A little effort can go a long way.

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As that "light at the end of the tunnel" illuminates the fact another cruise nearly is complete, I start itching to get back on a motorcycle and hit the open road.

Already on my stateroom desk is a blue folder filled with information about roads to explore, cities to visit, rallies to attend, and friends to share rides with on Saturday-morning coffee runs. The folder also contains a list of friendships to be made yet--with people who finally have made the decision to buy a motorcycle and join us. These thoughts race through my head as I begin making a checklist of everything that needs to be done before turning the key for the first time.

I've been riding motorcycles more than 15 years--on the dirt, on the track, and to all four corners of the United States (twice) on the open road. These journeys have included a few roadside repairs, some near-misses with inattentive drivers, and a few run-ins with inclement weather, but I've always reached my destinations safely. To what do I attribute this good fortune? The little bit of effort it takes to get ready to go when I step off the boat and transition back to "civilian living."

To make my checklist simple to address, I break it into two categories: man and machine. There are many books and opinions on just about any area of motorcycling, and I always have a selection to read while returning from cruise. As a result, I often find something I had forgotten or was fuzzy about. The websites for the Naval Safety Center and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration are filled with information on motorcycle courses, safety and statistics. Books and conversations with fellow motorcyclists also are excellent resources to recage your mindset and to get ready to ride after a long layoff.

I learned something long ago that I always pass on to others: You don't need to worry so much about yourself as you do the other guy out there. Experience has proven that statement to be true. A motorcyclist has to be comfortable enough with his skills and his bike to react calmly and correctly in a crisis situation and avoid becoming a statistic. In today's busy traffic, little or no time often exists to tell oneself step-bystep how to avoid what just happened in front of or behind you. The reaction has to be as automatic as tying your shoes.

Being comfortable with your skills and your bike allows your "bubble" of situational awareness to increase, which can help prevent a situation from becoming a serious problem. You can devote more attention to what is happening around you, rather than spend all your time concentrating on yourself and your bike. Besides reading books and reviewing websites to refresh information that has been locked away for months, I even spend a little time in a closed-course setting. I go to an empty parking lot and practice various maneuvers that get me mentally prepared to hit the road again.

Once the mental preparations have started, it's time to think ahead and to formulate the machine checklist from what will need to occur at home. Putting the machine together includes personal safety gear, as well. This gear is an extension of the safety features designed into your motorcycle and always should be thought of as such. Riding without proper footwear is like riding without any brakes--you just don't do it. If you can't remember the last time you looked at the condition of your personal safety gear, now is the time to do so.

The first thing I do is to spread every piece of gear I own over a wide space. I pick up the items one-by-one and check them for problems, such as broken snaps or zippers, punctures, scratches, and tears. Then, I try everything on for fit and function. If it looks wrong or doesn't work right, it gets repaired or replaced. If it passes inspection, it goes back into the closet. I make sure there are complete sets of what I will need for hot weather, cold weather, and wet weather, including boots, gloves, jackets, helmets, visors, camelback...it's all there.

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The first thing I do in the garage is to see if anything has fallen off a shelf onto my bike. I also look for any pools of fluids under the bike. Is the cover still in good shape, or does it look like an animal has chewed the edges? Has anyone moved the bike to gain access to something else in the garage? I always check these items because they can indicate larger problems. Then, I remove the cover and pull out the owner's and mechanic's manuals so I can go over the setup-inspection checklists. A dealer goes through these same items when he uncrates a bike from the factory. While going over these checklists, I remove the battery and charge it good.

When I've completed the setup inspection, I step back and just look at the bike. Do the tires look right? Are all the taillights and turn signals in place? Is the fuel cap missing? It's the little things you miss after being away so long. For example, I once tried unsuccessfully to start one of my bikes with a full tank of gas, only to realize I hadn't turned the fuel cutoff back on. Because that bike is one that requires the fuel to be turned off after every ride, it took me a good 20 minutes to correct a problem I wouldn't have missed if I just had stepped back and done a sanity check on my setup process.

Next, I sit on the bike and work all the controls. Do they respond like you remember they should? Do the turn signals and brake lights work from the lever and the pedal? If the answer to both those questions is yes, and if everything else looks good, I fire up the bike and make sure it runs correctly.

Traditional, carbureted motorcycle engines always need a little tweaking after long storage. Newer fuel-injected systems have the technology to make a variety of adjustments on their own. If the bike doesn't seem right, take it to a professional. Nine times out of 10, saying "it just needs to be ridden after sitting so long" doesn't fix the problem and can cause more expensive damage down the road. It's better to spend a little now, rather than have to spend a lot later.

Last, I combine man and machine. I take the bike to an empty area and refamiliarize myself with the play in the clutch, brakes and throttle. I make some easy stops and some quick ones. I make a few wide and right turns, using both hand and electric signals as appropriate. I (and most experienced riders) lock up the back wheel in braking to practice skidding. I also work up to some quick evasive maneuvers. Throughout all this refresher training, I work to keep a good scan of my instruments and, more importantly, of what is going on around me. I work that situational-awareness bubble as large as comfortably possible.

On deployment, I do a very dangerous job. However, going home and getting on my motorcycle the first couple of times can be just as dangerous. I know people won't see me on my bike unless I make sure they see me. Even then, a few still will be oblivious. The secret to survival is being comfortable enough with your skills and your bike that any reaction you may have to make is instinctual. Take time to ensure both you and your bike are prepared. Keep the rubber side down out there!

The author was assigned to VAW-117 when he wrote this story.

A Motorcycle Safety Foundation Experienced-Rider course suite also would be a good refresher. This course promotes the rider-education training system, which is designed for lifelong use. Another good tool to check out a motorcycle is TCLOCS (tires and wheels, controls, lights and electronics, oil and other fluids, chassis, sidestand).--Joe Perfetto, former traffic-safety specialist, Naval Safety Center

By Lt. Patrick Cole,

NAS Fallon, Nev.