After 25 years my wife can still surprise me

[bscrive]

A couple of days ago my wife informed me that she would like to have a bike of her own.  This just floored me because she never gave any indications that she was interested in riding her own bike in the 25 years we have been together.  I immediately looked into a riders safety course which I found and it is held here in Ottawa on a regular basis.  Monday she is going to call and see when she can take the next one.  We are going on Friday for her to write the test for her learner's permit.  We went to a few dealers to look at bikes and have narrowed her first bike to a 750 Shadow Spirit or a 500 Vulcan.  We are leaning closer to the Vulcan because my wife is a small woman and it was considerably lighter.  The only thing now is to find one for a good price and there are not many out there.  I contacted a couple of potential bikes but no one has got back to me.  I think this will be a great experience for the both of us.  At this moment she is studying for the test.  Go figure!!

[Hog Killer DS0048]

My wife and I have been married for 25 years and I WISH she would like to have her own bike. She quit riding with me 15 years ago and weekends and vacations are tough. I want to ride and she doesn't. She hates even the slowest curve. I envy you.

[Willow]

If she's a small woman you may want to consider the Honda Shadow VLX.  It's a great starter bike.  600cc but it will hold hiway speeds with relative ease. 

[Red Diamond]

If your wife wants to ride her own bike, I envy you also. For those of us whose wives do not ride, you're not alone. My wife says she likes riding when we are having the conversation around some her friends, but I know she does not. She has ridden with me a couple of times, but only to say that she has ridden. As was stated by Killer, it does make leaving her kind of tough, even tougher to attend functions where everyone elses wife is there except yours.

[Moonshot_1]

Oddly enough, my wife just got herself a bike as well. She's had her motorcycle endorsement for, well, pretty much ever, but she hasn't had a blke since she was a teenager.

Anyway, she got a 06 Shadow 750 Aero. The Aero has a lower seat height by a couple of inches compared to the Spirit I think. It also has larger fenders.

Nice bike.

Good luck.

[Stormrider65]

Mine saw one of the Silver Wing step through and made the comment she wouldn't mind something like that.  Heck 650 cc and tops out at over 95.  She doesn't ride with me too much but also said she would prefer riding behind me when its time to ride on her schedule

Walt

[BradValk48237]

I would  say the 800 Vulcan.... Have one in the garage and it is a good reasonable size and good power. Could keep up with the Valk. Its light and good frame size. You know she'll want some go when it calls for it. 500 is a little to small and under powered.

B

[big d]

wife was willing to get her liscence the same time as i did. she is a great sport. and go figure, she likes long distance riding also. she hates to trailer as much as i do. good luck with everything.

[bscrive]

If she's a small woman you may want to consider the Honda Shadow VLX.  It's a great starter bike.  600cc but it will hold hiway speeds with relative ease. 

Hi Willow,

I looked at these on ebay and she likes the look of them but I don't think they are available in Canada.  All the ones for sale on ebay are too far away to check them out to see if she likes the feel of them.  We are in no rush, something will come by.

[bscrive]

Well, my wife got her 90 day learners permit last Thursday and on the same day to celebrate we got her a 2003 750 Shadow ACE in mint shape with only 4400 km on it. 
She also enrolled in a motorcycle course at a local college for Sept 9-11.  Money well spent I think.  I won't teach her my bad habits.  She will get expert instructions from a qualified teacher. 
I don't know about your states but in the province of Ontario, you do a written test to get your 90 day learners permit, then after riding for a minimum of 60 days you can go do the first driving test that will give you a M1 license that is good for up to 5 years.  After a minimum of 22 months you have to go back for a road test that will give you a full class M license.  You don't have to take a motorcycle course but you save money on insurance if you do. Also after she does the course and passes then she gets her M2 license because the course is sponsored by the province.  There is also a second course she can take after she has been riding for 18 months that, if she passes, she will get her full M license.  The courses are not too badly priced, $450 for the first one and $540 for the second one.  The good thing is that they supply the bike for the first course so, if she drops it , the bike is made for it and she doesn't damage hers.

[highcountry]

Double congrats to your wife!  In Colorado, if you pass the written test, you get a learner's permit meaning that you can ride but only when accompanied by a licensed biker.

You courses are actually very costly by our standards.  It cost $180 for the MSF course to get your full license in Denver.

[BigAl]

Lets be real here.

I have been down this road and it cost me 10,500 plus to find out she would in no way trust herself on a motorcycle.

Just the thought of sharing the passion I have for motorcycling with my wife.

Think 3 wheeler, either the Canam Spyder or actual Trike Style.

She will be happier and not all banged up like I have seen a few 1st time riders.

It does not have to be expensive either.

A 800cc trike will do fine.

Just a thought as you probably love your wife.

and want to keep her.

