Blog
My riding partner(s)
| Posted at 09:46 PM on February 14, 2009 |
Riding season will soon be on us before you know it and, believe me, my daughter Sarah and I are ready. Up until last year I pretty much rode solo which was okay but I needed someone who shared my passion for riding. That someone who'd get a leg over the saddle when they heard "let's ride" with no questions asked. turned out to be my oldest.
She'd packed behind me occasionally since she was 8. Always knew just how to lean into the corners and never flinched at some of the more loonier stunts I pulled (another blog). In 2007 on the Packerland ride she said "next year I'm riding next to you on my own bike". And I knew she meant it. So in Spring of 08 she started looking for HER bike. I got taken along to check them out and offer my opinion. I kinda figured that a novice rider should start out on a 650 or so. Nothing bigger. Boy was I wrong! After trying several 650's out for fit she found that the 1100 V-Star was more her liking. Now to find the right one.
She found it just a 1/4 mile from her apartment at Janssen's Motorsports. She called me one day and said I had to come out and see it. When I got there I could tell from the look on her face she'd found HER bike. It was a white 2004 1100. Something told me she wanted to make it hers before she even fired it up. After adding custom pipes, rejetting and a trip on the dyno it was hers. Now the fun started.
Being a novice rider she had to take the MSRF course to get her license and an insurance discount. Prior to that she had to familiarize herself with the new part of her life. And that's where Dad came in. She's driven a standard shift car before (I taught her in a car she was "interested" in buying but didn't. We just used it to get her acclimated to shifting. She done good) so a bike ain't much different except the controls are in different areas, right? Ya, right.
We practiced whenever I had some time in the parking area of her apartment complex. After getting used to the heft of the bike (550 lbs of dead weight) she fired it up. Prior to all this I had her pick up my bike (almost 800lbs) from the off-the-kickstand position on my front lawn. I figured she ought to learn to respect their weight from the get go. I let her pick it up how she wanted. She about threw out her back and a few other things trying. Then I showed her the right way. Proved to be not much easier for her but at least she knew how.
Well, starting out a bike and a stick shift 4 wheeler are two different animals in their reaction. A 4 wheeler will stay upright after throwing your grape around a bit. A 2 wheeler will do the same then try and lay down on your leg. Ususally the side with the (hot) pipes. Not good. You learn fast.
After a few jerky starts she got the clutch/gas thing down fairly well. But, because of the area we were working with she couldn't get it out of 1st too much. Plus she was still skittish about propelling that much steel and dumping it. I gotta say though she was persistant. She had one meltdown but she got right back on and just got better every time.
Soon she was taking it out in the neighborhood and into traffic with me tagging behind. Every time we got further and further away and got up more speed. One day she calls and says she went out on her own. Got it up into 3rd (?) gear and everything. She was real proud of that. It wasn't long before she was looking for an excuse just to ride (store for whatever).
From the 1st day she initially threw a leg over the bike to our first run together was not quite 3 1/2 months (she'll correct me if I'm off). since then we've gone on a run or two and shared the road as riding partners. She has no problem keeping up with me at 70. I just look over at her on the bike and beam with pride. She's got biker in her blood.
Her fiancee, Nate, took the riders course with her. They both passed easily for novices but Nate had an experience that even had the instructors wondering how he did it. That too, is another blog. Maybe I got yet another reason to be "biker" happy (besides having a great new son-in-law)?
She'd packed behind me occasionally since she was 8. Always knew just how to lean into the corners and never flinched at some of the more loonier stunts I pulled (another blog). In 2007 on the Packerland ride she said "next year I'm riding next to you on my own bike". And I knew she meant it. So in Spring of 08 she started looking for HER bike. I got taken along to check them out and offer my opinion. I kinda figured that a novice rider should start out on a 650 or so. Nothing bigger. Boy was I wrong! After trying several 650's out for fit she found that the 1100 V-Star was more her liking. Now to find the right one.
She found it just a 1/4 mile from her apartment at Janssen's Motorsports. She called me one day and said I had to come out and see it. When I got there I could tell from the look on her face she'd found HER bike. It was a white 2004 1100. Something told me she wanted to make it hers before she even fired it up. After adding custom pipes, rejetting and a trip on the dyno it was hers. Now the fun started.
Being a novice rider she had to take the MSRF course to get her license and an insurance discount. Prior to that she had to familiarize herself with the new part of her life. And that's where Dad came in. She's driven a standard shift car before (I taught her in a car she was "interested" in buying but didn't. We just used it to get her acclimated to shifting. She done good) so a bike ain't much different except the controls are in different areas, right? Ya, right.
We practiced whenever I had some time in the parking area of her apartment complex. After getting used to the heft of the bike (550 lbs of dead weight) she fired it up. Prior to all this I had her pick up my bike (almost 800lbs) from the off-the-kickstand position on my front lawn. I figured she ought to learn to respect their weight from the get go. I let her pick it up how she wanted. She about threw out her back and a few other things trying. Then I showed her the right way. Proved to be not much easier for her but at least she knew how.
Well, starting out a bike and a stick shift 4 wheeler are two different animals in their reaction. A 4 wheeler will stay upright after throwing your grape around a bit. A 2 wheeler will do the same then try and lay down on your leg. Ususally the side with the (hot) pipes. Not good. You learn fast.
After a few jerky starts she got the clutch/gas thing down fairly well. But, because of the area we were working with she couldn't get it out of 1st too much. Plus she was still skittish about propelling that much steel and dumping it. I gotta say though she was persistant. She had one meltdown but she got right back on and just got better every time.
Soon she was taking it out in the neighborhood and into traffic with me tagging behind. Every time we got further and further away and got up more speed. One day she calls and says she went out on her own. Got it up into 3rd (?) gear and everything. She was real proud of that. It wasn't long before she was looking for an excuse just to ride (store for whatever).
From the 1st day she initially threw a leg over the bike to our first run together was not quite 3 1/2 months (she'll correct me if I'm off). since then we've gone on a run or two and shared the road as riding partners. She has no problem keeping up with me at 70. I just look over at her on the bike and beam with pride. She's got biker in her blood.
Her fiancee, Nate, took the riders course with her. They both passed easily for novices but Nate had an experience that even had the instructors wondering how he did it. That too, is another blog. Maybe I got yet another reason to be "biker" happy (besides having a great new son-in-law)?
Categories: None
Get a Free Website at Webs.com!
