Shock Horror; Chrissie Comes off Bike on first Outing!

The Mother of the Bride!

Today was Chrissie's first ride since she was ten years old and, according to her father, she was a lousy pillion as she always tried to sit upright around bends! So, it was with some trepidation that we embarked upon this inaugural trip. I had though given Chrissie some homework weeks in advance to read up on hits and tips of how to be a good pillion.

Esso Lewes

The weather was cool (7-8C) but thankfully dry. We donned our gear and I encouraged Chrissie to wear a silk balaclava as this would a) keep her hair out fo the way and b) keep her face warm. The photo here had us both rolling about ! Don't forget this is the mother of the bride !
We took a route that I have travelled many times and it was great. Chrissie was immediately recognised as an excellent pillion; why? Because I could not tell that she was there; until that is she tried to dismount. We re-fuelled in Lewes and Chrissie tried a different way to get on again; it was OK but we agreed that we needed to work on this. However when we got to Robertsbridge - where we would stop for lunch, the dismounting efforts suddenly resulted in Chrissie actually falling off the bike and landing flat on her back in the car park! We were in fits of laughter which turned to slight embarrassment as we entered the pub to find that they had witnessed this spectacle and had found it most amusing!
Never mind, we had a great lunch and, but for the gathering clouds, a few spots of rain and what appeared to be an even cooler temperature, we would have continued the ride. As it was, we decided to return home as we had had a great time and no gain was to be had by getting cold and possibly wet too!

Once home I downloaded the route from my SatNav and we had done over 90 miles; and what fun it was too! We are now planning our next trip!

Post script : My GT has an Autocomm system fitted to allow me to hear my SatNav ("Emily") and also to allow me to have bike to bile communications. However, will a pillion passenger, it allowed Chrissie and I to chat away as we went. This was particularly useful in the first hour as I was able to confirm that all was well and also praise Chrissie for being a super pillion!