drop" ever. Small scratch, that's about it.

[Gusto]

Not yet

I always think of my triumph as a first bike. I dropped my motor cross bike a few times for fun but my first proper bike: No.

[mckeann]

I dropped my first bike. At 80mph. Then again at 40mph.

I dropped my second bike at 70mph

I dropped my third bike at 80mph, then 50mph then 70mph.

I haven't dropped my 4th, 5th or 6th bikes. Yet.

[Fire99]

To be fair my first bike was a Yamaha DT50-MX and I threw it down the road, field, footpath etc more times than I'd like to remember but my riding style at 16 was somewhat ON or OFF.

[Master Bean]

Dropped it, crashed it, when off roading on it, dropped it. It was only a second hand CBF 125 so didn't matter. It was a lot of fun though.

[srob]

Nope. But my first bike was a 50cc so was pretty easy to hold up

[TheLordJohn]

I bought a K4 GSX-R 600 as my first big bike after DAS.
Only bought it as my mate was pretty much giving it away and I knew it had done very little in his ownership for 3 years or so.
Dropped that once - very slow speed manouvering on ice. Helping my sister move into her new house when she moved back up North.
Couldn't afford to fuel the V12 Jag I had at that time of the month (end of Jan!) so had to take the bike.
It felt farcical and comedy slow but just couldn't avoid it. As soon as the front slipped from under me I thought "Nooooooo! Lol.

[bennyboysvuk]

I dropped my first bike trying to go around the outside of a Triumph at Clearways just 6 months after my test. 3 months after that incident I wrote it off completely on the road. It's safe to say that I learnt a hell of a lot in my first year of riding.

[Nigel Worc's]

I fell off my moped, aged 16 several times, like others my initial riding style tended to be on or off.

I've only ever dropped anything else once, my 250, on a newly resurfaced road.

I've been knocked off a couple of times, but nothing since I was 18.

[sc0tt]

Dropped my CBR once. Low sided it aswell on a roundabout.

Never dropped the R1 or fell off it. Never rode it either.

[bogie]

I fell off a few times off road on field bikes learning in the early 80s

Wrote off my first 125 on the road in the first few thousand miles; lesson learnt, only go as fast as what you can see over brows of hills

On the replacement bike I had a low speed panic brake/target fixation into a field- I just needed more confidence at speed on tight bends...lesson learnt; dont try to keep up with more experienced riders than yourself

3rd time lucky and all was fine and moved up through 250,600,1000 in the 90s.....I did commute for many years on a bike and do my IAM and in more recent years RoSPA training

Statistically new riders in first 2 years (either post test or born again) are high risk and the low speed drop on the drive is a common insurance claim for those doing a DAS then going out and buying a big heavy bike for the first time....

So get some advanced training and practice more...its not a dead cert that you will fall off/drop it....but theres a high probability and you need to minimise that by training, practice and gaining experience

[Dog Star]

30 years and no bikes dropped.

However I did go through a phase of doing "the disc lock thing".

With regard to dropping bikes I think being tall is the biggest advantage.

[Iang84]

Yes still on my fist bike (5yrs old now) did a Delboy at a set of lights pulled up and didn't notice the pothole put my foot right in it and dropped like a pair of lead knickers my knee took most of the impact with only minor bruising also had someone pull out on me at 50mph and lost the front end after I managed to avoid hitting them side on.