How did you all start?

[Whynot]

Since then I've had everything from a ZZR250 to a Hayabusa. Now on an R1.

and crashed them all ....

[Imti]

Haven't been on the forums in aaages so thought this would be a good place to return to posting

I've wanted to ride ever since I was a kid. Growing up I wasn't given the opportunity to - family were not having me ride a bike!

Last year a friend of a friend mentioned that he had an old GN that was there for anyone that wanted to learn. So took him up on it, and took to the riding. In the space of a couple of months I had my first lesson, got my gear, licence and bike. I sold my car this month too

[criticmbs]

dad has had a bike all his life and riding on the back with him was enough to trigger me to get one and have never looked back since.

Now all three of my brothers have one (even the 6 year old!! look out hes the next motogp boy!)

[shotgun74]

giday 2 u all 1stimer....
been ridin 4 ....forty years

[wickle]

Use to BORROW my older brothers when he was at work cause he wouldnt let me touch it if he was around.

[Maha]

giday 2 u all 1stimer....

Is that German or something??
I can hear Hitler saying that to Ava.

[Choco]

Dad had a bike (before my time though) and I always liked bikes. One day me and my mate decided to do the basic handling course and get our learners as a bit of a joke, I dropped the GN125 and crashed it into a wall but still passed (somehow) and 2 months later bit the bullet and got myself a GN250!
Never looked back.

Still not sure how I convinced my mother, she was a radiographer back in the day and got to x-ray all the bikers that came into the hospital

[icekiwi]

Heard all the stories of the crazy stuff my old man used to do....
Thought I got to have some of that shit.....

[gismo]

When i was about 15 i hooned around the country raods on my sisters 50cc bike.

About 2 years ago i was starting to feel i wanted to get back into biking.
Just brought my 1st bike.. 250cc virago.

Looking forward to the fun times im going to have.

[fridayflash]

i day dreamed about motorcycles ever since the age of about 5yrs
and never stopped thinking about them until i got an ac50 at aged 11
my parents didnt know it and never comented. i paid $5 for it..true!
it had no road gear,no brakes, no clutch, no kickstart, no killswitch
and alarmingly no throttle! but with a piece of string acting as throttle cable
id pushstart it and ride it at the local river and along grass verges,
country roads etc etc endless fun!

[fridayflash]

as an aside,the 1st bike i ever rode was an ag175 at age 10
it was far too big,i climbed onboard opened the throttle wide
dumped the clutch,and promptly flipped it.endy story.

[hellkat]

Gosh, short version:

When I was 23, my best mate was dating a boy who had a Katana. He talked her into buying a bike, and she talked me into it.

I rode the bike off the shop floor (Holeshot, I think it was), learnt how to ride it home, kept it and rode it for six months in and around Auckland.

Then I left for 2 years working holiday in London, so I sold the bike, and hence started a whole different life. Got stuck over there, 13 years before I came home again ... got married, pregnant, did the mum and wifey thing ... a bike didn't really suit the lifestyle I thought I wanted to live.

Turns out I didnt want to live that lifestyle, anyway.

I bumped into a redneck American from Nebraska on the internet, who diverted me back onto the subject of bikes (via a very sleazy romance and a bit of a mad road-trip life for a few months) ... and I thought I was gonna be a Harley person.

Eventually I got back to London and before I got round to affording a Harley, I ended up with a trail bike. Discovered I like the sitting up riding style, which is great in London, you can see above most of the traffic, and its easy to zip in and out in heavy congestion.

So I recovered from the American, and from a divorce, and just after the Millennium, I ended up hanging out with a bunch of couriers at the top of Carnaby Street, where I have met more than my fair share of mad/bad/dangerous-to-know types. I love them all, my blokeys, we're like a huge big family of nutters (some more 'family' than others ) ... and I've been having a hell of a time and lots of fun, love, laughs, tears and general lunacy ever since.

Still not got round to riding a Harley ... been on the back of a couple, though (which is where I currentLy think I like to be on Harleys)

[WelshWizard]

I just started back in the 50's, My Old Man had a Rudge and my mam had a Cotton back in the 20's and 30's seems starting a family canned that for them, but the photos of them riding were around the house, and when I was at school we could hear the Motorbikes racing at the back of the school during the day, strangely I was the only one of the three kids that took up riding motorcycles though my brother did buy a Franny Barnet not long before he died, sadly he never got to ride it.

The old man found my first motorcycle hiden at a friends house and sold it,( still miss that RE conny to this day, great road holding and a fair turn of speed for its day) that was the start of the war between him and me until the day he died, however there was one time we nearly had a truce, when my mother was ill I turned up at home on a new 71 750 cc Norton Roadster, and he was all over it even took it for a spin round the farm road, he actually raved about it.

Once a rider always a rider, it gets in the blood

[Mikkel]

Bloody hell, if I could only remember... It was a long time ago, to be more precise my license says I started riding motorcycles medio december 2007 - but fuck me if I can remember why.

[Jez]

grew up on a farm just outta Invers many years ago ... used to nick off on dads bike round to this girls place when he was on dayshift ... left home, spent alot of years walking and pushbiking everywhere ... got a job wife and kids been driving cars since ... kids about to go to school ... dads about to get his own bike finally , time for the kids to start walking