I have 42 years continuous bike riding... fortunately, so far, without any spills except once at 0 miles per hour when I forgot to remove my disc lock when setting off (yes, even experienced riders have their moments!).

Maxim: There are old riders and bold riders but no old, bold riders.

What Spaw said is good advice. Learn the basics about control and handling gently and on a bike that you can control easily (the limit here in the UK for a learner was 250cc when I started and my first two bikes were 250s). A 1200 Harley is something to respect and definitely not something to graduate to before you know the basics.

Around 8 out of 10 bike accidents are caused by other road users (sorry, didn't see the bike guv) so anticipating what other road users are going to do is a large part of the skill of riding. Good protection is also important (helmet, leathers or kevlar clothing, joint protection).

I don't agree with gnu that a bike is inherently unsafe. Like Spaw I've ridden a good half a million miles without any accident but good training, practice, bike sense and riding within your capabilities and limits is absolutely essential.

Zen