started teaching my woman to ride today


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2010FZ6R White Lightning

New Member
within seconds she dumped the 400 on its side lol:rolleyes: but after that we looked over the bike and theres not any serious damage and continued. she did really well after that. she burned up and down the street a few times and eventually started shifting and taking corners and so forth and she really had fun. when i said it was time to go she took off and rode some more lol. but anyway, when we got back we snapped a few pics. im teaching me and my buddy how to ride right now. and heres our 3 bikes.

all 3 with my woman

her on my fz6r

my 400

my buddies bike

and lastly the gf on the 400, thats gunna be hers.


overall a pretty good morning. my gf is picking up the basics well and my friend is started to get confident enough to open it up a little bit, with caution of course. but i think in no time we will all be ruling the roads :cool:
 
NoDoze

NoDoze

New Member
Sounds like she had a great time learning! Keep up the good work teaching.
 
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SAFE-T

New Member
If you forgo the proper 'professional' training, you may miss something important. I wouldn't want to risk that.
 
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XTRAWLD

New Member
My husband has been riding for 20 years. He's a good rider, but I wouldn't let him teach me how to ride, and he didn't want to try to teach me either because he felt he couldn't provide me with the proper training I needed. I went out and took a course. It's invaluable.
 
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2010FZ6R White Lightning

New Member
i have no idea what msf stands for, but at least in my town a motorcycle training course does not exist. i taught myself in a parking lot in 10 minutes i had the basics down and common sense and caution got me through the rest. i dont think theres any other way to do it and now im teaching both my best friend and my gf to ride.
 
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creggur

New Member
2010FZ6R White Lightning said:
i have no idea what msf stands for, but at least in my town a motorcycle training course does not exist. i taught myself in a parking lot in 10 minutes i had the basics down and common sense and caution got me through the rest. i dont think theres any other way to do it and now im teaching both my best friend and my gf to ride.
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First off - congratulations! there is nothing better than riding with your best friend - my wife and I enjoy it immensely and I'm sure you will too. Nothing beats a built-in riding partner... And now, time for a reality check:

Not to be an ass, but you are dead-wrong - and someone could end up dead from your arrogance. People learn differently - and what was easy for you to pick up and may seem like common sense - will not be the same for others.

I've been riding for the better part of 30 years now and learned a lot from the MSF (Motorcycle Safety Foundation) beginner riding course after 15 years of riding. Started on dirt at 10, progressed to street at 14, shifted to sport bikes at 19, and then at 25 took the MSF course. I wish it had been available to me before I ever rode on the street! I had been practicing what I believed to be common sense only to learn I was dead wrong and had put myself(and passengers) at unnecessary risk countless times over the years.

When my wife decided to learn to ride, the first thing we did was schedule her course. Upon her insistence I showed her the basics, but would never let her out of a parking lot and on the street without first taking the course.

After she took the course we would still go to parking lots and practice the skills she had learned, and I have to tell you, even after 30 years on a bike there were basic skills exercises I struggled with at first. IMPORTANT BASIC SKILLS!

Now you can question my intelligence or riding skills if you like, but I've been riding with my knee down for more years than I care to think about, and still learned new things just from going through the basic exercises with my wife.

At the end of the day, we are all responsible for our actions, I just chose not the take on the responsibility of teaching the most precious person in my life such a potentially dangerous activity for fear that I may miss something critical to her survival out on the road. And she is a better rider for it. These are decisions you have to make for yourself...
 
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2010FZ6R White Lightning

New Member
i definately understand where you are coming from and am not insulted at all or anything like that, but their simply is no motorcycle course in my town. at all lol. theres only one bike dealer in town too which is the yammy shop, and the next closest is harley 45 mins away, and the nearest town that might have a motorcycle trainingcourse is 3 hours away.
 
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angelsneverlose

New Member
Always good to see a new girl learning. I remember teaching my Wife last year. It was a blast, and im sure it helped she had been riding with me and learns quickly also... Its so much fun to be able to share the passion though!

Side story, advice...
Make sure you get pants or knee gaurds included with the gear for her! One of my friends GFs last summer learned to ride, and would come out with us if we were just putting around town (<35mph rides). She had A* boots, gloves, jacket and an arai helmet. She did not have pants though since its generally over looked part of gear (none of us did). Well, she took a dump at litterally only 20mphs and destroyed her knee (shattered knee cap, ripped area under knee to bone - everything else was fine). Needless to say, a $25 knee gaurd to slips over pants would have let her walk away and laugh about it, but now she walks with a limp, had several surgeries, 6 months PT, and is now terrified to every ride again (even as a passenger which she LOVED doing before)...

