Ducati Monster Forum

I see a lot of gals on here and was wondering how long you've been riding motorcycles??  I've got 18 years of experience - 10 on dirt, 8 on the street.  How about you!  [moto]

I'd also be interested what got you into riding? 

I've wanted to learn since I was very young.  I used to ride on with my dad on his shadow and then his BMW before he decided to take a break from riding.  I decided to take the plunge and actually learn to ride on my own because riding pillon on a Monster just isn't that comfortable.

I've been riding a bit over 2 years now.

For many years I'd been envious watching people on motorcycles go by, but had always felt too scared to do it myself.

Then I started dating someone in the UK who rode.  Friends recommended that I take the MSF, even just to ride two-up with him, so I signed up for it.   After taking it, I thought, "Well, now I know how to ride around a parking lot, but I want to learn more."  I was hooked!

Furthermore, when he moved to CA to be with me, he got a monoposto bike, so I had to get a bike of my own. ;D

The guy is history, but the riding continues. [moto]

i've been riding just over 3 years now  [moto]

i started off as a passenger, and it frustrated me beyond belief because i wanted to be in control.
so, i started looking into options i had for sport bikes, and bought my monster before i knew how to ride it.

i promised myself i wouldn't ride it until i took the msf,
so, it sat in the garage for almost 2 painful months.

I got into riding when I was 8 years old.  Family friends had a farm west of Bedford, PA.  I would ride their 3 wheelers, dirt bikes, and such.  My dad thought it was a good idea to get me and my brother our own bikes as he was afraid of the "maintenance" he might have to do to theirs if there was an "unscheduled dismount".  So he got me my 1978 Suzuki DS80.  I've attached a pic....I still have the bike, looks like it came off the showroom floor as I cleaned, waxed, and fussed over that bike.  And oh yeah, I drove it like I stole it!!!  [moto]  Shorts, t-shirt, etc. - and a red glittery helmet!  It was the 80's you know. :)  None of my friends would ride behind me because I was always dumping the clutch (on purpose) and coating them with mud and rocks.  God I loved (still love) that bike!

(http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk65/mcgalinmd/1978_DS80_yell_Aus_720.jpg)

Many many years later, I bought my brothers bike (1975 honda trail 90) and have plans on getting it back on the road this winter.

I was dating someone about two years ago who had a dark 800. I rode on the back a lot and we got really good at it. Problem was he didn't want to teach me about the bike or go do the MSF. He's still riding around without a full endorsement. I broke up with him, met another guy on a Monster, he taught me how to ride on his 695 (so nice of him). We took the MSF together, both passed and got our full endorsements too. He sold me the 695 and bought an S4R. We ended up breaking up (as many of you know) and I moved up to an S2R.

I guess I've been riding for almost a year now. Its awesome!!!

I started riding in 1982.  I learned in a parking lot on a Yamaha Seca 750.  This was a Sunday and I bought the bike on Monday.  I rode to the DNV in Presque Isle, Maine and they gave me a MC license without any testing.  Making it the 23 miles there was the test.

I rode 2 up on a dirt bike as a kid a few times and loved it.  Being a girl, I was not allowed to learn to ride.  We were very fundamental baptists.  I know I would learn as soon as I left home.  On a side note, we were not allowed to dance either.  I learned both in the same year!

I had the Seca for just over a year and put 15,000 miles on it in way northern Maine.  I sold it when I moved to Germany (Air Force).  I had a break, then a Suzuki for a short time, a break, and have been riding regularly from 1994 on.

I really don't know what got me into riding; one day I just decided I wanted to do it. I didn't know anyone who rode, and I had to get my mother to drive me to the dealer to look at bikes, because I didn't even have a driver's license. This dealer offered private lessons on a little 100 cc dual sport in their parking lot. I don't even think MSF existed at the time (1979). After a few lessons, we moved on to riding on the street and freeway, on the bike I bought, a 1978 Yamaha XS400. I rode that bike for a couple of years, then moved away to Boston, where I didn't ride.

