Ladies: What was your greatest challenge - learning to ride?

[Hondagirl]

Haha maybe I was trying to impress you . It is true though that the test here is much stricter, and its also true we see so few either women riders or larger bikes on the road here since the 'over 400cc' test is even harder than the middle cc test I took.

[Nalian]

I think my dad passed down the motorcycling bug to me - I've just always felt at ease on a bike. I got to ride on the back of my dad's bike a lot as a kid, but the first time I rode a bike on my own was the MSF class. Once I got a chance to try all of the things we'd read about/tested on, things just clicked. I mean I will always have a lot to learn and am by no means an expert, but riding a motorcycle just feels natural to me.

I think my biggest challenge is keeping my head in the right place and remaining focused while I ride. I think it would be very easy for me to be over-confident and make dumb mistakes...although living near Boston does help with that quite a bit. The drivers here are nuts, so you have to remain at least somewhat alert or they'll kill you.

[sunshine229]

And they were soooooooooooo much stricter and it took me AGES even though i already had an English license! but eventually after some more tears and learning curves i did get it and I got my Japanese licence

Yes Japanese riders are soooo skilled! They have to be as the training and the test is so strict. I bet the majority of the riders in the US would fail the Japanese test!

You are such a great rider! I rememeber that time we were riding up a steep hill and you needed to change direction, you did a quick smooth U-turn on that narrow and hilly road like it was nothing, with me on the back as a pillion.

I didn't know you two knew each other! That's great!

[Hondagirl]

I didn't know you two knew each other! That's great!

A little bit more than 'know' We have been dating for 3 years now. Long distance but we still manage to get enough time overall as some people do dating in different states so..

[sunshine229]

Wow, cool! Did you by any chance meet here on TMW? That would be a cool story.

[Hondagirl]

just saw your reply Andrea - it would make a great story yes..but no, we didn`t meet here.
Im sure there have been some members who have got to know each other here and then met though!

[sunshine229]

We met our best friends here!!!

We've met all kinds of people through TMW, it's pretty cool.

[Bella108]

I think this is a really great topic! Thanks!

[sunshine229]

I think this is a really great topic! Thanks!

Glad we can help! Do you have anything to add?

[Bella108]

Maybe after a few months I can post something more, but so far my trouble has been with holding the throttle steady. My wrist just wants to move I guess, and the slightest movement I'm losing gas power. I'm not sure why it always goes that way! I am still learning though and haven't been on the street in traffic yet. Practice Practice Practice! I Freaking love riding so far though! I can't wait to be on the open road Ahhhhh!

[sunshine229]

Throttle control definitely comes with practice.

[Bella108]

Thank you My friend gave me a tip to help... Ok I could be better at describing things, but here goes.. He said to rest/hold my fingers at the top part of the front brake ( Not wrapped around as if I were going to stop, just resting on the top so I won't squeeze on accident ) and that combined with the rest of my hand/thumb on the throttle should help to keep me more steady. The next time I am able to get on a bike I will try this and see if it helps I am going through a difficult move right now 2 month process! Hopefully this saturday though I can get back out there!

[sunshine229]

Sounds good, just don't accidentally grab the brake!

How is it going otherwise?

[Bella108]

Everything is going pretty great thanks! Oh! Other than this big owwww sunburn I got yesterday from riding around for hours in the super hot sun ( the day I didn't wear my suncreen and I am so light my face lightly burns just driving in my car sometimes if it's long distance ha!)

If all goes according to plan ( and lord knows I am not a planner! ) I hope to get my permit on Tuesday/5th then by Friday or Monday go for my License~! *Yay*
I think I can get my permit pretty easily from studying all the sample tests, but I do see how they sneak in those tricky words to make it harder for whatever reason. I think it's not very nice as the test is to make sure people know the Laws/Common sense/Safety etc. Not an english exam. Thankfully I am super good at English... Not so great with math! Eeek! ha

Next step! My first Purchase!

Hope you are having a great Holiday!

[Bella108]

I forgot to add when I am Reading/Learning (not the riding part) with the other people and instructor in the class I get super nervous As soon as I am back on the bike again though I am feeling great again. Instructors/People who don't seem very ummm... agreeable = Scary. Me by myself on bike = Happy/Freedom~!
The instructors have all been so great and helpful. The people have been a very mixed crowd~ Some act like you are their enemy~! Though others seem very nice, there to learn, and have fun while doing it.

[HYPERR]

Haha maybe I was trying to impress you . It is true though that the test here is much stricter, and its also true we see so few either women riders or larger bikes on the road here since the 'over 400cc' test is even harder than the middle cc test I took.

I think a lot of women don't take the larger cc test because they don't feel they can pass the part of the test where they have to lift a comparable CC bike off the ground.

[jstark47]

For my stepdaughter on her new (to her) Sportster, the challeng is turning too wide going around corners. I've ridden her bike, it's definitely capable of turning precisely, so she's not looking where she wants to go, or she's afraid to lean it, or she's stiff-arming it. Frustrating, I'm not sure how to help her. Except she needs to get out practicing more often, she's average two rides a week. It's not enough.

[Nalian]

The sporty is pretty top-heavy - how fast is she going when she's going wide? Does she ever take the corner well or is it always wide?

[jstark47]

how fast is she going when she's going wide?

Not fast. She slows down to a pretty conservative speed going around corners. And this also happens when she's pulling out and turning into an intersection from a stop.

Does she ever take the corner well or is it always wide?

Sometimes she does it right, but she's running wide often enough to be a concern to her mother and me.

The sporty is pretty top-heavy

This is a 1990 with a 2-gallon peanut tank and buckhorn bars. I'd heard about the top-heavy thing with Sportys, but this one doesn't really feel very top heavy to me. The buckhorn bars take a little getting used to though. All in all it handles a lot better than I expected. (Now getting it stopped on the other hand....)

[Nalian]

I had the big tank, so mine was pretty heavy and it was definitely a concern at first. I've never ridden one configured like you described, unfortunately. I have the urge to ask you a million questions but I'm sure you already know what to do, its just a matter of time making it happen.