my lady friend is seriously thinking about getting her own Harley. we talked about starting with a metric... but she agrees with me - start on the bike you wanna ride..... and for her it's a Road King.

after visiting the local dealer, and sitting on one - she's convinced she can ride it. all she needs is a reach seat and maybe lowered about an inch.

oh, she's never ridden before... and while I would never tell her age.... she is SS age .....
of course, she'll take the MSF first.

forgot some important info - she's 5'4", about 125#... but, she's in fantastic shape.... personal trainer, rock climber, weight lifter, wrestler, skier.... the real outdoors type. she's probably in better shape than most 30 somethings.

 

Nothing wrong with a Road King, however be very careful.... i would try a softtail
Heritage... It is lighter and sets LOWER to the ground..... Just try one on for size....
It's a great bike and easy to control................hdman

 

Hmmm. As a lady rider, not sure I would agree with this approach. She knows the RK because that's what you ride. If she's never ridden before she doesn't have anything to compare to. Why not have the first bike you drop be a $1000.00 honda Rebel instead of a 20k RK???

 

That's always a tough one. The RK is an pretty big and expensive bike to learn on. It's absolutely possible, but I would also get some saddle bag guards. Mod it expecting for it to be dropped…protect her legs and the bike. If it were me, I would buy/rent her a cheap metric for this riding season so she can get her license, experience, and to see if she like sitting up front. Some ladies find that they prefer the backseat. Like I said though, this is a tough one.

 

The Road King is a lot of bike for a woman, especially first bike. I see plenty of women riding Touring bikes but never asked if that was what they started on. In that regard she may be okay but a lot depends on her size, and much more. I agree with the Heritage or a Fat Boy Lo. But if she is like most women once she makes up her mind.....

 

you know, I used to agree with that... but, both have the same ground clearance, and when she's finished both will have the same seat height..... the King does have 51 pounds over the Heritage - but... what's 50# when the bike is over 750#?

 

thanks for the opinions - I'll pass them on to her..... I've made most of these arguments to her - but.... her mind is pretty much made up. and she won't even consider a used one.... she wants new.

there is NO way she'll ride a metric.... except during the MSF course.

 

So how does she do riding your RK? Can she handle it? My first bike was a Triumph Bonneville. There are a lot of other inexpensive first bikes that aren't metrics.

 

LOL.. .well to tell you the truth - I wouldn't let her ride my King.... only my best friend and mechanic gets to do that.

 

Forgot to mention earlier that she can check out the Queens of the Road forum on here. Lots of good support, information that she might want to check out. Also Women Riders Now and V-Twin mama are good websites for women. A new woman rider faces challenges that are unique!