Wife's gonna take the MSF Basic course St. Patty's Day Weekend!!!g

[sfalexi]

She went from deathly afraid of bikes (having her mother be a volunteer firefighter and only tell her about the horror story crashes, especially in TX where helmets aren't required), to slowly riding on the back of mine, to considering one for commuting to her job, to FINALLY signing up for the rider's course!!!  Awesome!!!

We'll see how it goes!  I'm gonna see how she feels about riding after the basic course.  If she thought it was "Ok", we'll get a used ninja 250 for her to continue to see if she really likes it.  If she didn't really care for it, at least she gave it a shot, and if she REALLY liked it, maybe we'll start her off with one of the bikes she wants to end up with anyway (she likes the gladius and ninja 650R, both good bikes IMO for her to learn and grow with).

And if she REALLY REALLY likes it, and continues to ride over the next two years, I'll be trading in my comfortable tourer for something just for me since it won't need to be an "us" bike anymore.

I'll let you all know how it went cause I'm sure you're ALL dying to know! (or at least one or two might want to point THEIR spouses to this thread as motivation/support)

Or even better, if it went well, convince her to sign up for S-T.net and tell us all herself!

Alexi

[Kneescrubber]

Or even better, if it went well, convince her to sign up for S-T.net and tell us all herself!

Alexi

Looking forward to that.  

[viffergyrl]

  One step at a time! Glad to hear she keeps taking baby steps. Just slowly pay out the line....  

[AzItLies]

Yup, that's great stuff. The MSF BRC is a great way to get started. It's a lot of information, but that's much better then what it use to be... "get on and good luck"

[Rincewind]

Congrats!  It's a big step.  My wife took the MSF course last year (props to Smoker, her teacher).  She spent a year on a "beater bike" that she dropped a few times by accident.  Then this year she moved to a Gladius.  I recommend starting her on an old, cheap, beater bike that won't matter if it's laid over.  I let her buy her own bikes, but gave her lots of advice and support.

Over two years ago I had gotten rid of my larger touring bike and gotten a "just for me" type bike at her insistence.  Much nicer for me, and it helped give her a reason to get her own.  

One year later and she is riding very regularly.  

[bluepoof]

Sweet!!  

I'd recommend starting off with the Ninja 250 either way instead of jumping right to the 650 even if she's really into riding (especially if she's short/small), but then, I'm pretty biased because I love my Ninjette.  

Watch out though --- my husband encouraged me to take the MSF class and the next thing he knew I was riding off to Alaska and across the country without him.

[Kootenanny]

She went from deathly afraid of bikes (having her mother be a volunteer firefighter and only tell her about the horror story crashes, especially in TX where helmets aren't required), to slowly riding on the back of mine, to considering one for commuting to her job, to FINALLY signing up for the rider's course!!!  Awesome!!!

Must be nice.

My wife has an interest in riding (she can operate a motorcycle), but no strong desire...she enjoyed riding on the rear of my old 550 UJM, and when I bought a new "for me" bike, I kept the 550 with the intention that she'd learn on it.  Never really  happened...it was always too hot, too cold, too late, too whatever (as I said, no strong desire), and so I sold the old bike.  Unfortunately, the bike I'd bought is NOT designed with the passenger in mind, and she seldom rides with me anymore.

I did, however, buy an XT225 last fall, which she's ridden before and finds it very easy and fun, so perhaps...


(BTW, I'm now a volunteer firefighter myself.  So far, the only real "horror story"--a crash I did not attend--involved a fatality caused by a pickup going off the side of a snowy road and rolling into a tree...so be careful, those pickups are dangerous!).

[auggius]

That's cool.  

I was riding when I met my wife but she had no interest in riding her own.  She would happily ride as a pasenger though.  But meeting other riders at work changed her mind.  So when she signed up for lessons I figured that would be about it.  She passed on her first try and came home and said "let's go get your VFR cause the CBR is mine now."  So that afternoon I got a new bike!

She actually developed into a very good rider but hasn't ridden in a couple of years due to health issues.  But this year she's determined to get back on the bike.  Guess I better get that leaking fork seal fixed so she doesn't have an excuse.

[cbsnbiker]

She went from deathly afraid of bikes (having her mother be a volunteer firefighter and only tell her about the horror story crashes, especially in TX where helmets aren't required), to slowly riding on the back of mine, to considering one for commuting to her job, to FINALLY signing up for the rider's course!!!  Awesome!!!

We'll see how it goes!  I'm gonna see how she feels about riding after the basic course.  If she thought it was "Ok", we'll get a used ninja 250 for her to continue to see if she really likes it.  If she didn't really care for it, at least she gave it a shot, and if she REALLY liked it, maybe we'll start her off with one of the bikes she wants to end up with anyway (she likes the gladius and ninja 650R, both good bikes IMO for her to learn and grow with).

