My new riding partner

[SilverHound]

Long story short...my wife went from passenger to rider last year...sort of. After passing the MSF course and getting her license I got her a new Honda NC700X in the fall. After just a few short rides she was moving the bike in the garage, slipped and she went down with the bike on top of her. Broken ankle and laid up for eight weeks..then winter set in full force. Today the skies were clear, the weather warmed up and the planets aligned enough that she finally could get back on the bike.

Looking forward to many rides this season.

 

[garyahouse]

Glad to hear she's feeling better. Breaking any thing is never any fun. Maybe you could get her one of those fancy bike dollies for the garage? She could roll it all over the place with just one hand once it's up on the dolly. Never saw a windshield quite like the one on her Honda. Is that an aftermarket item? It looks rather long and narrow. How well does it work for her?

Gary

darksder #44

 

[majicmaker]

SilverHound, if your wife has gotten to the point where she wants to be your riding partner as opposed to your passenger, how can you say NO to that? That's awesome! Enjoy.

 

[Pterodactyl]

Almost 6 years ago my wife Annie decided to become a rider. We ended up retiring early and moving from Alaska in large part so we can ride more. She's an avid rider and was ridden throughout Alaska including to Deadhorse, made 7 trips between Alaska and the lower 48 and ridden in just about every state west of the Mississippi and a few more in the east. If your experience is like ours it will mean you ride more and enjoy it more than ever. It can also be expensive. Annie has three BMWs that she bought new in the past 6 years and still rides two of them regularly. Count yourself a lucky man to have a wife that shares your love of ridding and was not dissuaded by a little broken ankle. This is Annie in Denali NP with Denali in the background.

 

[SilverHound]

Glad to hear she's feeling better. Breaking any thing is never any fun. Maybe you could get her one of those fancy bike dollies for the garage? She could roll it all over the place with just one hand once it's up on the dolly. Never saw a windshield quite like the one on her Honda. Is that an aftermarket item? It looks rather long and narrow. How well does it work for her?
Gary

darksder #44

Yeah, It's a Puig screen. The stock screen is about the size of a CD case. So far this one seems a lot better for moving the air up over her helmet. I actually already have a bike dolly but her "fall" wasn't because she can't manage the bike. It was a sort of a freak accident due to a slippery spot on the floor and in her words, her "being a spaz".

Almost 6 years ago my wife Annie decided to become a rider. We ended up retiring early and moving from Alaska in large part so we can ride more. She's an avid rider and was ridden throughout Alaska including to Deadhorse, made 7 trips between Alaska and the lower 48 and ridden in just about every state west of the Mississippi and a few more in the east. If your experience is like ours it will mean you ride more and enjoy it more than ever. It can also be expensive. Annie has three BMWs that she bought new in the past 6 years and still rides two of them regularly. Count yourself a lucky man to have a wife that shares your love of ridding and was not dissuaded by a little broken ankle. This is Annie in Denali NP with Denali in the background.

Wow! That's pretty awesome. Good for her and you.

 

[Intech]

Awesome. I am lucky to have a wife that is passionate about riding also. She toyed with the idea of getting her own ride and last discussed it at NAFO 2012. There were several female riders there and she had the opportunity to sit on a couple other non-FJR bikes. Turns out she is happy to stay on the pillion. Either way is a win win for me.

 

[wnyfjr]

Glad to hear she is ready to ride! My wife also toyed briefly with the idea of her own bike, but found that she really enjoys just going wherever I take us and looking around at everything as we go. We stop and she'll say did you see that beautiful house or whatever, and I was so busy watching for cagers, forest rats, gravel, etc, that I missed it completely. She likes the sightseeing aspect of being a passenger. That being said, she's often the one who says "Hey, how about we go for a ride today instead of doing chores?" Have I mentioned how much I love my wife?

 

[Brujo]

^^ i feel you exactly... There has been times that i rather watch tv than going for a ride(flame suit on)... And she would be ...get up and get the bike, we are going out...LOL.

 

[RadioHowie]

Have I mentioned how much I love my wife?

Have I mentioned how much I'd love to trade mine for a Snickers and bag of Cheez Doodles?

 

[Bustanut joker]

Vics to chicken to ask so I will for him.

Would you settle for a Baby Ruth, a half eaten Pay Day and a bag of Flaming Hot Cheetos?

 

[BkerChuck]

Good to hear she's back on the bike. This often scares new riders when something of this nature happens. I too am fortunate enough to have a wife that rides her own. Mine is even nuts enough to want an IBA number so we're planning a first Saddle Sore for later this year. Best of luck and many happy miles and smiles to you both!