Just a .02
 
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Superzoom

New Member
angelsneverlose said:
Always good to see a new girl learning. I remember teaching my Wife last year. It was a blast, and im sure it helped she had been riding with me and learns quickly also... Its so much fun to be able to share the passion though!

Side story, advice...
Make sure you get pants or knee gaurds included with the gear for her! One of my friends GFs last summer learned to ride, and would come out with us if we were just putting around town (<35mph rides). She had A* boots, gloves, jacket and an arai helmet. She did not have pants though since its generally over looked part of gear (none of us did). Well, she took a dump at litterally only 20mphs and destroyed her knee (shattered knee cap, ripped area under knee to bone - everything else was fine). Needless to say, a $25 knee gaurd to slips over pants would have let her walk away and laugh about it, but now she walks with a limp, had several surgeries, 6 months PT, and is now terrified to every ride again (even as a passenger which she LOVED doing before)...

Just a .02
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Great advice, and it's very true that leg/knee armour is a commonly and inexplicably neglected item.
 
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SAFE-T

New Member
Where You Can Learn in Alberta - Canada Safety Council's Gearing Up - Canada's National Motorcycle Training Program

Medicine Hat College has a course starting on May 2.

I was self-taught and later became a motorcycle instructor for almost 15 yrs. Before I learned what I had missed, I had a couple of small whoopsies but never biffed it big-time. There were a couple of instances where I was nearly out-of-control, though. And several more where I should have known better but just didn't. Over the years I taught and observed thousands of students, some of which probably would have been fine on their own, while others you might as well have posted a sign that said "Lunch at 11" on. It may sound stupid, but small things like the way you position yourself while braking have an enormous influence on whether you (A) get to stop in time or (B) have a yard sale.

I got lucky but I wouldn't let someone else take their chances, particularly if I was in a position to affect the outcome. Your gal looks greener than grass ~ find yourself $800 between the three of you and enroll her and your buddy in the course.
 
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CrazyCawi

New Member
2010FZ6R White Lightning said:
:confused:ok ill look into that, i start at the college tomorrow for my classes, so thats good timing to find out...:confused:
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Were not saying it to you trying to be safety first nazi's...Even though most of us are. What we are saying is we can forsee issues happening with how little knowledge they have with riding, and the fact your knowledge comes from a parking lot and no formal training other than your own trial and error.

What is your first reaction when your cornering at 40 mph around a blind curve to see traffic is at a dead stop as you come around the corner? Most first reactions would be to slam on the front brake and hope for the best trying to skid to a stop....but thats wrong....what would your girlfriends reaction be? Do you have any idea of the proper procedures to perform and the "In your head step by step if this fails move to this option"? It comes from good training, and expirience.

Some people may get lucky, but your laying out a plan which offers alot of guilt on your concience and shoulders...and we dont want to see you hurt by that burden if something happens. So please, take our advice and find a way to get her into the motorcycle safety class, as it will provide her with the basic knowledge coming into emergency situations, along with your best friend. Reading through this thread I read many excuses, I highly suggest taking action versus finding reasons why you shouldn't.

We look out for one another here, I promise you Im not flaming you. I want the best outcome possible for the three of you. But remember, your in a mommy role right now, your holding their lives in your hands based off of your riding knowledge. Think about it.
 

NoDoze

NoDoze

New Member
+1 to what everyone said. Gear + education = safer and sane rider who'll enjoy the ride better and SEE (search, evaluate, execute) better. :D

For most of us, just because we took the courses didn't mean we stopped there. We continue to learn and practice skills in parking lots (e.g. emergency breaking and/or swerving).

Here's a few manuals we acquired. Some thing may not apply to the driving laws there in Canada, but it will give you an idea of what type of things they teach at MSF.

Motorcycle Operators Manual
http://www.msf-usa.org/downloads/Library_Motorcycle_Operator_Manual.pdf

Basic Rider's Course: Rider Handbook
http://msf-usa.org/CurriculumMaterials/BRCHandbook2009.pdf

Here's the whole library:
Motorcycle Safety Foundation

Ride safe!
 
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