Welcome to the clan Roachy. You have dropped your bike your a proper biker now lol. Don't let these Little tarmac interfaces get you down. You will get your confidence back it is just a time thing. I don't do corners well as i have no sense of balance in my right ear due to nerve ending damage. If I bank over too far my brain thinks i am falling and down I go. My solution is not to go so fast that I have to bank over past my tipping point. I have also developed my own method of steering round corners. As for your knee pain that should ease off over time. you will probably find that the ligaments and tendons in your knees are not used to being held in your riding position. when you get off the bike that is when the pain sets in. Have a chat with your GP, physio may help and will be better than chewing pain relief.   Will you be coming over to the Matlock meet to show off your battle scars??                                                                                                                                                                             

well done Roachy for getting straight back on, I,m sure geoff will get rid of any teething troubles ...and clean bike!! And for the record some of us men drop our bikes as well, I did on my last one twice when parking up for a cuppa at cafe........with an audience, while so called mates were laughing!!!                                                                                                                                                                               

Thats what mates are for cw!                                                                                                                                                                             

Well Done Rachel !  thats another milestone in the biking world! I cant give u any advice on handling the bike, obviously. But your postings are an inspiration.    Keep going lass....and enjoy your bike, remember, its all about doing things at your own pace.                                                                                                                                                                             

well done roachy,the fact that you are having a go riding your bike is tremendous for the ladies as well as the blokes, remember the more u ride the and gain experience, the less mistakes u will make, and the more fun it becomes. keep up the good work,whf.

Sorry hun for the recently added flies on your pretty, washed and polished new bike.  But you were the one to suggest I take it for a spin and the roads were nice out there ....                                                                                                                                                                              

Thanks everyone, your support means a lot.   Been out today, did around 135 miles and no topples! Rode out to Leeds and Bradford Airport with Geoff (who coached me through all my turns which was a huge help) where we met up with Ian (bandit_mr_p). Geoff took off to Masham to meet up with his parents and myself and Ian had a good natter before pootling over to Masham ourselves to meet Geoff. Had to ride that part *by myself* as it were as Ian doesn't have bike to bike comms so I had to try and remember to look where I want to go...(this is by far my biggest problem, my gaze keeps falling as do the revs and then I'm trouble). Got to Masham without incident albeit at rather a sedate pace.   Had a icecream then we set off back to Pontefract whilst Ian headed off towards Manchester. Lovely route back (avoiding the dreaded Harrogate) and stopped off at a lovely pub for a break. This is where I suggested Geoff take the bike for a proper little spin and he brought it back splattered with flies! I only washed and polished her this morning!! More coaching from Geoff about keeping my head up, looking through the bends and advice on revs and best gear to be in etc.   I think my confidence has improved a little today. My boots and the dropped forks have made a big difference to putting my feet down so stopping is less panicky but I'm still struggling with setting off.   I've got these wind proofs knee protectors things so I put those on and my knees didn't suffer quite as bad but they still hurt a lot and when I got home I noticed my legs were very swollen. I hope I'm not going to have problems.                                                                                                                                                                              

Nothing wrong with sedate Roachy 

You don't run before you can walk... same thing applies to driving, riding bikes, riding horses, etc etc etc.

Stay within your abilities and your confidence levels... as your abilities and confidence increase, so can your speed. Don't push yourself too far or too fast - it'll end up feeling like a chore and it's supposed to be FUN!

It's human nature to look downwards when you're riding - it'll come with practice and confidence... think back to when you learned to drive and how hard it was just to reach down to the gear stick, without looking down to do so... I'll bet you practically never look down these days, apart from when you get a new car and reverse is in a different slot to your previous motor

Hope you find a solution for your knee issues - doesn't sound nice at all!

Keep up the good work!
                                                                                                                                                                             

Couldn't agree more WB!!   As I was saying to Roachy yesterday and my biggest tip for all newbies, is forget about going fast!  Learn to read the bends first, learn to be able to understand where the road is going by following the vanishing point and following clues such as vehicles in front, hedgerows, trees etc.   This will teach you to know where you should be looking (as far as you can basically) and once this habit of raising your head and your eyes drops into place, everyone's natural speed will come.   Pushing it too early (which Roachy isn't by the way) is what causes accidents, pure and simple.   Allow your own natural speed to come, whether that be 40 or 90, it doesn't matter.  That's one of the great things about biking ... every biker is different.   I do wish you hadn't mentioned confusion in different cars though, as Roachy has taken my car to work today!!                                                                                                                                                                             

Ooopsie... sorry!

If anyone sees a slightly flustered looking Roachy behind the wheel today, with the wipers on full in the glorious sunshine, she's probably about to make a turn

                                                                                                                                                                             

I saw a lass pushing her car into a space int carpark - that wouldn't have been her?