 

[eatpasta]

Ive tried getting my wife on a bike. She has her license and rides just fine but prefers to just chill on the back and nap. You wouldnt believe how many times ive looked back and seen her just flapping around back there.

 

[jcyuhn]

How does your wife like the NC1700? I am guessing she is quite tall, given the way she flatfoots it in the picture?

My wife rides too, but we have a devil of a time finding a bike that hits the right sport-touring points for her. Most bikes are too big/tall/heavy. The few in the U.S. market that are not too big are all lacking some aspect - hard luggage, comfort, smooth engine. I wonder if she should look at a BMW F800GT, but I hear mixed feedback on the smoothness of the Rotax twin. Have considered adding Givi luggage to one of the new Honda 500 twins, but am not sure they have enough HP for even her conservative riding style.

 

[eatpasta]

How does your wife like the NC1700? I am guessing she is quite tall, given the way she flatfoots it in the picture?
My wife rides too, but we have a devil of a time finding a bike that hits the right sport-touring points for her. Most bikes are too big/tall/heavy. The few in the U.S. market that are not too big are all lacking some aspect - hard luggage, comfort, smooth engine. I wonder if she should look at a BMW F800GT, but I hear mixed feedback on the smoothness of the Rotax twin. Have considered adding Givi luggage to one of the new Honda 500 twins, but am not sure they have enough HP for even her conservative riding style.

this works perfect for my wife and she is just about 5 foot even. She loves this bike

 

[majicmaker]

Vics to chicken to ask so I will for him.Would you settle for a Baby Ruth, a half eaten Pay Day and a bag of Flaming Hot Cheetos?

Wasn't going to touch that with a ten foot pole. I was laughing too much to reply to Howies post. )

 

[RichDoyle]

Easy to be in a position to fall over. My bike is currently kept in a 3-sided carport. Ficus leaves are constantly finding their way onto the concrete in there. I'll be backing my bike out, put a foot on a ficus leaf and zziippp, it tries to take me down like it was a banana peel. So far I've been successfully vigilant, but the evil things are still trying...

 

[eatpasta]

Long story short...my wife went from passenger to rider last year...sort of. After passing the MSF course and getting her license I got her a new Honda NC700X in the fall. After just a few short rides she was moving the bike in the garage, slipped and she went down with the bike on top of her. Broken ankle and laid up for eight weeks...

and this is a huge bummer. As im sure we all know, riding a bike is all about confidence and the moment that confidence is shaken even a little, getting on a bike seems intimidating..... and as Im sure most of us know, the easiest place to drop a bike is moving it around the garage or in any low speed maneuver.

A bruise to the pride is a bitch but a broken ankle on top of which is insult to injury. Good on her for getting back on the (iron) horse!! Im sure plenty of people would have quit right then and there - serious kudos to your wife.

You've got a good one!

 

[ULEWZ]

Good on you to get your wife to ride her own bike and to keep riding it.

Got my wife a Triumph Street Triple in 2012 and she loves that bike. She rides faster than Hardleys now and most cars, but still not up to sportbike speed. We will be doing a Reg Pridmore CLASS class in April at Streets of Willow to get her confidence even better.

 

[SilverHound]

How does your wife like the NC1700? I am guessing she is quite tall, given the way she flatfoots it in the picture?
My wife rides too, but we have a devil of a time finding a bike that hits the right sport-touring points for her. Most bikes are too big/tall/heavy. The few in the U.S. market that are not too big are all lacking some aspect - hard luggage, comfort, smooth engine. I wonder if she should look at a BMW F800GT, but I hear mixed feedback on the smoothness of the Rotax twin. Have considered adding Givi luggage to one of the new Honda 500 twins, but am not sure they have enough HP for even her conservative riding style.

She loves the NC700X and yes, she's 6' tall with freakishly long legs so our problem was finding a bike that was tall enough for her. The seat height of the NCX actually seems to be a bit higher than my FJR. She had a heck of a time during the MSF course riding the little Rebel 250 cruisers they provided. I bought a set of Givi side cases for her bike. Just had them off for those pics but looking forward to some longer touring trips. Have heard of some of the shorter NC700X riders lowering their bikes so that might be an option to consider for your wife too if you're concerned about HP of the 500. The NCX has a very low center of gravity because the gas tank is actually under the seat and fills from under the passenger pillion. There is a front-trunk (frunk) where the gas tank should be that is large enough to hold a full face helmet. Also after much deliberation, she opted for the DCT model which is the full automatic 6-speed tranny. It also has a "sport" mode and you can manually paddle shift it as well. No clutch, no shifter. I rode it home from the dealer and once I stopped trying to find the clutch and shifter which weren't there, it really was quite fun to ride.