Elder brother cocked it up for me, kept coming off so was a no-no with my folks when i was young ....however, , plenty of mates around with bikes...me officer?....girlfriend hated bikes, then i married her!! Always a petrol head with four wheels then got to thinking, (a lot of yrs later) hey, i'm just about old enough to make up my own mind so did direct access nov '05, bought a mates fazer 600, decided wasnt quick enough, then found myself in june going round the "ring" on a new 'blade. Run it in on the way down there. F**k bikes had changed in 30yrs !!!! Older, wiser and i reckon self-preservation kicks in earlier nowadays. Comfort zone is raised every time i go out, even had my knee down once, just the once lol. Had gixxer thou last couple of yrs and a vert sm. Done more sm track days than road bike and first quad day last week, now THATS different!! Spose answer to the Q is nearly 4yrs of summer/dry road riding and hopefully many more............Born again teenager !!!!