Freedom, confidence, empowerment, community and joy are all things I get out of riding. It is one of the best decisions I’ve made and if you’ve been thinking about doing it, I promise you won’t regret it!
Where do you start? I spent years saying I wanted to ride but never actually doing it. My first mistake was thinking I needed to buy a bike to learn on. How do you pick out and purchase a motorcycle when you have no idea if you’ll be able to ride it or if you’ll even like it? The answer is: You don’t.
First things First.
The first thing you should do is get your license and book a course. I cannot stress enough the importance of taking a motorcycle course.
Most courses have bikes for you to use so there’s no need to worry about picking out a bike just yet plus you’ll come out of it with a full license and the skills and confidence needed to safely be out on the road.
You will need to write your learners test before you can take a course. ( Check your local regulations as this information is relevant to BC, Canada.) If you live here on Vancouver Island, I highly recommend the Vancouver Island Safety Council! The program is broken into two courses: the Novice Skills Course and the Traffic Skills Course.
The Novice Skills Course teaches you the basics on how to safely and confidently operate a motorcycle. Part class theory and part riding the provided motorcycles. Your instructor will teach you: Starting and stopping, slow speed maneuvers, clutch control, balance and braking, emergency braking and they do your MSA (Motorcycle Skills Assessment) during your course so you won’t have to go to ICBC for that. After completing the MSA you’ll have the ‘supervisor’ & ‘speed’ restrictions removed from your learners license.
In the Traffic Skills Course you get to chose a bike from their selection of different styles of motorcycles available to do the course on AND to use on your ICBC road test. Plus you can try out any or all of the motorcycles at the end of the course. This course will teach how to safely ride on the road, in traffic, in groups and prepare you for your road test.
After you complete the courses you have the option of using their bikes to do your test, they will also book the road test for you in the available slots they have pre-booked (Less hassle and waiting time for you!)
The only hours/practice on a motorcycle I had before taking the road test was on these two courses. They will fully prepare you for the test but if you need more time you can also book additional one on one sessions.
Finding a motorcycle
You’ve completed your courses and passed your road test! I’m pretty positive at this point you’ll be hooked on riding and eager to find a bike! Since you have a licence now and are comfortable enough to maneuver a motorcycle you can test out different bikes and riding styles before making the commitment of buying one.
Questions you should ask yourself before buying a bike: What is your favorite style of bike?, What kind of riding do you want to do? and What is your budget?
Look around online and stop into your local motorcycle dealerships. See what prices are like and sit on some bikes. Check out what handle bar position and feet positions feel comfortable for you, how heavy or light they feel. Go on a few test rides.
New or Used? This will depend on your budget but also weather you plan on starting out small or not. You don’t want to buy a new bike if you’re going to want to upgrade to a bigger bike in 6 months. You also want to consider that you’ll probably drop your first bike a few times and you don’t want to damage a brand new motorcycle.
Buying used also comes with more maintenance and safety issues to worry about. It’s best to get the used bike in for a safety inspected before you buy it and take someone with you who is motorcycle mechanically inclined. Check the tires, brakes, clutch, suspension, oil, coolant, and chain. When was the bike last serviced? Does it start easily? Are there any leaks? Has it been stored inside or outside?
What size bike should you start with?
This is a decision only you can make, based on what you’re comfortable with. Most people will tell you to start with a small bike (for safety reasons) but I’ve heard many other riders tell me that they started with a small, low CC bike and out grew it in a month or two and weren’t happy being stuck with a slow bike. Starting on a bigger bike might take a bit longer to get comfortable on but you won’t need to upgrade after a few months. If you’re still nervous and would feel more comfortable on a small bike then do what is comfortable for YOU.
My first bike is still the one I am riding today. It’s a 1200cc, Harley Sportster Roadster and I’m still happy with it 3 years later. I could definitely go bigger when it comes to going on longer road trips but financially it doesn’t make sense for me to buy a new bike right now. Plus I still love the shit out of my sporty.
This decision will also depend on the type of riding you plan on doing. If you’re going to be riding a sport bike then you do probably want to start out on the lower end of the spectrum around 250cc. If you’re going to be riding a heavier, cruiser style bike then you can probably start in the 500cc to 1200cc range. If you want to do long trips then you don’t want to be doing that on anything smaller than 500cc.
Get out riding
You’ve found your bike! It’s time to ride. The first few months of riding will be lots of learning and you want to stay vigilant and alert. Ride within your comfort zone. You probably want to either ride alone or find someone who can accompany you and let you ride at your own pace.
Don’t push your comfort zones to much and work your way up to riding at faster speeds and cornering. While riding alone means you can ride at your own pace, riding with other people can make you feel safer. If you are riding with a group, make sure they know your comfort level and that they will keep an eye out for you. Don’t feel pressured to keep up with other riders until you are comfortable to.
Once you get more experienced and comfortable on the road you can reach out to groups or go to local bike events and meet other riders! Check if your city has a local Litas branch which is a great way to meet other women riders.
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