Motorcycle Mama

My husband bought me a motorcycle for his 60th birthday! He bought himself a Victory Kingpin last year and has been looking for one for me because he doesn't care for riding double but he wants us to ride together. I didn't realize how serious he was until last Friday when he pulled up to work. I thought he was on his bike until I walked outside and looked at it. I said, "That's not your bike." He smiled at me and replied, "No, it isn't, it's your bike!" I wanted to know what on earth he was talking about and he said, "I just bought it for you." It is a Suzuki Volusia 800 and it is a bigger than most people start off with but it is the size that a lot of people graduate to. Someone asked me yesterday if I wanted a motorcycle and I hesitated. She said that was a bad sign. But I'm so honest I couldn't lie and just say yes, I've always wanted one. What I settled for was that I didn't not want one, I'm not scared or intimidated by them and I think it will be fun. So, now I am learning to ride. I spent the weekend in a large mostly empty parking lot stopping and going and driving in big circles. I was a little nervous about my husband teaching me to ride because I hate being told what to do, particularly by him. However, he is a fabulous teacher, very good at explaining things and very patient with me and my questions. He was also very encouraging and reassuring. I never thought it would be so exciting to get a vehicle up to 20 mph! That was on the second day. The first day was all about stopping safely, go, stop, go, stop, go stop. The second day was about shifting smoothly. I've been driving an automatic for a year now and my brain isn't used to the whole gas, clutch, shifting thing. I knew I was back in the groove when I was driving my car home and I came to the first stop sign and almost put my foot down on the non-existant clutch and had my right hand on the gear shift! Tomorrow I will take the written test to get my permit so I can legally ride on the streets and then I have 90 days to learn to get good at it and take the driving test.