Dan's field of dreams (Video added)

[dantama]

I went to a parking lot today that I practice in that has some paint marks for putting cones down for the Motor Cops. They rarely use it, and so it's hard to make out what you're supposed to do, but I'd play around on it anyway.

Today when I went by, all their cones were up, and not a cop in sight! :)


Video link










It was pretty much, "Holy sh*t this is tight!!" But I was able to do their lane change maneuver.



You go down the parallel lines and have to jog over and down the next set, jog over and repeat till you are out. It's hard not to knock down the last cone when going from one set to the other. But after a couple of tries I got it.

Then I was doing the cone weave(no pic of it) and I went down for the first time in an hour of playing there. And I did it just as a motor cycle cop pulled in to see what I was up too :-[

We chatted for a bit, and he was cool (for a cop) :)

He told me that the lane change is supposed to be done moving pretty quickly. So after he left I played around some more going fast through it. You have to really swing the bars back and forth hard and fast to get through it.

The rest of their course I can't do at all. When cones aren't set up, and you're just going through faded paint marks on the ground, its easy to think you are doing it. When your rear crash bars are knocking down cones you find that you weren't doing it at all before.

It was cool seeing it all set up, and there were black tracks in the pavement showing how you go through it all.

All in all, it was a great afternoon.

[hammer]

That is too cool Dan.

Years ago I watched local City Motorcops do a course like that and it was humbling. I have not seen him in quite a while but one of them was my neighbour whom I rode with some. He rode a vintage Kawi cop bike with Blue Knights and I was priviledged to tag along. I should look him up.

Thanks for posting this.

[phred]

That's pretty cool, Dan. I almost hate to ask, for fear that it'll stir up a hornets nest, but I'm curious on your CT experience on the motor couse, and if the motot cop noticed/commented?

[Jared]

Looks like fun!! I would sure hate doing it in hot weather. Those tar snakes are all over the place on that track. Hot tar snakes are one of my least favorite thing during slow maneuvers.

[sonny]

Dan when I was in my 20's and 30's I used to think I was one outstanding rider. Most of those that I rode with would not follow me in traffic or on a logging road, with me riding an HD 74 with 6" over tubes. But I got to see our parish sheriff's motor unit do parking lot manuvers at a demonstration a couple years ago. Man at my best I was not worth a spit. It is impressive. I had a chance to go through a week long training with them on my bike. After looking at their foot boards and crash bars. And figuring up MY replacement cost, the Sheriff buys their parts not mine, I decided to pass.
Thanks for your time

[AlabamaNomadRider]

Dan you're the Man. From now on you are "Dan the Man". You need to buy you some land and build you a parking lot. Then you could practice when you wanted to.

[jestephens]

Dan, If I were you I wouldn't have ridden through the cones at all. I would have worked as fast as possible to move everything about 12 inches closer to each other. Then find a place to hide and watch the first group of riders try to maneuver the course.

Or use the cones to make a giant smiley face . . . . .

[skeeter]

Originally Posted by jestephens

Dan, If I were you I wouldn't have ridden through the cones at all. I would have worked as fast as possible to move everything about 12 inches closer to each other. Then find a place to hide and watch the first group of riders try to maneuver the course.

Or use the cones to make a giant smiley face . . . . .

<marquee>ROFLMAO!</marquee>

[AlabamaNomadRider]

Now that was funny Jay. That would have been a laugh to see.

[flavor]

That sounds like fun. I wonder how the cops would do on a nomad since it has one of the longest whell baseson the road. (I believe longer than the longest stock Harley by an inch or 2. Rake?).

[dantama]

Originally Posted by jestephens

Dan, If I were you I wouldn't have ridden through the cones at all. I would have worked as fast as possible to move everything about 12 inches closer to each other. Then find a place to hide and watch the first group of riders try to maneuver the course.

Or use the cones to make a giant smiley face . . . . .

I like the way you think!

[dantama]

Here's a video of it.




I videoed this before the cop told me that you're supposed to go through as fast as you can, because you have to get through the whole course under a certain amount of time, or you don't pass.

I got faster, but didn't want to set the camera back up. This was pretty challenging even at this speed. You have to really throw the bars back and forth hard and fast. If not, you'll be late and knock down cones. It always surprises me that they not only have to be able to turn tight, they have to transition with the bars really fast.

Dropping into a 180 degree turn is so much easier than a back and forth 90 degree. You don't realize how fast those guys are swinging the bars till you try it. They are really rowing the bars fast.

[jandreu]

Dan, Very cool, makes me dizzy watching it. I can't even think I could do that at any speed. I'd like to see the maneuver from a distance to see how close you come to the cones.
Thanks Dan your posts lately have been the staple of why I hang out here.

[stewdogg]

Yeah Dan you need to get a tripod so we can get a different perspective of what you are doing. The first person is cool but we don't really get to see how you lean the bike and turn the bars to achieve what you are doing.
Nice work on the bike and with the civil interaction with the law

[dantama]

Thanks guys, I tried to find a vantage point up high to set the camera, but couldn't find a place. I wished that I had my tripod.

The left bag comes super close to hitting the left row, end cone. Then the right bag almost hits the 1st cone on the right row.

To get through it, you have to turn late and very quickly and sharp to the left, and immediately to the right. If you turn in too soon, you'll knock the left cone. If you turn too late, you'll knock the right cone. And because there are a few rows, if you are a little off at the 1st one, you'll be off for the next one, and it compounds itself till your knocking down cones by the end. You have to be right on each one right from the start.

I do wish the camera was from up higher and further away. But if you watch the video, you can see that at the end of each row, you turn one way then the other with no pause. If there is a pause, you'll be late and hit a cone.

I wish that there were two Nomads there, one with a bike tire and someone who would let me try both back to back. For the first time the other day, I forgot that I had a car tire on, then pulling up to a red light I got into a groove that steered me from the back and made it very clear that it was a car tire on the back. To get the best comparison, the other tire has to be fresh in your mind.


If the cop saw that it was a car tire, he didn't say anything. He probably saw it, as he parked behind and to the side of me as I was picking it up. He didn't do any chit chat about bikes and making comments about mine, we just talked about the course. So perhaps he didn't even look at it enough to see it was a car tire. He didn't say anything at any rate.