Lux-brother,
I took a returning rider for a ride about two months ago. I was behind him, making sure not to push him - he ran wide the first two canyon turns he took. Luckily, there was no traffic so we motored on. After lunch he told me to go ahead and have some fun, he'd chill and catch up with me. I pulled away but slow, watching him for a couple miles in my mirrors. He ran wide again two more times just trying to hang with me so I got behind him again and fell waaay back so he could ride by himself a bit.
What am I getting at? Do NOT follow ANYBODY out there. Don't even look at other riders. Look where you want to go. Think as far ahead as you can, it takes some getting used to. Visualize the road that's ahead just outside your vision range. Don't even get on the bike without taking the MSF first. Don't even take the MSF before getting ALL your gear first.
I made all the mistakes. Riding in t-shirts and sneakers, without gloves, etc. My younger brother, who is starting now, is smarter than I was - he's learned from my experience. He's on a budget so a year ago, he started to buy his gear bit by bit - he now owns full leathers, boots, gloves, and a good helmet - and he's never sat on a bike yet.
He's three weeks into the course (he's in Germany, where the training is much more in-depth and intense than it is here - it will take him a minimum of 16 classroom, 10 training-site and 15 traffic hours to complete the course). He probably won't get a bike before the summer, but he'll be prepared.
Be like my brother. Or, to say it in the words of my good friend Viral M. Gupta, the great mathematician: "Stop. Think first."
Happy motoring,
-R.