ladysprite | Entries tagged with motorcycles

First of all - thank you all so much for your support and reassurance on my last post. As selfish as it sounds, it honestly helps to know that I'm not the first person I know to have trouble with the ridiculous learner's permit test.

Luckily, I have a knack for memorizing things quickly, and the MA RMV has their driver's manuals online, so I spent the rest of my free time this week reading and rereading everything I needed to. This afternoon, after I got out of work, I headed back to the RMV where I just had an all-over better experience. Shorter wait, friendlier staff, and, oddly enough, most of the same questions on the test. Except this time I knew the answers.

So I am now the proud possessor of a motorcycle learner's permit! (Learning is apparently dangerous, and cannot be done by just anyone.) Next weekend I'll spend at Bike Camp, and hopefully by the end of the weekend I'll have my license.

So, who's up for going shopping for accessories with me, or for riding together once I'm legal?

I love motorcycles. I have for as long as I can remember - they've always felt a little bit like having a personal roller-coaster. I love the adrenaline rush, and the sensation of speed, and the feel of unity with the vehicle, and I love passengering and being in contact with the driver and the way it feels like I'm in a three-person dance with the driver and the machine.

But I can't spend my whole life asking friends with motorcycles to drive me around for my own fun. Plus... well, if being a passenger is fun, I'm guessing being the driver is pretty darn awesome, too. So I've decided this year I'm going to get my motorcycle license.

I've got at least a basic plan - my neighbor, a motorcycle guy himself, has pointed me towards Ironstone Ventures, where I can take the Basic Rider class, learn what the heck I'm doing, and get my license. And I know in the meantime I need to go down to the RMV and get my motorcycle permit. But I could still use some serious advice and help from those of you more experienced riders.

1) I know little to nothing about bikes in general. I'm just not a machine person; I still think of cars as magic go-boxes that run on mystic gestures and potions. I want something I can ride around town, use for short commutes, and sometimes take on the highway, but not cross-country. What sort of bike do I want, and how do I pick out a good one? I'm happy to start with a used bike, but I have no idea of how to sort the good from the bad.

2) Helmets? Accessories? Help?

3) It looks like, given my schedule, it'll be July or August before I can take the actual class. If I get my permit (and a bike) before then, is anyone willing to start teaching me and/or take me out for practice sessions in the meantime? I will repay you handsomely in gratitude, garden veggies, and baked goods....

And, for those of you who don't have motorcycles but are local and might have, say, a garage.... I don't suppose anyone would be willing to rent me garage space come winter, in exchange for some subset of money, gratitude, and/or baked goods?

And in general - anything I'm forgetting, or any advice for beginners?