Some things I have noticed while riding.

[dentheman]

I've recently been taking some fairly long rides to get to the twisties and canyons located some distance from my home. This includes some long stretches of highway as well as the twisties, and has taught me a few interesting things about my bike (and me).

Riding at 65 mph gets me roughly 50 mpg, but increasing speed to 70 mph or fighting winds significantly lowers the mpg.

When taking a curve too wide (too fast) my natural impulse is to cut the throttle, this corrects the problem. If taking a curve too close to the inside, the impulse is to give it some throttle, which corrects it. My point is that it happens instinctively, without having to think about it.

When riding at high speed with a crosswind, the handlebar will give a slight 'jiggle'. At first I thought this was due to road conditions, but then I realized it is the bike correcting itself to stay in a straight line in spite of crosswinds. If the wind is blowing from the right, it tends to move the bike slightly to the left, which causes the steering to go slightly to the right and then straighten itself, causing the jiggle. For all practical purposes the bike continues to go straight and will not be blown around in the lane.

My old school rear drum brake has more stopping power than the front disc brake. Of course I do use both brakes when stopping.

I just thought I would throw this in for other beginners who might not completely trust their bike to take care of them.