[Sergeant D]

Went through the same with my wife.  We went with a Yamaha Virago 1100.  Weighs only 463 lbs and has all the power to keep up with the bigger bikes and then some.  You can pick them up for around $2 grand so if she later decides she doesn't want to ride, not an expensive lesson.  I'm tempted to get one for myself for a summer bike.  These Valks are just plain HOT.

[RTaz]

Good for you guys, my advise to you is have her take the safety course see how well she likes its before committing to a specif bike. My wife Devon took the course and did well so we purchased her a 750 ACE she injured her ankle and didn't get to ride it too much so we sold the bike. A few years later she again took the course and again did well in the class. I got a good deal on a new 750 Aero and again she found that the weight of her bike and her ankle was not working out  ( she would turn right and fall over) so we sold the bike again. Last year I had a  leg injury that was pretty bad, we didn't know if I could ride again and riding two up was a definite question. We can across a great deal on a Can am Spyder at the time we didn't know which one of us would be riding it. Well I was soon back on my Valkyrie so Devl took the Spyder, she loves it she has put about 6000 miles on it so far.

So my advise to you would be make sure she first likes riding her own bike, then find a bike she will enjoy and be able to keep up comfortably with you. 

[Hef]

I consider myself to be very lucky to have a woman who loves riding but has no desire to ride her own bike. She says if she were riding her own bike she would have a constant fear of someone turning in front of her or an animal darting out and she just doesn't think she would enjoy it. When riding with me she can just sit back and enjoy the ride.  She fully trust me and therefore the ride is a pleasure for her. She says she enjoys the closeness of us being on the bike together. For me, there is just something special about having her in the saddle behind me as we both enjoy the ride. Any time I mention a ride she is always ready to go. Absolutely nothing wrong with the female wanting her own bike, but I really like sharing my ride with mine onboard.

[thewoodman]

My wife of many years got tired of seeing the world by looking around my helmet. Only 5'3 and 150 lbs, she started with a 535 Virago and dropped it twice down the road from the house, then threw her hands in the air in disgust and quit. Bike went away for what I paid for it. A year later, I started her again when I found a Rebel 250 in the neighborhood for 1200 bucks and parked it in the carport where she stared at it for a week or so.

The urge finally overtook her fear and down the road she went. We'd put it up on the truck and haul it out in the open space of the country for practice for a few months. She took the Safety course twice since she missed the first range test by 1 point. Rebels are good for around town, but not for any distance, so I bought her an 883 HD Sportster that she just swooned over, but it also sat in the carport for a week until I said; "If you aren't going to ride this thing, I will since I bought it"

Off I went with her following me on the Rebel. A few miles from the house is a long stretch that runs along the water, with no houses. I got off and suggested she give it a try and she has never looked back or slowed down since. Problem was my fat a$$ having to ride the Rebel home. 1 year on the Sportster and 60 thousand miles on her Fatboy proves that she is a tried and true rider.

Rebel went away for a few more bucks that I paid for it. Moral to the story is (1) the first bike should not be intimidating in any way and (2) pay what you can sell it for later if it doesn’t get used.

I have 3 friends whose wives wanted to learn to ride. All bought bigger bikes that were just too big to learn on and the wives were scared to death of dropping; and all lost money in the process. One guy did it 3 times, the first 2 attempts buying NEW bikes and then getting hammered on the sale. The third attempt, he bought a Rebel and the wife still could not feel safe riding her own ride and we all feel safer for it too.

[Jess Tolbirt]

I consider myself to be very lucky to have a woman who loves riding but has no desire to ride her own bike. She says if she were riding her own bike she would have a constant fear of someone turning in front of her or an animal darting out and she just doesn't think she would enjoy it. When riding with me she can just sit back and enjoy the ride.  She fully trust me and therefore the ride is a pleasure for her. She says she enjoys the closeness of us being on the bike together. For me, there is just something special about having her in the saddle behind me as we both enjoy the ride. Any time I mention a ride she is always ready to go. Absolutely nothing wrong with the female wanting her own bike, but I really like sharing my ride with mine onboard.

Bev is the same way, she wont let the bike out of the yard without her on it,,maybe she doesnt trust me,,,

[bscrive]

I hear you guys.  We did look at a lot of bikes and the 750 Shadow ACE was the one she liked the best.  She did not like the 250 Rebel or the 600 VLX or the 500 LTD, all had a hard clutch.  The ACE is nice and low and the clutch is the easiest I have ever seen.  The bike also does not have a lot of power at low end but has good power once you get the revs up.  The other nice thing was that the guy we bought it from had to sell it fast because he was moving to a condo and did not have the space to park it.  We only paid $3000 for it.  So if she decides that riding is not for her or she drops it, we are not out much money.