And if she REALLY REALLY likes it, and continues to ride over the next two years, I'll be trading in my comfortable tourer for something just for me since it won't need to be an "us" bike anymore.

I'll let you all know how it went cause I'm sure you're ALL dying to know! (or at least one or two might want to point THEIR spouses to this thread as motivation/support)

Or even better, if it went well, convince her to sign up for S-T.net and tell us all herself!

Alexi

Neat!

Herewith a few thoughts:

MSF stats show that something like 30% of those who take the BRC do not go on to ride. This could happen with your wife. OTOH, that means that 70% *do* go on to ride.  

I agree with Poof's advice, integrated with yours. After your wife completes the course, she should self-assess to decide what bike would be appropriate post-course. That said, if she's wavering between a smaller bike and a larger bike, she may find the smaller bike more comfortable and confidence-inspiring. She can always trade it in for a bigger bike once she's gained riding experience and made boo-boos on the first bike. OTOH, I know people who started off with the bigger bike and were stymied by it.

Finally, don't think of the BRC as the end of training, but the end of the beginning of her learning. She should consider taking the BRC2 at some point after she's completed the BRC. Depending on where you are in your own riding, you may want to take it as well. There are other neat additional courses, such as the ARC. Definitely worth looking into.  

[sfalexi]

Neat!

Herewith a few thoughts:

MSF stats show that something like 30% of those who take the BRC do not go on to ride. This could happen with your wife. OTOH, that means that 70% *do* go on to ride.  

I agree with Poof's advice, integrated with yours. After your wife completes the course, she should self-assess to decide what bike would be appropriate post-course. That said, if she's wavering between a smaller bike and a larger bike, she may find the smaller bike more comfortable and confidence-inspiring. She can always trade it in for a bigger bike once she's gained riding experience and made boo-boos on the first bike. OTOH, I know people who started off with the bigger bike and were stymied by it.

Finally, don't think of the BRC as the end of training, but the end of the beginning of her learning. She should consider taking the BRC2 at some point after she's completed the BRC. Depending on where you are in your own riding, you may want to take it as well. There are other neat additional courses, such as the ARC. Definitely worth looking into.  

Didn't know about those stats.  Interesting.  Although thinking about it, it seems very plausible that as much as 30% decided it wasn't for them long-term.  

Either way, I'm happy she gave it a shot.  And I take the ERC (ARC now?) every year.  And we've been looking at the CBR250RR and Ninja 250 for now.  I think she really is interested in a clutchless motorcycle, and she's been eying the NC700X, but we'll see how she feels after a few months on a small 250 with a clutch.  Maybe she'll be ok with one after that, maybe she'll still want the simplicity of twist and go.  Or maybe she'll decide she prefers being a passenger.  We'll see.....

Alexi

[cbsnbiker]

Didn't know about those stats.  Interesting.  Although thinking about it, it seems very plausible that as much as 30% decided it wasn't for them long-term.  

Yup. There are all sorts of reasons. I know of a couple who took the course as a self-contained event. They had no interest in riding in the real world. The course itself was their learning experience.    Others never really wanted to ride, but took the course to humor someone else. Others take the course and decide it's not for them. One friend of mine took the course and kept talking about getting a bike, but still hasn't gotten around to it over a decade later. And so forth.

Either way, I'm happy she gave it a shot.  And I take the ERC (ARC now?) every year.  

What was called the ERC is now called the BRC2.

The ARC is another step beyond the BRC2: faster speeds, higher lean angles, and a lot of emphasis on the thinking side of riding.

And we've been looking at the CBR250RR and Ninja 250 for now.  I think she really is interested in a clutchless motorcycle, and she's been eying the NC700X, but we'll see how she feels after a few months on a small 250 with a clutch.  Maybe she'll be ok with one after that, maybe she'll still want the simplicity of twist and go.  Or maybe she'll decide she prefers being a passenger.  We'll see.....

Alexi

Best wishes to her!

[Kootenanny]

Hey Alexi, so your wife is taking the course today?  Here's wishing her success!

[jsanford]

Hey Alexi, so your wife is taking the course today?  Here's wishing her success!

+1!  I'm sure you know that it's not a good idea to watch her in class.

I was both excited and trepidatious when my fiance took the MSF.  He spent the first year learning the ropes on a 22-year-old two-stroke Kawasaki that had been idle on someone's lawn. It was relatively easy to fix up.

She should pick out something used/cheap for the first bike--no matter what, she'll love it like no other (Grant still loves the Kaw, and I still regret selling my F650) due to the shared experience of learning to ride with it.  Her tastes in motorcycles may change after she gains some experience as well.

