The Allure of Motorcycles: A Journey to Getting Your License

Lately, a lot of people here at Donuthave been riding their motorcycles to the office, and it's got me thinking, how do I do that? Well, join me as I figure out how we get into the two-wheel scene together. Grab your notebooks and commit this to memory because at the end of this episode, we're gonna get our motorcycle licenses.

I've been interested in getting a motorcycle ever since I was a kid. And if you were a teen in the late '90s or early 2000s and weren't in the motocross, you probably didn't have a pulse. Travis Pastrana was jumping his bike into San Francisco Bay, James Stewart invented the Bubba Scrub - man, these guys were awesome. Motorcycles are an entirely different side of being a gearhead and it's a community I wanted to join for some time now.

First things first, before we even get talking about running down to a dealership or non-stop browsing Craigslist to buy your first bike, it's a good idea to find out if you even really truly want a motorcycle. Motorcycles are alluring. The sense of freedom and the low cost for high speed; the idea of never having to look for parking sounds amazing, right? Well, all that can quickly disappear if you take a ride and realize it's not for you. So, if you decide to follow through and get your motorcycle license, the next step is to get some motorcycle training.

We went with a private lesson by Class: M1 here in LA. It's a little more expensive than a group class which is the cheaper option. Today, we're gonna learn about motorcycle training and what it takes to get your license. Our instructor will teach us the basics of riding a motorcycle, from balancing and braking to shifting gears and turning. We'll also cover safety procedures and how to handle different types of terrain.

Physically bigger bikes can be harder to handle, and our first ride should be easier, not harder to wrangle. Just like your first car, it's a learner vehicle; it's gonna get scratched and dinged and learned on. Your first motorcycle will see the same fateno matter how good you are at taking care of it. You're new at this, remember? You're gonna make some mistakes that will inevitably end up with you yelling a few choice cuss words while the bike lays on its side after a tip over in a Brunswick bowling parking lot.

There are pros and cons to buying new versus used. Figure out what you can afford and don't be afraid to ask for help. If you do end up going the used route, just like you would if you were to buy a car from a private seller, do your due diligence. Bring a buddy who's got some more knowledge than you to look it over. Don't have any friends? Well, one, I'll be your friend; and two, ask a seller to bring the bike to a shop that will perform a bike inspection.

Usually, it costs around $100. It gives you some added insurance that a qualified mechanic made sure everything is okay. There are online forms where practically every specific model out there, and a lot of those forms are people who have gone through this experience before and they're willing to offer up whatever help they can. They even go on the Donut subreddit and ask.

Two wheels? Four wheels? The Donut family welcomes everyone. I'll go through the process I went through when choosing my first ideal motorcycle. I've always wanted a cafe racer style bike, so I started on the web. Seeing what models are currently out there. I found a bike I liked, searched some forms to see if that model would be a good beginner bike. Lo and behold it was.

Then I went over to a dealership and sat on a few of them. I wanted to make sure the bike wasn't too big or too small for me, see if they fit my stature. I'm part of that big boy nation; regardless if the bike met my expectation aesthetically, I needed to make sure it fit me physically as well.

Getting involved in any new hobby can be daunting. Trust me, I know the feeling. Just ask me about my snow cone machine fetish. It's intimidating to join a group of enthusiasts who have been indoctrinated into the group for years before you have but the motorcycle community, like the car community, is a pretty welcoming bunch.

A majority of motorcycle riders want to grow the community and do so by helping out and being welcoming. Now that I've got my motorcycle license, hopefully this video has inspired you to go out and get yours.

WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: en(electric guitar music)(motorcycle revving)- Lately, a lot of people here at Donuthave been riding theirmotorcycles to the office.(motorcycle accelerating)(upbeat music)It's got me thinking, how do I do that?Well, join me as I figure out how we getinto the two-wheel scene together.Grab your notebooks andcommit this to memory'cause at the end of this episode,we're gonna get our motorcycle licenses.I've been interestedin getting a motorcycleever since I was a kid.And if you were a teen inthe late '90s or early 2000sand weren't in the motocross,you probably didn't have a pulse.(upbeat music)Travis Pastrana was jumping hisbike into San Francisco Bay.James Stewart invented the Bubba Scrub.Man, these guys were awesome.Motorcycles are an entirely different sideof being a gearhead and it's a communityI wanted to join for some time now.First things first, before we even getto talking about runningdown to a dealershipor nonstop browsing Craigslistto buy your first bike,it's a good idea to find outif you even reallytruly want a motorcycle.Motorcycles are alluring.The sense of freedom andthe low cost for high speed,the idea of never havingto look for parking.Sounds amazing, right?Well, all that can quicklydisappear if you take a rideand realize it's not for you.So if you decide to follow through and getyour motorcycle license,the next step is to getsome motorcycle training.(upbeat music)We went with a private lessonby Class: M1 here in LA.It's a little moreexpensive than a group classwhich is the cheaper option.Today, we're gonna learnhow to operate the bike,we're gonna learn how to ride the bikeand then we're gonnarun through a mock test.(relaxing synth music)I got my gear.Let's see if we can ride this thing.(upbeat rock music)- Six, five,four, three, two, one.(motor engine rumbling)Liftoff, we have a liftoff.(motor engine rumbling quietly)- And motorcyclist training coursedoes a few things for you.First, it teaches you thefundamentals of riding, brakingand using the clutch, et cetera.An instructor will goover all that with you.The course covers streetriding skills and strategiesand rules of the road andyou'll get actual experienceby riding a motorcycle.A bike is even provided for you to ride.Steve is setting up the course right nowto do a mock DMV test.This class has definitelymade me want a motorcycleeven more now.I can't wait to do more bike content.So you took a training course,you went down to the DMV,you got your motorcycle license.You are now a legal motorcycle driver.At this point, I'm sureyou've been browsing the web,looking for bikes that fit your fancy.Let's start off with narrowing downwhat you're gonna be using your bike for.(playful music)(party horn blows)(playful music)Is it gonna be your commuter?Are you gonna do someweekend canyon carvingor do you want something youcan take a longer road tripsand highway cruises?Once you figured thatout, it'll be much easierto narrow down whichmodels to start looking at.It's probably not the bestidea to go buy a touring bikeif you wanna hop around the city.- Oh, he almost hit the mirror!Oh, he hit their mirror!You hit that mirror, hey?- Yeah.- The second considerationis to figure outhow much bike you can handle.And before you jump to fullboar testosterone fueled statusof believing you canhandle any size motorcyclewhich I'm sure you can, Dylan.Maybe you think of it like this.Was your first car closer tothe likes of a Corvette ZR1or a Camry?If your parents were responsible adultswho cared for your wellbeing,I'm sure they didn't opto give you a 755 horsepowered sports car.Treat buying your firstmotorcycle with the same caution.The easiest way to getyourself hurt is to buy a bikeoutside of your skill level.I know it's temptingto buy a used Hayabusathat'd go 200 milesper hour for six grand.Don't do that.(motorcycle accelerating)(motorcycle crashes)- Holy shit.- Aside from the performanceof the motorcycle,the actual physical size of the bikeis an important factor too.You want something that fits your buildand that you're also capable of handling.A 313 pound motorcycles are pretty heavy.I look up the weights ofa few and they range a bitfrom a 313 pound Honda CB300Fto the 943 pound Harley CVO Limited.That's a thick boy.Obviously, I'm jumpingcategories of motorcycles herebut you get my point.Physically bigger bikescan be harder to handleand your first ride should beeasier, not harder to wrangle.(motor engine rumbling)(mumbles)Also, like your first car,it's a learner vehicle.It's gonna get scratchedand dinged and learned on.Your first motorcyclewill see the same fateno matter how good youare at taking care of it.You're new at this, remember?You're gonna make some mistakesthat will inevitablyend up with you yellinga few choice cuss words whilethe bike lays on its sideafter a tip over in aBrunswick bowling parking lot.That happened to Jeremiah,who wrote this episode.There are pros and consto buying new versus used.Figure out what you canafford and don't be afraidto ask for help.If you do end up going the used route,just like you would ifyou were to buy a carfrom a private seller,do your due diligence.If you can, bring a buddywho's got some more knowledgethan you to look it over.Don't have any friends?Well, one, I'll be your friend.And two, ask a seller tobring the bike to a shopthat will perform a bike inspection.Usually it costs around $100.It gives you some added insurancethat a qualified mechanicmade sure everything is okay.There are online forms wherepractically every specificmodel out there, and a lot of those formsare people who have gonethrough this experience beforeand they're willing to offerup whatever help they can.They even go on theDonut subreddit and ask.We have some motorcycle moderatorswho might offer up their opinion.Two wheels?Four wheels?The Donut family welcomes everyone.So, I'll go through the processI went through when choosingmy first ideal motorcycle.I've always wanted a cafe racer style bikeso I started on the web.Seeing what models arecurrently out there.I found a bike I liked,searched some formsto see if that model wouldbe a good beginner bike.Lo and behold it was.Then I went over to a dealershipand sat on a few of them.I wanted to make surethe bike wasn't too bigor too small for me, seeif they fit my stature.I'm part of that big boy nation.So regardless if the bike metmy expectation aesthetically,I needed to make sure itfit me physically as well.Getting involved at anynew hobby can be daunting.Trust me, I know the feeling.Just ask me about mysnow cone machine fetish.(beeps)It's intimidating to joina group of enthusiaststo have been indoctrinatedinto the group for yearsbefore you have but themotorcycle communitylike the car community isa pretty welcoming bunch.A majority of motorcycle riderswant to grow the communityand do so by helpingout and being welcoming.Now that I've got my motorcycle license,hopefully this video has inspired youto go out and get yours.(playful music)