After she gets her license would she consider renting a couple of bikes just to seal the deal? I think she would be pleasantly surprised at the performance of a Softail. I ride a Road King and had a rental while it was in the shop. I was really pleased with the light feel and quick performance. She will probably feel much more in control of the machine without sacrificing any performance or looks.

 

again, thanks for all of you for your replies and suggestions..... I'm gonna forward all of them to her.....

she started off sitting on a 883 Sportster, then moved to a Super Glide, Deluxe, Heritage then to the Road King.

I'll definitely come back and let everyone know what she goes with.

thanks again.

 

RENT!
It would give her perspective (and a lot of fun). Most dealers would write off the rental when you bought.

 

^ agree with the above

My first HD was and is a Road King but I had 20 years of riding outside of the HD family. Looking back, had I started on a Road King, it would have probably been an expensive learning experience. Slower speed maneuvering is best learned on something a bit more forgiving, just my 2 cents.

 

Hey, it's her money and her bike. BUT, that's not a smart move. We have enough trouble with new riders getting in WAY over their heads and getting hurt. Never mind the rest of us at risk along those very same riders.

Be smart, start small. Drop it? Who cares. Something small & cheap? Learn what she needs to, easy handling, drop it again, whatever.

Absolutely "must" start on a Harley? Start on a Deluxe, still the lowest one out there. The new "Black line" is supposed to beat it by 1/4". However, the rake is different and it will be more of a handful than the Deluxe.

If you care at all for this person (and give a damn about your fellow riders), don't stick her on such a beast as a "first" ride. I'll say it because others are probably too nice. That's just stupid.

Keep her alive and smiling, make a smart choice. Please!

 

If she wants a Road KIng, get her a Road King. She'll get used to it. They are not that hard to ride.

 

Way to much bike for a small woman let alone a first time biker.

My first bike was a Road King. I'm 5' 10" and 180 lb. male. And this bike was a lot of bike for me when I got it. The reason I got it as a first bike was because I had a Heritage Softail on lay-away for 8 years before I could finally pull the trigger on a bike.

It's not that I don't believe she could ride one in the near future but to start out on one would be a huge mistake. Biking is not just going from here to there but also watching out for potholes and gravel and all sorts of morons on the road. The first week I had my bike, I had a pickup truck cutoff a dumpp truck in front off me who then locked his brakes up. We were coming through a green light and was about 10 feet behind the truck when this happened. I missed going underneath the truck by about 4 feet. Luckily I remembered the procedure for emergency braking.

Last year I had 6-7 deer run out in front of my bike. One was so close I could see the whites of his eyes at about 4 feet directly in front of me. All I could think about was what someone told me years ago about aiming for the *** end. I did and the deer who had started to panic and turn around in front of me saw that I was moving behind him and moved with incredible speed to get out of my way. I was doing 40-45 MPH att. I was pretty much resigned to the fact that I was going to hit him. Another 4 ran out in a group 1x1 but was not a real big deal.

I had a punk teenager ride my *** about 2-3 foot off my bumper in a Honda Accord on a very twisty road to try to hurry me up so he could get home from work as fast as he could. Another punk went around and almost clipped my front wheel because he was in a hurry.

I live just outside Philly and these are the things that hppen regularly in this area. Too many cars on the road. Bad drivers. 20 MPH above or below the speed limit on a two lane highway.

I'm a very safe driver. Always have beensince I got out of my teen years. I normally drive 5-9 MPH above the speed limit.

The fact is that **** happens. And a small woman riding an oversized bike for her first bike is not a smart move and could be deadly to her as well as others. There are plenty of nice bikes out there in the midrange that are nice bikes. Get a starter bike for her. Teach her how to ride. I took the MSF beginner course 5 years before I got my first bike and again 2 weeks after I got it. It probably saved my life in some ways. There is too much risk involved.

I have over 6000 miles and a year of experience on my first bike now. If i didn't get this bike last year I was probably never going to get one. And at my age, 54, I felt like time was about up so when the opportunity came I jumped on it. I've lived a good long life so far but felt like if I was going to die I would rather be with a bang on a Harley than with a wimper in a hospital bed sick for 2 months. It's a chance that I decided to risk. BUT I wouldn't want anyone else to do it if they could avoid it.

Have her take an MSF course. Get a nice starter bike. And get some experience. And when she feels ready then she'll have the knowledge to decide which Harley fits her best.

Hope this helps.

Just my 2cents.

 

Like the other guys have said: MSF course first before you even talk to a dealer! Let her know if she really does like to actively ride.

As others here have said, too, I don't think that a new RK should be anyone's first bike. Go with something used...even if it is another RK...but better yet a used metric or a softail. You can buy a nice used metric fairly cheap and sell it a couple years later for little loss when she knows she wants to move up to the RK. It's simply too much bike (big,heavy, cumbersome, let alone powerful) for a novice rider, in my opinion.

 

My wife is 5'1", 115# and has no interest in riding her own scooter. After reading this thread, I took her to the garage and had her sit on my Road King. Her feet didn't even come close to reaching the ground, let alone flat footed. I don't think any reasonable modifications could lower the bike enough. Guess a lot must depend on the inseam?

 

yep - inseam is the key. she sat on a 2011 RKC and with the help of the dealer's 1" floor pads she could flat foot it.

I've got a lady friend in San Diego that is 5'3" and has over 60,000 miles on her '03 RKC. hers is lowered 1" and she has 1 1/2" thick boot soles.