Doing my Dang part!!

[mojo1094]

OH MAN!! I'm so excited. Out of my friends, I was the first to get a bike. Out of all my friends, I was also first to get my second and third bikes, but that's another story.

So, 2 friends have since joined the ranks, and that's great. Both of them took the class, with a third wanting to, but work constraints, and he's kinda lazy.

Ballyhoo, I wanted the kid to learn. His name's Ian, and he's a great guy. A little timid at times, and this does not make for a person in this world. You get scared, and oppertunities pass you by.

So, I put him on every bike i've owned, and 1 I didn't. I teach him how to walk the bike first, how to balance, how to position yourself, how to lean, how to steer, all before we start the motor. I throw my armored jacket, gloves and spare helmet on him, and he fires up my bike and is shaking like a leaf!! He looked at the spedo and tach the whole time.

Fast forward. Ian loves riding, he's getting better, and has taken my 954 out on the road a few times, with me following in my car, or another bike. We are usually out around 2 or 4 in the morning, so traffic is ... well, non existant. It's been about a year now, and he's put maybe 5 hrs of riding in. Not owning a bike makes it hard, but the kid learns really really quick, but he wants a bike now. So we found one.

1988 Honda Hurricane. It's 1000 cc's, which is a lot for a first bike, but i've ridden it, and it's manageable power. it's bigger, and he's smaller, but the bike is surprisingly light. he can handle it pretty well. I was impressed.

But here's my bragging point. The kid has a jacket, helmet and boots, and he's not picking up the bike for another 4 weeks!! He'll be getting a pair of gloves here too.

See, when I started riding, I knew no one that rode, NOW, I created my riding group. ANYONE WANNA STEP TO US??

A 2k2 954rr
An 88 Hurricane 1000
A 1975 Honda cb550
A 98 Suzuki Intruder 800

How's that for eclectic? We may be adding another friend to our ranks with an R6.

For anyone that cares, Ian can launch my 954 from a dead stop now and not piss the people off behind him. He was so scared when he started riding because he didn't want to flip the bike. I don't blame him. But, i showed him just how to launch it, how to be gentle with the clutch, etc. (He's never driven a manual tranny car, either).

ahh. Ok, bragging overwith, but I thought some of you would be proud that I teach my people right. (I hope to be a MSF instructor next year)

[medic001918]

Can't say I'd be teaching my friend to ride at night on my liter bike. But if you did, more power to you I guess. Five hours of ride time over one year doesn't amount to much of anything. In fact, I would still keep him in the same category/skill level as someone who has never really ridden before. Still don't agree with him starting on an older liter bike. Especially if he gets scared as easily as you say he does.
If you really taught him right, you would have waited until he got a smaller bike of his own and then taught him how to ride. There's a reason why road race schools usually use smaller bikes to teach on. My opinion is that you and your friend have been lucky more than anything else so far. For his sake, I hope his luck doesn't run out.
Shane

[GSX-R750]

Be sure to emphansize to him what happens if he gets scared and grabs a handful of throttle, even on a ninja 250 the results can be deadly.The best of luck to you and your group, look out for your beginning members, and always wear a rubber and a helmet!

[IMPerfection]

Originally Posted by GSX-R750

always wear a rubber and a helmet!

Especially at the same time! Then make the getaway on your sportbike with your identity still secret!