Monday, August 25, 2008

My first time

Edited 2/1/14:  So, I just realized that the video for this now longer works....so sad, it was incredibly funny!


Today Dave rode my baby over to the parking lot of Harley Davidson for me. We figured since they were closed today and they have a huge parking lot it would be a great place for me to practice riding. Poor Dave was a nervous wreck! He was white faced and sweating before I even got on the bike. He said, "I think maybe someone else should teach you how to ride. I don't think I can do this." I have never seen him like that before. I almost said never mind. But I couldn't. I am going to take the riders course as soon as I can, but in the meantime I need to get acquainted with my girl. Even if I never got my feet off the ground today, I just needed to do something. Well, I got my feet off the ground. It felt so good. I think I did okay for my first ride. There were a couple of times that could have gotten hairy, but I just remembered Dave telling me never to panic. So I talked to myself (a lot) and stayed as calm as I could, and with the help of my beautiful baby girl, managed to keep the rubber on the road.

When Dave finally stopped shaking he managed to get some videos and pictures, which he made into a little video for me. I just watched the video and laughed my ass off at myself. You'll notice towards the first part where I am trying to push off on the bike with my foot. Not a good thing, but it looks funny!

Thanks Dave....for the video, for being so wonderful today, and for introducing me to motorcycles and helping me to where I am today! It never would have happened without you!


17 comments:

FLHX_Dave said...

The bird has left the nest, or should I say, the bitch has left the pillion. heh. Awesome and I was very proud of you. (just keep those feet away from the pegs girl.) :) I have seen guys do alot worse on their first time out. Usually they have to pick the bike up once or twice. Not you!

Lady R (Di) said...

Woo Hoo! Nice job! These are just your baby steps and good ones at that. They are very important in this whole endeavor, so no sweat!

Poor Dave. Harley understands exactly how he feels. I think they get more nervous about what we are doing than we get. But, it's all because they love us.

As soon as you complete a course, it will boost your confidence immensely because it will teach you the basics. After that repetition is your best friend. Looking forward to more! It will be fun to watch your progress. Remember what you said in your first blog? You wanted to share the experience of being a new rider and take us from the beginning on how it feels. Great beginning so far!

Mr. Motorcycle said...

Hey, That was a pretty nice maiden voyage! You looked great. Keep practicing!

Ann said...

Nice job, BB! My first time on two wheels was a bit different! :)

That smile on your face says it all though!

Dave, thanks for taking the time to take BB out on her first voyage...and thanks for the pics and videos. Nice job!

Dean "D-Day" said...

Great job Bec! Like Dave said, I've seen A LOT worse.

Keep it up, practice and have fun!

-Connie said...

Yay!! Nice job!!! Was/is it as hard as I imagine? Alexis watched with me and kept saying bike, and just brought me her toy chopper and was putting it in front of the puter screen hehehe!! Can't wait to hear about more practices and whatnot!!

Big Daddy said...

Looking Good!!!
You'll be kicking down the highway in no time.
BTW How come dave never mentioed what a awesome...um...seat on that bike.
LOL

Anonymous said...

You got guts girl! Anyone who would post a video to the internet of their first feeble attempts on a bike has definitely got guts! You looked GREAT though. :-D

Reminds me of my second attempt on my Sporty--complete with Jay taking her over to the parking lot and teaching me how to ride. (We really don't need to rehash the first attempt again-LOL) I'm with Lady R--this will all likely be harder on Dave than you. Bless his heart, he will survive.

Best thing I ever did was to get aquainted with my bike before my BRC--it allowed me to cruise through the first half dozen exercises or so which really boosted my confidence in the class and made my nerves go away.

IHG said...

B.B., You did great girl! YAY! You look really awesome riding your new baby. I'm so happy for you that I have tears in my eyes!

When you take the riding course you will do so much better since you are getting out there and practicing and you'll blow the little boys minds when you are able to do stuff that they can't!

Dan and his friend Dan tried teaching me how to ride and I ended up telling them to buzz off and go dirt biking while I got the feel for the bike I was using on my own. You did better then me my first time. I learned on a dirt bike and ended up on my back twice. Later on the guys told me they saw me do it and they were freaking out hoping I wasn't hurt. Thank God it's pretty hard to pop a wheelie on a Harley. :)~

And Dave's right...I've seen guys do much worse...I watched a guy crash his friend's Harley when he took off to do the first test on the riding course to get his license.

Great Video Dave...thanks for capturing B.B.'s first time! :)

Anonymous said...

You're gonna do great... it's in your blood. You can't escape it now!

B.B. said...

Thank you all for your kind words. Yes, I think Dave was definately more nervous than I was. I think he was especially nervous when I would go around a corner and he couldn't see me. He he.
I had considered not even getting on the bike until I had taken the riders course, but I figured I just needed to do it. But now I am really looking forward to taking the course and will feel good knowing a little something when I go in there.
Connie- Was it as hard as you or I had imagined? Yes and no. I had certain expectations as far as what I thought would come easy for me and what I thought would be challening. As it turns out I had a hard time leaning, which I thought I would do well with, and I thought it would be harder for me to balance and actually keep the bike upright, and that was probably the easiest part.
There was only one time that I thought I was actually going to drop the bike, and I was able to catch her before she got to the point of no return. (I'm feeling pretty good about getting a smaller bike. LOL.)
Mrs RC- Believe me, I thought long and hard about whether or not I wanted to share my first time. Ha ha. But my goal with this blog when I started was to share my journey from the begining to wherever it led me, and since this is such a huge part of that I just had to do it.

Kathleen Jennette said...

How cool is that girlie! That safety course will put everything into perspective for you too! Keep on practicing and let that riding bug bite you and take you on the road! Keep us on the up and up.

Becky said...

You did good, girl! I was afraid you were going to run into something but you kept pulling it off! It's so great you got it on camera. Fun to look back on when you've been riding a while. The bike looks like a perfect fit for you, by the way. It will be hard to stay off of now that you've gotten a taste....

Bikerchickz

Ronman said...

You look fabulous on the scoot B.B. I was nervous watching the video myself. I know Dave was probably sick to his stomach taping you. You first ride made me think of my first one. It was a neighbor's mini bike and the first thing I did was try and rip my had off my arm by riding into the jungle gym in his back yard. Fun times!

Ronman

P.S. Will you be riding her to Tennessee on your next visit?

B.B. said...

Thanks! Yeah, there were a couple close calls...Dave said, "You're getting way too close to stuff!" He was freaking out! LOL. I don't blame him, when I saw the video, I was like, wow, I was kinda close to that shed, and pole, and fence, and ...
Will I be riding to TN for my next visit..hmm, that one I'll have to wait and see! :)

Anonymous said...

It's been a little while, have been doing more rideing?

B.B. said...

Mrs RC- funny, I just posted a little update.