New Rider

[johnw]

I just signed Princess Lily up for an off road riding course next month. She doesn't currently ride, but will become a teenager this summer and I think it's time we find out if she will become one of us someday.

I have often read that the best road riders start out as dirt riders so I thought this might get her started early. I didn't ride my first bike until I was 25 (35 years ago) and spent a lot of time regretting that I didn't learn earlier.

I have started teaching her basics like brakes, throttle, and clutch, but have no desire to get into the actual riding part until we see if it really is something she wants. Right now she's excited. I will report further after her class the first weekend in Feb.

[jhowdy]

This sounds like a good plan. She will have all the basic operational issues of motorcycling mastered long before she she ever encounters traffic and folks in cars trying to do all they do to take the fun out of the ride. I believe it's much harder to start out on the street first and have to deal with the operational issues of the bike and traffic issues at the same time.

Just warn her that combining "dirtbike" riding and "street" riding can cause issues. I darn near wasn't able to get my first licence until I was 18 due to frequently attempting to mix the two. ;)