Most beginners use only part throttle. If a bike has lots of power it doesn't mean you have to use it...
Norms has a very valid point.
That is ALOT easier said than done! Good intentions can disappear very quickly on one of these beasts, and they are VERY unforgiving!
unk:
And texas-ss does, too.
The OP said he was 36 years old which is usually an indication that by this time in his life he might have a fair amount of common sense about using the throttle.
When I told my office mates who had been riding since they were knee-high-to-a-grasshopper, that I was thinking of getting something like an 800cc cruiser or a 600cc crotcher, they advised me to go with something bigger cause I would quickly bore of it after a couple months. I told them that my emotional well-being (fun) comes second to my physical well-being (safety) and that I, literally, feared anything bigger would take me to the hospital or the graveyard. All assured me the same thing that Norm said--that just cause there's a lot of throttle, DOES NOT mean you have to use it. they all agreed separately that i was going into motorcycling with the correct mindset of having accepted my mortality and not being susceptible to the testosterone-adrenaline death mix.
but as texas-ss points out, the problem with my maiden voyage was that in the excitement of purchasing my Max, I wasn't in a clear state of mind to learn and most importantly appreciate the clutch engagement and the throttle-to-torque relationship. I had forgotten how forgiving an 80cc dirtbike was compared to a 250cc MSF-trainer and should have taken the time to learn the controls after realizing that a 1200cc would be 4x as less forgiving. :bang head: The whole incident was the result of me getting caught off-guard. of course I didn't twist the crap out of the throttle. it was more like a small but quick twist. I was not expecting the kind of jump that ensued. the surprise turned into a death grip that indirectly twisted the throttle as i got jerk back (or left behind, depending on how you want to look at it). trying to lean forward to compensate the inertia and the instinct of releasing the throttle turned into my muscle memory performing a jump roll that my martial arts master had taught me. it reaction was all second nature. it wasn't until i got home and had a look at my helmet wondering why there was a scratch on the backside of the fullface helmet instead of the chin bar. i really do think the martial arts roll saved me from something worse than the minor "cat" scratches my family found across my back.
so it all boils down to training. and like what everyone has been saying or eluding to, control of a motorcycle is not just throttle and clutch. braking and cornering are just as important, as well as traffic commutation. although proficient braking is relatively easy to learn in a deserted parking lot, i believe i will forever come shy of developing the canyon-carving cornering skills that i dream of if i never straddle something smaller, more forgiving, and cheaper to repair, like what everyone advices the PO to learn on. i don't live in a highly congested area, which i believe, too, has a major factor of learning. yes i have to battle grandma and grandpa, soccer moms, texting teenagers, and latte suckers, but the streets are never more than two lanes in one direction, the cagers are sincerely "look-twice" mindful of motorcycles, and johnny law has scared their feet up off of the accelerator. all of this allows me to learn the necessary skills to be able to flow in/through traffic in a relatively safe environment as either a hooligan-wannabe or a civilized commuter.