Fast forward 13 years, when I moved to California. I was reading about bikes online, saw a Suzuki DR650, and had to have it. But I could just *barely* touch the ground, and it was so intimidating that I didn't ride it much for a couple of years. At some point I decided this was stupid, and I would learn to manage the bike...and so I did, with a little help from boots with 3-inch platform soles. After a while I switched over to real motorcycle boots. A couple of years after that I gave up my car.

Funny thing is, not one person has ever given me grief for being a woman on a bike, even when I started out all those years ago. I hear a lot of stories about women being ignored or treated rudely in shops, or by male riders, but that's never happened to me. I sometimes wonder why that is.

/threadjack

I've been treated weird by guys on bikes. Even if I'm alone, I'm asked if my monster is my boyfriend's bike. While I understand that not a lot of girls ride, at least give me a little credit. More and more, at stop lights and such, I'm getting the "you go girl" thing. I like that.  ;D Oh yeah, and my local shop is great at putting women on bikes.

/end threadjack

Learned to ride after I met my bf. He's moto-only, I LOVED riding two-up, but it didn't take me long to want to do it myself (I'm like that  [laugh]).

I'm actually right at my 4 year "anniversary," so I chose 4 to 6 years (rather than 2 to 4), because I ain't stopping any time soon!

bought a bike in college (20+ year ago) and tried to learn to ride but never got past the parking lot.....bf turned me on to Ducs and the rest is history.

I was my ex-husbands backpack and didn't like not having any control.  For my 30th (I'm 35 now)he enrolled us both in the MSF, we both passed but I couldn't find a bike I felt I liked enough to buy.  The next spring I found the bike of my dreams...a red 620 with low hung, chrome D&D's (loudest thing I've ever heard in my life).  I ended up outriding that bikes' set up and needed something that wouldn't scrape hard parts.

That's when I found my current steed...I love this bike and will never part with it.  [moto]

T

Both my parents rode before I was born.  My mother rode out of necessity, since a moto was cheaper to get around on than a car.  Even after she could afford a car, she still preferred the scoot.  She has never ridden on the back of a motorcycle.  She bought a bike, taught herself, and got her endorsement without ever having ridden with anyone.  My sister is the one who got the in vitro pillion experience, since my mother didn't give it up until her high school art students told her it was scandalous that she was riding at 41 and in her second trimester!

Ever since I was a kid, I've been fascinated by motorcycles.  Our neighbor's failed 30 year old son who still lived at home would go screaming up and down the street on his Harley.  Every time I'd go running up to the window pointing and squealing, "Megasoose!  Megasoose, Mommy!!!" 

Finally, after I had been married and divorced, I met a couple of people who rode.  I became friends and rode cupcake for a short while on a variety of bikes before I decided that I had to get one of my own in 2004.  Yes, my M900s is my first bike, and it was a dumb move.  I had to force myself to ride, since it was so intimidating for me.  I didn't have any friends to ride with at this point, since all my riding buddies seemed to scatter to the four winds. 

I picked up my first track tool in 2007 and did my first track days then.  Now it's all I can think about.  Motos have changed my friends, fiscal priorities, and time allocation.  I have no idea what I did before motorcycles.  I only wish I had discovered them sooner!

To further women on wheels, i'm signing up my 13 year old daughter for dirt bike school next month (cross my fingers)...I want her to learn on the dirt first, like I did.  It's a secret, though...don't tell!!    :-X   I'm doing it as part of a vacation.  If it's not too expensive, i'll do it with her, too.  Looks way fun!  [moto]

sounds like a lot of fun.  I bet your daughter will be over the moon.  What a great mother-daughter activity.

I'm jealous!! I wish I had been given that opportunity when I was a teenager!  [thumbsup]

Wow, you are an awesome mom! [beer]

I played phone tag with the guy yesterday about the school.  I am sure hoping it works out.  But I only thing that is going to come of it?? She's going to want a dirt bike.  [moto]  Which isn't a bad thing - but i've got to find a place for her to ride, and put a hitch on my car, and get a bike.....LOL

 [roll] Open the wallet mom!

agreed  [thumbsup]

A friend of ours was given a dirtbike by his dad when he was a kid.

Then his dad told him "Well, now the bike needs gas son."

