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Juliet
Juliet with her 2007 Hyosung GV250 "Aquila"
Riding History:
When we were living out near Tauwhare and I still had the Suzuki LS400, Juliet expressed a desire to learn how to ride the bike so I had her take the LS around the yard a few times, teaching her the basics of starting without stalling, gear changes and cornering.
Not long later she noticed one of the farms down the road was selling an old 80cc Kawasaki trail bike - a KX80, we think. The price was good so we went down the road and bought it then I rode it home.
It was one of the more disconcerting rides I've had as I had no speedometer to tell me how fast I was going and no rear view mirrors to let me know what was behind me. Fortunately Juliet was following behind me in the car to ensure I was safe from people coming up behind me unexpectedly. It was also fitted with full knobby tyres, which felt somewhat weird on tarmac. I rode by feel, determining what speed at which to take the corners by what felt safe considering the tyres.
We got it home and Juliet used to practise riding it around the yard.
She was getting quite proficient at handling it but unfortunately we needed money in an emergency and she decided to sell the bike. She went back to taking the LS400 around the lawn but it was not a suitable, legal bike for her to go for her licence on - utter madness, considering the law would permit her to ride a 250cc crotch-rocket such as the Suzuki RG250 that was capable of far greater speeds and much better acceleration than the LS400.
When the LS400 died we had nothing for her to practise on and when I finally came to get a new bike, I deliberately limited my options to 250cc or less so Juliet would be able to go for her licence. Hence I ended up with the XT225.
Riding practice resumed - mostly at the large car park next to Minogue Park where Taliesin practised his BMX riding.
Juliet started investigating the logistics of attending University next year and we figured that she would be best served to get her motorbike licence and get a motorbike to commute on. So, on Saturday 24 March 2007 Juliet, the cubs and I went to the bike shops on Te Rapa Straight to get an idea of how much a suitable bike would cost.
We stopped in at "Road and Sport", "Boyd Honda", "Supacross Cycles", "Waikato Yamaha" and "Hamilton Motorcycles" and the three bikes we found that looked suitable and were comfortable for Juliet to sit on were a 250cc Suzuki Intruder, a 250cc Yamaha Virago and a 250cc Hyosung Aquila.
We talked with the sales staff about finance options and such and got them to look into finance approval. We got instant finance approval on the Hyosung at a good interest rate so we then went home, discussed the matter and looked at our budget. We determined we could afford to get it now rather than wait, so we headed back to Hamilton Motorcycles to accept the deal.
All the way there in the car, Juliet was bouncing up and down and repeating "I'm gonna get a bike" in an excited squeak so I said, "finally, you know how I felt when I was going to get the XT," and asked if she was the same woman who had, at that time, told me to calm down as "it's only a motorbike"...
We signed up for the finance and organised to pick up the bike on Tuesday after the first payment had gone out. So, despite the original plan being to look at suitability of various bikes and the prices and availability, we ended up buying a motorcycle.
The irony is that I chose the XT225 for myself so that Juliet could use it to get her licence and she how has her own 250cc bike to practise on.
After work on Tuesday 27 March, I dropped my bike off at home and we jumped into the car and headed out to Hamilton Motorcycles. The bike was indeed ready as promised as it was a new bike and did not have to go through the same rigmarole as my bike had been through to get a new registration and warrant of fitness.
I looked at the licence plate and said "Juliet is going to love that plate." The salesman, Heath, must have thought I was being sarcastic as he asked what was wrong with it.
"Nothing," I said, and explained that the last three letters of the plate - YSJ - were brilliant as her nickname on the Kiwi Biker forum is "strayjuliet", often shortened to "SJ", so the plate could be read as "Why, strayjuliet".
I signed the last of the paperwork then rode the bike out to the front and parked in front of Juliet, who was waiting in the car. I pointed at the plate. Juliet read it and burst out laughing.
We headed off and stopped in at Minogue Park so Juliet could have her first ever ride on her new bike around the car park.
She was immensely pleased with it.
Since then, we have taken the opportunity on fine weekends to go somewhere she could practise. On these occasions we load the cubs' electric bikes into the car and they practise riding as well.
One day, Minogue Park car park was full so we went to a Catholic Church on Rifle Range Road to borrow their car park. We got some good photos and a couple of brief video clips of Juliet and Taliesin riding their bikes as well as photos of our one-year-old daughter, Inverness, on the small electric bike.
Juliet and the cubs pose with their bikes on training day. Tangwyn in the centre, Taliesin to the right.
Juliet riding her Hyosung Aquila around the car park.
More to come as Juliet goes through her licence tests...