I don't encourage or discourage. I take the same approach when people ask me about tattoos. It is up to the individual.

It's up to them... but I'd keep an eye on which direction they're riding and go the other way. :)

MSF all the way. That should be their first exposure to riding. They can decide on their own if MC is for them or not.

yep.

most ppl only listen to what they wana hear. one of my friends really shouldnt be riding imo, but he wanted too, so we told him take the class, we'll take u to the parking lot whenever you want, practice practice practice.

id rather keep an eye on my friend to help prevent some injury and retardedness than turn my back on him and find out he got killed. some ppl learn the hard way, but sometimes the hard way kills ya.

never know what ppl are capable of when given the right instruction and proper tools

If they act like there gonna hop on and be Invincible Even AFTER I tell them what they should do to get started, Then I just walk away b/c I dont like to be all fatherly It's not my job in life to tell people what to do.

I do that enough at work.

if its a friend, that attitude entitles u to kick him right in the balls, right?

Oh Def, If its someone I know then I def tell them how I feel...But I cant tell you how many morons Come up to me when I'm out on the bike like "ZOMG YOUR BIKE IS TEH SEXORZ I WANNA LEARN TO RIDE BLAH BLAH BLAH"

Then i always say Ya take the MSF course and depending on how they react I either A. Continue the Convo or B. Ride away in Horror and Hope they never touch a Motorcycle

oh, strangers i dont do to well with, i always hear the " dude thats a gixxer? they go like 250 right? im gonna get one, yadda yadda yadda."
:wtfru:
i smile, nod, keep it moving.

This

If they are adults, they will do what they want anyways.
At least this way they get to try riding for themselves in a safe environment, without spending alot of cash, to see if they actually like it, or if it is just a romanticized idea.

:iagree:

I helped a couple people discover that riding wasn't for them just a couple weeks ago. It's not fun when that happens, but it's usually for the best.

The way I see it, it's the course that's designed to weed out those that should or shouldn't be riding, not the coach. And it's generally up to the customer to make the final decision, not me. I basically just give them the tools & opportunity to learn, then pass or fail and support them either way.

I actually just had one older gentleman who's goal was to get a bike so he could ride with his son. He passed the course, but still made the conscious decision that riding wasn't for him. I was bummed & a little surprised to hear him say that, but at the same time, I understood and part of me agreed.

With that said, it was just the physical skill part that he was having trouble with... with more practice he could have ironed out all those issues.