He worked around the house to earn his gas money so he could actually ride the thing. ;)

Got in touch with the guy today; no classes the week/weekend we are there, but will do a class for me and the kid or me, the kid and the hubby for $600.  :o  Heck, for another $200 or so I can buy a used dirt bike and teach her myself (MSF instructor).  I think that might be the better route, although there is a TON of merit for having a close family member learn from someone else.  It sinks in better IMHO.

So now i'm looking for a dirt bike, mid 90's, 80-100CC's, about $800 or so.  Know any in the mid atlantic??   ;D

If you're a MAD member, I'd post the question there, too.  A lot of people use these for pit bikes.  There might be someone who is looking to unload.  You can also post on Cycleforums in the DC area (http://www.cycleforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=138) section.  There are several people on there who have garages full of bikes of every kind (a ton of project bikes in there... don't think they're buying bikes on the MAD-scale).

yep, MAD member I am (as of 2 weeks ago) i'll post there and see what I  come up with.  It's all but decided i'm just buying a bike; Mountaineer Raceway just put in a pit/beginner track, so I can take her there for beginner stuff and build up.  I'm only about 30 minutes from the track. 

Do you think my kid is going to love me???

[d] [cheeky]

I know I would!

Looks like it's going to be a 2000 Yamaha TTR125.  What makes this a good bike is that we can both ride it.  (cue the mommy cheering section  ;D) I've made an offer to the fellow, let's see if he'll bite.

If not, a possible other is an older 1990 Kawasaki.  But it's a 2 stroke, some tracks don't allow them now from what I understand.  Now i'm shopping for gear, lots of gear!!  [thumbsup]

http://ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=7198.msg116904#new

go vote and pick a bike for my kid!! 

I'm new here and I had to count...It's been 11 years and counting! Wow...time flies!

My brother took me on my first motorcycle ride when I was 3 or 4 and I loved it!  (He's the best big brother ever!)  I hung out with guys that rode in high school but was too chicken to ride myself.  Fortunately I got over that about 10 years later.  My first bike was a Honda Huricaine 600.  Not very pretty when I bought it but a great bike to learn on.  After a lot of work she was a beauty but I traded her in for a Honda Superhawk while touring to Idaho (but that's another story all together).  Now I have a Monster m900 and my newest addition to the fleet (my insurance agent referred the 4 bikes in our household as the "fleet") is a Cagiva Gran Canyon (has a Ducati 900 motor). 

I ride just about every day and love it, love it, love it!  I'm really looking forward to getting to know you ladies and fellow riders.    Have a great day and just ride!

i always wanted to ride but my family never approved so i had to wait until i was out of college and bought a ninja 250 when i started dating my boyfriend who had been riding for a long time. 6 years later i upgraded the boyfriend to husband and the 250 to a 695, and have a 1 1/2 year old daughter who we can't wait to get on a 50cc.
Tara

Update: Just found a 2002 Yamaha TTR 125 70 miles closer to my house, in awesome condition, for only $75 dollars more!

The 2000 bike would need new grips and levers (must do fix), which by the time I buy the parts and install, i'm in it for about $50 in parts, $25 in time.  That's $75 alone, and the gas savings I have not having to drive 80 miles down and 80 miles back (at .58.5 cents a mile federal rate)...that's another $75 savings give or take.

It's looking more and more like the 2002 TTR!  Going to call the guy with the 2000 and say thanks but no thanks.  It's the 2002 yamaha or the 2000 Honda.

More to come....(cue the "and the world turns music")   [cheeky]

Didn't want some poor soul to be the only one on the "6 months or less" list.   [laugh]  Started the beginning of June, instantly developed an addiction  [laugh], did 1k+ on a GZ 250, took the MSF and got blessings from both the instructors and my long-time riding hubby for the 696.  I am loving it and try to be super supportive and encouraging to any woman who shows interest in learning how to ride, as I find it to be both liberating and empowering.   ;D

Hi all - I'm new!   :)

Love the thread - it's neat to hear about everyone's background and is a good reminder of how green I truly am!  Haha.

I started riding 2 up as a kid behind my dad & had 4 wheelers in my late teens/early twenties.  Always wanted to try a bike...

