"Are some people just not meant to ride?"

>>> ABSOLUTELY. Mental desire doesn't equal ability.

I knew a guy that went out & bought an RC51 b/c he loved the look & rumble of the bike, knew its racing history, appreciated the bike's performance, etc. However, he couldn't ride the thing worth a damn. He was tenative, reluctant, uneasy, & tense on the bike. He always looked like he was going to drop it or crash it. He was def a fish outta water...even tho, he said he'd owned "many" bikes & had "lots" of experience. :\ Yeah right, musta been mopeds. That RC spent more time in his garage on stands being polished & modded, & stared at, than ridden. Hell, I'd ask the guy to go riding & it would be a huge decision for him if he'd go or not. He was just scared of riding the thing. He'd never admit that but it was obvious. I only ever got the guy to go to the twisties once...& that was enough for him, he turned white as a sheet w/ fear. He never went back b/c he was scared as hell to lean it over. Was a damned shame to see that bike sitting in a garage 24/7, never being ridden.

I'm all for welcoming newcomers to motorcycling but not everyone is cut out for it.

 

haha thats a funny story and you're pretty good at writing i could visualize you asking him to ride while he is detailing it, and the guy freaking out and sweating trying to come up with an excuse not to ride.
I wonder if it still just sits.

and this is a def yes some people shouldnt even be driving cars

 

Nothing wrong with being scared of your bike.
I'm plenty scared of my bike and I'm hoping it'll keep me in check so I don't loop it or worse.

 

Define "scared"

Respecting your bike is one thing. But there's a difference between respect and fear. If you fear it, you won't control the bike. The best that can come out of that is the bike controlling you. And that's plenty bad.

At worst, nothing is in control.

 

That's true, I'll get back to you on that once the roads heat up a bit. I guess I don't really fear it since I'm hurting to ride it at this point, but it's my first move up to a big bike so I guess I can say I've just got a very healthy amount of respect for what happens once I start disrespecting it.

 

I think the people who ride solely to show off are the only people who aren't meant to ride. Consider the people who do this, they are the ones who don't have any leanings and/or dedication to motorsports and most often the ones who end up being dyno queens and people who mod without any application. I think most of the people who lack the coordination or confidence fit into this profile most of the time. But **** 'em, they help fund the companies that make our toys so I got no real problem with 'em, without that income for the R&D, who knows what we'd be riding now a days?