Too Fast! TOO FAST! TOOO FAAAST!

Thriller vs Chiller

I guess you could have taken it a bit easier considering it was her first taste of a real curvy road. I never go as fast as I do solo with a rider, especially a new / green rider. I want them to be thrilled not terrified, as it tends to lead to more future interest when the former is true.
 
Sounds familiar.....When I was still a passenger with my husband, I would ask him to take it easy thru the corners too....long story short, he didn't, and I took the MSF the next spring and got my own bike.
Just something for you to think about :sport12:
 
My wife and I rode 160 miles on Sunday with most of them on curvy roads. I gotta go slow in the beginning, and then as she settles in, we end up riding a pretty quick pace. Fast enough that my front wheel feels like it's starting to chatter with the different weight bias, which is my corner speed limiter 2 up.
 
You offered it up, and it is a forum, so I'm going to go ahead and make an observation. I have been riding more than 50 years. I have been a passenger a few times along the way. And I have been a lot more frightened as a passenger than as a rider. And I'm talking about riding with a trusted friend who is a superb, smooth rider. When you don't have control, things can get scary. When you don't understand the dynamics, and you put yourself in the hands of somebody who doesn't take that into consideration, the fear can be overwhelming. Don't mean to preach, but I do think you have the responsibility of making new riding experiences as comfortable and fun as possible - especially with your wife. Perhaps a less-challenging route till she gains experience would help. Roller coasters aren't for verybody. Keep the rubber side down, and the shiny side up, and maybe just keep this thought in mind.
 
Well, I have a lot of replies to get back to! Thanks for reading and responding back. That's the most fun part of writing these blogs.

She originally said she wanted an all day ride and that's what I planned, but then the weather was cold so she wanted to cut it down and she suggested just riding to Brevard to eat and back. She has ridden in a car on these roads so she was familiar with the route and approved it. She has ridden on a bike with me before and we even bought her a Ninja 250 to learn to ride. As it turns out riding herself was tearing her nerves up so we sold the Ninja and rolled the money into the FJR. I wanted to get a bike that was passenger comfortable. She never cared for the pillion on the FZ.

I did take it pretty slow. The action shot from the GoPro was during the first part of the day going up Caesar's Head and she was WAY more comfortable during this part of the day. After lunch I think she was tired and that's when she started to break down a bit. She really did great for her first ride and during the second half we slowed WAY WAY down. The sharp curves were almost like parking lot maneuvers. It was as slow as I could go and keep just enough momentum through the curve to keep us upright.

I know it was a challenge for her, but she did great and she is still willing to go again so I must not have ruined it for her. :) We did learn, together, that a shorter ride may be better in the beginning. Her original idea for her first ride was to go with friends to Helen, GA and she was set for it too. We tried to tell her that a ride to Helen from Spartanburg, SC was no joke. She still wanted to do it. I love my wife and her willingness!
 
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