[bluepoof]

Hey Alexi, so your wife is taking the course today?  Here's wishing her success!

+another!

[cbsnbiker]

+1!  I'm sure you know that it's not a good idea to watch her in class.

I agree. There is the rare couple for whom having the spouse watch is beneficial, but most are well served by having the spouse stay away.

One example exemplifies this. I had a student who did well in the course. She was a routinely solid student. Then she fell apart in the skill evaluation and failed it. It turned out that her husband showed up just before the skill evaluation, and watched her from an adjoining parking lot. He meant well, but his presence totally freaked her out.    Had she mentioned it to me before the evaluation, I would have kindly and politely asked him to go get a cup of coffee and come back in an hour or so.

[Cablebandit]

Yup the first thing we do on the range if a husband/wife or parent/child are there together is separate them.

[alexj]

My mom watched me take part of the BRC, she found that sufficiently boring she just napped in the truck or went shopping for the rest of it

[sfalexi]

I decided a while back NOT to watch her.  Didn't want her to be nervous with me there.  But she came back last night and so far, so good (from someone who has never ridden a motorcycle, hell hasn't even ridden a bicycle in over 15 years).  

She said she's doing ok on it, but apparantly the bike they gave her broke down twice, and something was messed up with the clutch.  She said it felt funky, but it took one of the instructors using it for a demonstration to verify that it, indeed, was not adjusted right.  

And she has had the only accident in the class (minor, no damage to her or the bike).  Might've been because of the clutch, but she said during one of the weaving exercises, she lost control of the bike and it accellerated forward and she hit the curb at the end of the parking lot and tumbled a little into the grass.  To be fair, I told her a few things on Friday to be wary of, and told her that if she ever feels like she's losing control of the bike, to pull in the clutch.  With that pulled in, the bike CAN'T get faster, and you can then take your time to brake.  But in the heat of the moment, from somone who has never ridden before and probably is a little nervous, I understand!!!

So she's on day two here today, I'm gonna meet her for lunch over there, and see how it's going!

Alexi

PS - Oh yeah.  And her thighs are REALLY REALLY sore from walking the bike during those first exercises and gripping with the knees.  lol.  I remember those days.  Guess I've ridden enough to toughen up a bit.

[AzItLies]

I decided a while back NOT to watch her.  Didn't want her to be nervous with me there.  But she came back last night and so far, so good (from someone who has never ridden a motorcycle, hell hasn't even ridden a bicycle in over 15 years).  

She said she's doing ok on it, but apparantly the bike they gave her broke down twice, and something was messed up with the clutch.  She said it felt funky, but it took one of the instructors using it for a demonstration to verify that it, indeed, was not adjusted right.  

And she has had the only accident in the class (minor, no damage to her or the bike).  Might've been because of the clutch, but she said during one of the weaving exercises, she lost control of the bike and it accellerated forward and she hit the curb at the end of the parking lot and tumbled a little into the grass.  To be fair, I told her a few things on Friday to be wary of, and told her that if she ever feels like she's losing control of the bike, to pull in the clutch.  With that pulled in, the bike CAN'T get faster, and you can then take your time to brake.  But in the heat of the moment, from somone who has never ridden before and probably is a little nervous, I understand!!!

So she's on day two here today, I'm gonna meet her for lunch over there, and see how it's going!

Alexi

PS - Oh yeah.  And her thighs are REALLY REALLY sore from walking the bike during those first exercises and gripping with the knees.  lol.  I remember those days.  Guess I've ridden enough to toughen up a bit.

Glad to hear it went pretty much okay for her. That's great.

Like you, yes, by all means make sure it's very very clear that any time she starts to feel out of control, pull in the clutch and use the brakes nice and smooth and gentle.

The ranges we use have to have a certain amount of "run off" all around them. Specifically for situations like you describe happened with her. Assuming the range she's on is up to standard, she had to have gone pretty far away from the Exercise to have run into a curb.

The range I'm teaching on today, if a person had gone as far off the range as it sounds like she did, unfortunately they would have run into a parked car!

So this is all conjecture, I obviously wasn't there and don't know the range. But one thing for sure, be 100% certain she understands to pull in the clutch to stop power from the motor to the rear wheel. As you already did!!

Guess I'm just a nervous nelly when it comes to these things. It's very frightening to see a student going off the range out of control, and all you can do is yell as loud as you can PULL IN THE CLUTCH!!!!!!!! PULL IN THE CLUTCH!!!!!!!! PULL IN THE CLUTCH!!!!!!!!
Hope it all works out good for her

[Kootenanny]

We had a woman ride off the lot and over a bank at a class once...she had to go at least a hundred yards to do that...no harm done, but I can't recall now if she continued with the class...