I met my husband (a devote sport bike enthusiast) 7 years ago and then really got the itch to learn to ride.   After years of toting me around pillion, he bought me an '05 50cc Honda Jazz scooter.  I rode the pants off that thing for 3 months and wanted a 'big girl bike'.   8)

I moved on to a '05 Kawi ZZR 250 and rode it up until Tuesday when I traded in for my pearl white 696.  It is beautiful, awesome and I love it.  I know I'll learn a ton from this bike and am excited about my first Duc!

welcome!  [moto]

14 years, 18 different bikes up to 6 at one time.
rode with my brothers on their enduros as a kid. My first date with my husband was a ride on the back of his FJ. Two weeks later he gave me a '78 GS550 to rebuild and learn to ride on. I've been addicted to bikes ever since!

Over 20 years  [thumbsup]

I've been riding for about 5 years.

I got into motorcycles when I met my ex-husband over 10 years ago. I loved being a passenger but soon got the bug to drive on my own.  I took the MSF class and was on my way  [clap]

It took me a while to get the monster though.  I had just gone from the 250 to the 500 and I had the opportunity to test drive a 620 -- one of the most terrifying and fantastic experiences of my life. I put the order in for the 695 that day  [evil]

I have been riding for about 4-5 years, which doesnt seem like a lot to me.
I feel confident, but I still need to work on my slow speed movements...

hi sparky, welcome to the dmf :)
slow speed maneuvers are my weakest skill too.
being a shrimp isn't easy...

Hey sparky!

Yeah, slow speed movements suck for me too. Like TiNi, I'm a shrimp and have to get off my bike if I wanna back it up anywhere.

My first bike had me on tippy toes whenever I stopped...
When I rode my fiance's bike (a 748) for the first time it was like a revelation.
I can get my feet down!
I traded in my first bike for the 998 shortly there-after.

I feel for those that are on tippy toes no matter what bike they ride.  I have a friend like that, and its painful to watch.  But all the more amazing for her dedication!  She will probably end up a better rider than I am because it takes her more to do things I take for granted and she is always practicing.
 :)

Hey all! I have been riding for about 2 years and the love for motorcycles began on the back of my bfs 750SS...oOoO what a hot bike! Then I took the MSF course and got a 97' GS 500 from my bf to start with. Now I have a 03' M620 :) and am completely enamored with it.

I am so glad to see so many other lady riders on here because around San Diego I don't see many. I get a lot of "oh that is so cool" or "I wish I could do that" from other women when I am out and about, but they all say they same thing...they are scared :( I try to encourage them that they can do it...I hope I get to some of them ;)

*cheers*

I started riding last summer at the ripe old age of 45.  My husband had taken it up again the summer prior and after riding on the back of his for a season we both decided it was time for me to get one of my own.  I bought a brand new 2007 Honda CBR125R and took the course.....passed with flying colours   [clap].  The Honda was great to learn on but I realized pretty quickly that I wanted more power.  Like alot of you ladies out there I am only 5'4" and really felt like I needed something that allowed me to get my feet on the ground. Tried a Honda Hornet 599 just like my hubby's but it was still a little too high and too heavy for me, so we did some research and lo and behold the Monster popped up as a good candidate.  One month ago I got my baby and I haven't looked back..

awesome, welcome! me and my hubby ride together too. if 45 is "ripe old" than girl we are all ready to fall off the tree! ha ha. welcome!
tara

Perhaps I am the greenest of the green! I fall into the 0-6 month category because I am waiting to take the MSF course in October and have only ridden in the dirt prior to this. The neighbor kid when I was growing up had a dirt bike and he would let me ride from time to time- it was great fun until I rode the bike into a stone retaining wall!  [bang] I jumped ship but the bike was toast....

Fast forward almost 20 years and this spring a good friend was turned onto Ducati by my DH who also has always loved them but never had an "excuse" to ride them. The good friend found an awesome deal on a Monster and bought it! Then my DH couldn't stand it anymore and got himself a 1999 Yellow 749. The two of them started riding and left me, our 22 month old daughter, and good friends wife in the car to meet up with them from time to time. It was fun BUT then I went to Italy to teach for two weeks near the Alps and I fell in love!

