While fans of The Walking Dead are still desperately trying to figure out who was on the receiving end of “Lucille” in the season six finale, Norman Reedus is putting his free Sunday evenings to good use. On June 12, Reedus returns to AMC’s Sunday night lineup as himself in the new travel series Ride with Norman Reedus. And while Daryl Dixon’s loyal army of riot-ready fans will be disappointed by the lack of crossbow, they can rest assured that Reedus will still be a motorcycle-riding badass.

With Ride, Reedus cements his status as the coolest man on television, as he takes off across the country with his friends and fellow celebrity bike enthusiasts to explore motorcycle culture and interact with likeminded aficionados. Sound like an awesome job? Reedus agrees. In fact, when Joel Stillerman, president of original programming and development for AMC, called the actor with the idea, it didn’t take more than a second for Reedus to accept the offer.

“It was pretty quick,” he laughs. “When I talked to Joel, I said ‘yes’ right away before he changed his mind. It’s a dream job and something I’ve never done before, and it’s something I was completely interested in exploring.”

As far as the basics of the news series, Reedus has already answered all of the routine questions. If he could ride with any person of his choice, who would it be? Evel Knievel, Lemmy Kilmister, or Steve McQueen — all great choices. How many bikes does he own? Five, including his newest, a Tiger 800. What is his dream motorcycle? An Indian Larry. Any advice for new riders? “Don’t chew gum.” But as someone who is completely green to motorcycle culture, I need a little bit more from the actor, as he is now the face of a culture.

For starters, what kind of bike should I buy for my first ride? Please remember, I’d like to look cool and not like I’m capable of falling off and busting my ass. “The Triumph Scramblers are really good,” he offers. “If I was going for a Harley, I’d probably tell you to get a Sportster because it’s easier to learn on. It’s one of those things where you start smaller and safer until you feel more comfortable on it and build your way up.”

Reedus was riding his friends’ bikes long before he saved up enough to buy his first, a Buell X1 Lightning. He says he was 19 or 20 when he finally had enough cash to afford that particular model, which he describes as “Harley-esque, but with more of a sporty street bike flair.” The actor’s first ride, however, was actually a Volkswagen Karmann Ghia that broke down a lot. “But, you know, it’s a Volkswagen,” he adds, “so you just kick it in the side and it starts up again. It was canary yellow, but we painted it white right off the bat. It was cherry when I got it, but I just beat the shit out of it.”

Back to the challenge of getting on a bike for the first time, what if my biggest safety issue is my wife hitting me over the head with a frying pan because she thinks motorcycles are death traps? “Put her on one,” Reedus says of a solution. “Get something with ample butt room, put her on the back of it, and drive safe.”

That’s easier said than done, but it’s a novel approach to erasing any negative stigmas associated with motorcycles or the stereotype of the loud, obnoxious biker. While the purpose of Ride isn’t to identify and strike down such stereotypes, Reedus will shine the light on particular biker cultures that the ignorant masses might not know about.