Getting started in motorcycling can be difficult. You are surrounded by people telling you that you are crazy! "You're going to kill yourself !!". Everyone you meet has a story or two about a cousin, or friend, or someone they knew who was injured or killed on a bike. You don't know what kind of bike to get. Everyone tells you, get a small bike to learn on, then sell it and get a bigger one. Some tell you , get an old bike, cuz you're going to drop it and screw it up anyway. Half the bikers you see scare the hell out of you. Some of them look like the "one's your mother warned you about". The rest of them zip between the freeway traffic at 110 mph, wearing shorts and a t-shirt. You have a million questions. Where do you go for answers?

• Am I going to kill myself on a motorcycle?
• What kind of bike should I buy?
• Should I let my kid ride a motorcycle?
• My friend who used to ride a lot says if I use the front brake I will flip the bike. Is that true?
• Why do bikes go between cars? Isn't that dangerous?
• It seems like I'm always reading about or hearing about motorcycle accidents. Who are all these people having accidents? Are there any statistics??
• What exactly do you learn in an MSF class??
• Are there any other good sources of information for Newbies besides this wonderful page? Of course there is. You might try one of the following: Tips & Techniques, Safety Oriented Links, Interesting Reading, and the Rider Education of New Jersey site. Canadian's can check out the CASM (Canadian Association for Safe Motorcycling).
• Can I really get on the bridges for free-This one doesn't require much space to answer. In California, motorcycles are considered to be "high occupancy vehicles, and as such are allowed to ride in the "carpool" lanes. This also gives them the right to proceed right through the toll booth in the special diamond lane, without paying, just like the "car-poolers", as long as it is during the posted "car-pool" hours. I suspect that some other states may have the same rules, but I don't know for sure. If you live in an area with car pool lanes, call the Highway Patrol and ask!
• Do I have to wear leather stuff and get tattoos to be accepted? This is a tough one. I'm saving it for later.

If you have any "important" questions about motorcycling that you just have to ask, go ahead and send an e-mail. If it's a "good one", I may even post it here. We don't want any ignoranat biker's out there running around now, do we??