EVERYONE rides there and despite the fact that they don't dress for riding, the roads and the riders make it look like an incredible rush and a great amount of fun. All of a sudden it was sexy to ride! The culture of biking there is ANYTHING but Hells Angels. I am not saying that was my image of riding but I live on the west coast, what can I say?

Admitted my new passion to the good friend owning the Monster (for the life of me I can't remember his specs...) and he directed me to this forum where the deal was sealed, I was going to learn to ride so I didn't have to ride cupcake. Not that I wanted too just that I was scared of dumping a bike into another wall and unsure of what we would do with the kiddo if we all decided to go...

While looking for a unique Ducati like birthday gift for the friend I fell even further, I found the bike that I was waiting for and now it is in the garage waiting for me thanks to my DH.  :-* Blue 2004 S4R with less than 500 miles on it! Like I said it is waiting because both DH and friend are smart and want to build me too that bike slowly and safely... of the three of us, I think I have gotten the best deal thus far! Still waiting for good friends wife (also a good friend) to feel comfortable enough to ride- We are taking the MSF course together and we will see where it goes from there....

Hi everyone. I'm new to the forum, and thought this topic would be a good place to start - even though the last post was September - hopefully there's still some interest!

I've been riding for 28 years. Its still as big a thrill as it was when I started. Its awesome to see so many new female riders - on Ducati's no less! I've just bought my first Ducati, after years of lusting after them whilst riding japanese sport bikes. "Cookie" is a black '06 S2R1000.
I went on the back of a boyfriend's bike once, in '81,  and knew it was for me. I didn't even have a car license until 8 years later, when I was 7 months pregnant!

I've been a safety instructor for 18 years now and the best advice I can give you guys who are worried about slow speed skills is just keep on practicing. I practice slow riding every chance I get - its amazing how confidence in your slow speed skills translates into increased confidence and ability at higher speeds. Go to an empty parking lot and try making circles inside of two parking spaces - make sure to keep your knees in tight to the tank, look exactly where you want to go - turn your head to look inside of your circle - don't just look straight ahead, and keep your eyes moving as your bike is moving - ride a bit of rear brake, slip the clutch, and press more weight onto the cheek of your butt that is opposite to the direction you are turning. - lots to remember all at once, but if you keep practicing, it will come! Have fun!

^^ Welcome and congrats on your first Duc! [thumbsup]

I have been riding for one year now, not sure what I was doing before...it has taken over my life (in a good way).  Learned on a Suzuki Boulevard S40 (Suzi Cakes) in an alley behind my apartment because I was so afraid of dropping it.  I thought that a 650cc engine was sooooo big and was fraid I would lose contol of it!!!  haha  It wasn't long before I made it to the street and my commute to work which is about 30 miles on a congested freeway on Los Angeles...ugh. 

The S40 was a great bike to learn on but I grew out of it at about 300 miles.  When I hit 5000 miles I started researching motorcycles and which would be the right one for me.  I am vertically challanged so I knew I was limited on my selections.  I looked at all sorts of cruisers but I knew I would not be happy with one.  When the motorcycle show came to Long Beach I demo-ed the Buell Lightening Csg -- loved it but knew I would kill myself with that much power.  Whoa, that bike likes to go.  I also tried the Ninja 250 and 650 and was not impressed.  I was very disappointed that Ducati was only demo-ing the Hypermotard. 

When I took a trip to my local dealer and they had the 696 in stock and I feel in love.  With all of the bikes I sat on and tested this one fit me.  I didn't know how it handled, what it sounded like, didn't even know anyone who owned one.  All I knew was this was the "one"...my forever motorcycle.  That sounds pretty funny but I think its true.

Unfortunately, she is in the shop being repaired and I won't get to ride her for the next month or so...just as I was getting used to riding it...someone decided to run a red light and run us over.  Just glad its not totalled by insurance and I am uninjured. 

