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#1 |
Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: PNW
Posts: 985
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Hellcat Perfect Training Bike (girlfriend or wife)
This Hellcat (Grom clone) appears to me to be a very good motorcycle trainer. Especially for those who are height challenged. Back in April my girlfriend bought one as she is determined to learn to ride. A year ago she thought she could ride a Magician, but dropped it twice back to back and stopped. A year later she was ready to try again. At 5'1" tall, most motorcycles are a challenge, even a Hellcat, until you have skills. And it was tough, because she has never driven a manual transmission so she had no good concept of a clutch. In two months, many days two a days for 30 to 45 minutes and me turning away to restrain my exasperation and response, she eventually did learn to ride a motorcycle! Repetition of the skills is the key! She has yet to drop the Hellcat and has passed the written test with the riding test to come. I would say to anybody with a girlfriend or wife looking for adventure spelled "motorcycle riding", the Hellcat and like can help get there!
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#2 |
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Bay City, MI
Posts: 400
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That's awesome.
I too always thought that the Grom clones would be good trainers. Well, by extension, a Grom too, but if someone is going to drop and damage a bike, better it be the $1100 version instead of the $4300 one. |
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#3 |
Join Date: Apr 2019
Posts: 336
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My girlfriend saw moto cheez riding his and said thats sooo cute I want one... which at first I thought would.be fantastic.... but then I thought about it.and realized that she probably would.never turn a.wrench on it and that of course would leave me to doing it......
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been around bikes for a while.... honda 72 cb200t, zuki 96?/2002 katana, 12 vstrom,09 vstar, kawi ltd440, 82 zuki Gs1100, Tao Tbr7 all about the Tao MotorsTBR7 http://www.chinariders.net/showthread.php?t=25553 |
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#4 | |
Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: PNW
Posts: 985
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Quote:
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#5 |
Join Date: Jul 2020
Posts: 42
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They are great. I bought my clone in part to teach people, but i need to get it sorted first. Cant have the bike stalling and dying on a newb who doesn’t know how to safely handle that.
Otherwise they are awesome first bikes. The clutch engages super late on mine. Gotta mess with that too... |
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#6 | |
Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: PNW
Posts: 985
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Quote:
Put in 2 hours training today on the five test scenarios. Here they have video online showing the actual test so you know exactly what you are required to accomplish. So using cones I purchased on Amazon it set up the scenarios. She had a lot of trouble with the engine dying repeatedly because she failed to engage the clutch timing as to when braking. Skills are perishable and practice is key and after a week. She clearly has the skills to pass the test I told her, but can you execute them when it counts? |
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#7 |
Join Date: Jul 2020
Posts: 42
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Not sure if my cable loosened up or the clutch plates are wearing in a bit, but engagement feels better after 50 miles. Top speed too.
Now i just need to fix the damn oil leak. |
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#8 |
Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: PNW
Posts: 985
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So she took her riding test today. Raining for the four hours of warm up and testing. The foam on her googles got wet and began to steam up the lens. Practicing before the test she was driving back to a starting point making a left turn she could not see the turn well and put on the front brake and dumped the bike and her over onto the ground with a final bump of the helmet. She was okay. Bike had a broken foot peg. They gave her another Suzuki Cruiser and she went on to take the test and aced it! She said I had a lot more room on the scenarios than when you trained me on them?
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#9 |
Join Date: May 2018
Posts: 1,705
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Pretty sure we need a picture or two of the new rider and her bike .
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#11 |
Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: PNW
Posts: 985
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So yesterday we went for a ride, me on the Magician and her on the Hellcat. When we got back I asked her what she thought of the Hellcat compared to the Suzuki Cruiser she rode for the riding test. She said "it's a put, put." What do you mean by that? She said the Suzuki had more power. Then she said, "you can ride the Hawk and I'll ride the Magician!"
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#12 |
Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: PNW
Posts: 985
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Okay…so I rode the HAWK and she rode the Magician up on some mountain logging roads. 50 degrees felt like 32, I should’ve brought some warmer gloves. I gave her some pointers about gravel, keep it straight up, no sudden moves. She got stranded on the inside corner of a high banked uphill curve. Gave her a push, go up and turn around, she came back and parked it on a slight slope. As we started down, she took off and laid it over. When you are tip toeing some and the off-side slopes away, well, if you lean that way on over you go. Riding in the hills, with gravel, pot holes, slope, it’s a new set of skills compared to that flat asphalt stuff. Working on some knobbies for the Hellcat!
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