Newbies’ Rules

So you and your buddies reckon off-road motorcycling is the way to go. And, I must tell you, you’re not wrong. So you go out and get yourself a machine and the necessary kit and accessories and you start riding. Lekker hey!!! After a couple of months you get bored with the local track and you start finding some trail ground but that gets boring too after a while. So you hook up with a crew that’s been doing this for some time. This is cool. Most crews will invite you along warmly and you’ll have a great time, you’ll find new riding ground, and you may even learn a few things from the more experienced guys.

But….there’s a couple of things you won’t learn just like that and they’re important to know. Most guys consider the information exists with every rider as if it were injected into his/her brain at the time of purchase of the bike. The thing is, these few pointers are not difficult and they have a joint purpose – to protect you and to prevent messing up the other guys’ ride.

Bikes sometimes break down. This is a fact. Different things can happen out there; from crashes to drowning the bike in a river to punctures. We all accept that every now and then someone in the group will experience some bad luck on the ride. And, when this kind of stuff does happen there are very few guys in or out of the group you are with that won’t offer assistance. But you do need to be a bit prepared.

Prep your bike before the ride!!! If you don’t know how then buy a workshop manual, ask a buddy or carry on reading Enduro World. Just don’t stop in the middle of a trail to service your bike. There is nothing more irritating (although no one will tell you to your face…….usually) than someone doing routine servicing in the middle of a ride or in the car park just as everyone is about ready to head out. I think the second most irritating thing is somebody stopping in the middle of the ride to fix something that should have been checked and made right at home! These are the kind of things that sort of stem your invitations to come back. And finally on this point, carry tools. Tools that fit the nuts, bolts and screws on your bike. If your bike should break down through either negligence to do pre-ride prep or just bad luck, at least have the means to sort it out.

Carry a can of your favourite brand of tyre fix. Ride with slime and/or enduro tubes in your tyres. Nobody blames anybody for getting a puncture. Punctures happen more than the smelly stuff happens. The more you can do to prevent one and fix one if and when you get one, the less impact you have on the ride which will mean a happier riding crew after the ride.

Make sure that there is at least one tow rope, some money and a cell phone among you. ‘Nough said.

Carry water or your favourite non-alcoholic liquid beverage, especially in summer. Dehydration is not uncommon and it is not pleasant. Off-roading is a physical sport. Physical and mental fatigue occurs easily. Keep yourself hydrated as much as you can. Also, accidents happen. If you need to wait for help with a buddy or, worse, on your own then having water with you is imperative.

If you’re new and/or inexperienced and you are riding with a more experienced crew in the veld then take it as cast in stone that you will get lost!!! When this uncomfortable experience does happen to you then take careful heed of the golden rule. DO NOT GO LOOKING FOR EVERYONE. If you are lost then two things are obvious: 1) you do not know where you are; and 2) you do not know where the others have gone!!! Looking for them is gong to 1) make you more lost; and 2) prevent anyone from finding you!!! When you work out that you are lost, head to the last place that you were all together (follow tyre tracks if necessary) and wait there. Do not move. This is the logical point that the others will come back to look for you.

The last piece of information that normally prevents anyone from getting lost of ending up on their own in the case of a crash or a breakdown is how to look after each other. This rule applies to all levels of experience and it is simple. You are always responsible for the guy behind you. If you cannot see him then wait a bit for him. If he’s taking too long then go back and find him. Remember that the guy in front of you will be doing the same and the guy in front of him…..etc, etc. If you do get to be in the front of the crew then, when you hit a point where you are confronted with a choice of direction, always wait for everyone to regroup or, at the very least, until the guy behind you is certain of where you are going before you pick a direction.

These rules are not difficult. They protect you and, more important, protect the fun for everyone on the ride. Looking forward to seeing you out there on a ride with me.

Keep the shiny side up and ride it like you stole it.

Steve “Tombstone” Lauter