I love my Monster.

yo yo chickas,

i have been riding for over 4 years now. my uncle was the one that got me into bikes, i was raised around dirt bikes but just never got on one. then one day i figured i wanted to do something new and fun and different and i got a 250 ninja...which i only keep for 8 months after i got use to it not having any balls [laugh] then my uncle suggested a get a duc...i had no idea what the who-da-ha-da it was. but when i stepped into that store i was in love. it made it even better that they could lower it for me since im a midget [roll] [laugh] so i got a red 620. did all kinds of small mods got use to and had that for over 2 and half years. then i got into an accident and he was totalled! now i got a red s2r1k that im totally in luv with...it is my dream bike and have only had it for 6 months, Spankin times will be had this summer....

ps. when i first started writting, i actually had a guy tell me that i couldn't such a machinery  >:( but if i ever run across a putz like that again he will be eating my duc dust  [evil] but now i get some the best compliments...a girl and duc "Now thats Hawt"  ;D

You, my girl, are hysterical.  When are you coming back out to Denver for another night at the Horseshoe?!?

 [beer]

My dad had me on the back of his bike at 6 yrs old.. we lived in SoCal, so it was normal to have a bike there!
FF to high school, in PA and loved riding on my BF's bike.. and in his cj7, he ended up serving our country and still rides.. and i think he must have gotten me addicted.

I was going to move to AZ to attend ASU and decided i'd take a course to learn how to ride so i could have a bike there. Made more sense to have a bike in a sunshiney state.. or so i thought. But i never ended up attending ASU.

I'd always been obsessed with bikes, when they passed.. i desperately try to see what kind it was.. always sportbikes though, never cared much about cruisers..
That remains the case to this day.. my head snaps around to see what bikes out there! .. anyone else do this? i mean.. i ride a bike now, have for years.. and i still whip around to see whats riding past!

So, i randomly ended up at Daytona bike week in 2006
that is where i saw girls riding sportbikes.. girls like me.. well.. that was it. i decided if they could do it so could i.

I came home and April of 2006 passed the MSF with no points deducted. Had a friend ride my newly purchased 02 sv650s to my house. And started riding around my development trying to learn this new gigantic bike.
I remember the shakes i had the first day i rode it into work at lunch time. Cages and lights and intersections are scary!!
I put 8000 miles on that year and even had toys strapped to my back seat during the winter for the Toys for Tot's rally. Then i spent a partial season on a Daytona 675 and had one track day before the highway took her away from me. When i could get back on a bike i decided.. Ducati or bust! i love the sexy Italians.. both men and bikes!!

this season starts my 4th.. on a beautiful Monster! she's a handful but i respect her and adore her raw sexyness all nekkid. Nothing better than a trellis frame IMO.
But i love the new Aprilia doseduro too! I'm addicted for life i think!
(http://lh6.ggpht.com/_arVurbIzG6Y/SVjxtRR8zCI/AAAAAAAAERY/DR3d90J1_MU/s400/IMG_2157.JPG)

I love reading this thread

As some of you know I have been riding for almost 2 years. Although only in Spring and  Summer.
I rode on the back of Statler for about 15 years, 13 before I got my bike.  I actually enjoyed riding on the back.  And I still enjoy riding on the back maybe even more now than I did before because I appreciate his riding and the freedom to relax because I trust him.  I trust his riding more than mine still.

I am learning and getting there as some of you have followed.  I did a little dirt bike as a kid but never regularly.  But long before I  knew how to be afraid of it or what I was really doing.

Hi Gwendy,
And I love reading your thread! I also have been riding with my hubby for about 10 years and still very much enjoy it. I'm also a new rider and haven't gotten as far as you have, but I am experiencing the same trepidation I think! It's fun but still very nervous. I think I will feel better as soon as I am more comfortable riding the bike; I feel it still is "riding me" in a way....I would like to be more in control I guess. I love my bike tho and know I will get better. I can only ride in the summer too as we are in snow in Idaho. :)

Hi Gwendy!  Nice to see you here!  Did Statler make you laugh today???  Tell him he must: it's a moral imperative.   ;D

I have been riding for a year now if you count the MSF course I took the last weekend in May, 2008.  My very first bike, and the one I still ride, is an '06 M620 which I absolutely adore.  She is perfect for me and I plan to keep her for as long as I'm on this earth plane we roam.  I love everything about her, and almost dread the inevitable day when I will ride a bike with little or no torque in comparison.  SERIOUSLY--I love that you can be off the line quick AND that you can slow down easily using only the throttle.  Fascinating!

And I love reading this thread too! 

Time past since license, 2yrs.  Actual riding season, not as much - thanks snow!  [laugh]

I got my first bike in summer '06, modified it and got licensed at MSF as soon as season opened the next spring.  Rode the last two years on a '00 Honda VTR250 in Japan.  I sold it to move back to the States (DH is Navy) and now I'm shopping for my second bike, eyeballing Monsters 620-750.

(http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u48/MMK13/th_DSCN2732Medium-1.jpg) (http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u48/MMK13/DSCN2732Medium-1.jpg)

Before "real bikes", years ago I tooled around grandpa's farm on dirt bikes .

Hi all :  I'm new here but have been riding for 3 years.  I'd ridden pillion once with a college friend before I met my husband - he's been riding for years.  I started because I got tired of listening to my husband and his guy friends go on and on about bikes and trips so we made a deal - if I passed the MSF he'd buy me a bike.  I did and he got me a BMW F650GS which I still have and will probably never sell - it's a great travel bike (we prefer to take long bike trips as our vacations).  I've always adored Ducatis though and am finally at a point where I feel ok having two bikes to rotate between so in the spring I'll be buying a M1100S.  I can't wait!!!

I have only been riding for about three months total now  :o . My husband purchased the Ducati Monster in the Med. Blue (love that I have a blue Ducati  :D ) for me as well as the MSF class as a surprise anniversary gift this past July. I have been trying to get out on her as much as possible before the weather turns. Love the Monster, great beginner bike I think. Perfect fit for me  [thumbsup] I am hoping to get comfortable enough to go out on the freeway more and the twists  [moto] !!!! I actually just went on my very first girl group ride which was a blast  [clap]. Looking forward to meeting up with more women riders in the Bay Area and going on some more rides.   ;)

There's enough of us here, maybe we should plan some sort of event/ride for us sometime?

I met a guy in 2002 who rode a motorcycle - the first person I ever really knew who rode.  We eventually began dating and I would ride on the back with him quite a bit, but I never really had any interest in riding myself.  My parents were always really against it for some reason and maybe that influenced me.  My boyfriend got me a secret birthday present in 2004 - a 1981 Honda CB400T to learn on.  Oh God was I terrified, and very frustrated after a few tries in the parking lot.  I took the MSF class in 2005 and found that I really loved riding :) and two weeks after I got my license for the street I was on the track on a friend's YSR50 racebike.  That wasnt a fun conversation with my parents...lol.  

I rode the CB for one season - until I started scraping pegs (if you look at pictures, you can see this is NOT hard to do on that bike) and was constantly wringing the heck out of it to barely keep up with the "big boys" on the back roads.  I got my Ducati in early 2006, and I am going to keep it forever.  I love it so much!  And I still race YSRs with the Ohio YSR League.   [moto]  

Oh yeah, and I married the guy who introduced me to motorcycles in 2006 :)

I think that would be great! 

I'm free 10/24, by the way...  :D  (It's really hard for me to plan to do rides often because of my daughter's sports schedule, but that happens to be a free date.  May be too short notice.... ) 

Maybe we should start a new thread and see how much interest there is.

ETA: http://ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=30728.0 (http://ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=30728.0)

I started riding around Sept 1979.First bike I rode was a Malagutti Cavalcone........a very long time ago.
I have had several bikes, about 18 or 19 bikes from BSA Gold Stars to Triumph Daytonas,  a 1938 Royal Enfield to a Ducati s2r.

Don't suppose you have any pictures of that Royal Enfield? ;D

no, sorry I dont.
It was an old Model G, I rode that thing for years.
It is now living at a castle in Scotland.
It moved there about 5 years ago from London after my brother finally said if you don't get rid of it, I will!
I sold it to my friend who in turn gave it to his father for a retirement gift.
His father owned one in the 1950's.
In a way its still in the family...........well at least I know its being looked after. [thumbsup]

Started riding when I was 10 back in 1977...boy I'm getting old.  1st bike was a yamaha 80. My cousins had gotten dirt bikes so my mom and her BF (now my Step dad) took my brother and now step brother to get bikes I of course sat myself down on the yamaha 80, mom wasn't too sure about her little girl riding a motorcycle.  The salesman took all three of us out back to show us basics of the bikes and let my mom see all of us riding...I took off rode circles around the boys...the salesman told my mother I'm not sure about your boys, but your daughter will be just fine  [cheeky]

A few years later sold my 80 and bought my brother yamaha 125 enduro that he never rode.  When I was 16 I went and got my permit, got the neighbor who also rode signed up to ride on the street with me, and got the insurance papers for the enduro...My mom freaked out and said the dirt is one thing but you are not riding on the street.  She was afraid I'd get run over by a car.  So, my motorcycle riding ended at 16....well, rather suspended.

Got the bug to ride again in 1999...took MSF course got my license didn't even tell my mother for a year  [cheeky] What happens next I get into Track riding with friends, and in 2003 I met my now Husband at a track day event....and I told my mother if she had never let me get the yamaha 80 all those years ago I would have never met the love of my life  ;D  funny how life works out  [moto]

that is soooo awesome  [thumbsup]  :)

I was at the annual NYD ride the other day, and a guy asked me how long I'd had my motorcycle license.

I had to think about it, and then realized that it's been 22 years (to my dismay - I suddenly felt old. heh).
Got my "M" class at age 16 and never looked back.
 ;D

I began riding in 1975/76 - the first time being on a CB350 Honda - riding is something I've always wanted to do, and always loved the sound of motorcycle pipes!!  I've ridden most makes in all sizes (I'm lucky....we're in the business), but I was always looking for something else it seemed until I disovered Ducatis.   My first one one was a 600 Dark.....but I quickly realised I needed something more and along came a 750SS engine - in it went and along with it, a new custom paint job.  Now I thought that "this is it".....then along came an opportunity to buy a real fine Monster 900ie.....I quickly sold the 750 and brought home the 900 last week.  Too bad it's -15C outside and a foot of snow on the ground [roll] 
Until next time!!!
Christine [coffee]

You know blue is the fastest color, right? :) This picture PROVES IT!

(http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk65/mcgalinmd/meonbike.jpg)

I've started out ridding 4 years ago when I saw one of my college's ride a Yamaha R6 ..... she's 5'2 110 pounds....If she can do it I can to... [thumbsup]

Actually my desire to ride dates back to when I was 5 years old... ;D   When I was 5, a friend of one of my uncles park is motorcycle in the driveway.... I was so impress by the heigh of the thing and really wondered how could somebody go up there and drive this Ting! [Dolph]

I remember touching it whit my Right hand....so impressive ( so I remember exactly the first time I touch a bike...cool) I still can see it like a movie in my head.... ;D

So that was it, always wanted to ride....

I probably have a hundred drawing of motorcycle!!!  it's was the only this I would draw when I was young ;D!!!

In my teens I wanted a scooter..... but while being in a parking lot whit my father...while I was pointing at a scooter "I want one like that!!"  the guy had an accident Right in front of us!!! [bang] he was OK, but SO long my dream of having a scooter!!

after that,  at the start of my 20 ies i was into school so no money ...at 25 I started dating a guy ( for 5 years )
 ....so I've got served the " a bike is to dangerous it's not for girls!!" [bang]

after 5 years I trow the guy out!!   As a first decision a took my bike classes. Whats funny the instructor when he first saw me ride he asked how many years I've been riding motocross...lol and it was the first time in my life that I got onto a bike ..lol .... You sould seen is face... :o I've bought a CBR 125....after 2 weeks I was kneedown ...lol

the rest is history... :)

I started riding 3 years ago after moving to Texas.  My (now-ex) husband wanted to buy the sport classic with no rear seat.  I encouraged him stating I would never ride on the back again (the decision made several years before after a backseat ride on GSXR1000)....I went to Eurosport the next week and found an 01 m600 dark on the lot, dent in the tank, good price....I was OK with the dent because I figured I might lay it down since I had never ridden before.  Since then I have ridden many different bikes and unfortunately totalled my very favorate one on the track- PSLE1000.  Currently I predominately ride track and only to breakfast now and then on the street.   [thumbsup] [Dolph]