Beginner Motorcycle??

[grahamzr]

Hey guys,

I have been contemplating learning how to ride a motorcycle for awhile now and was hoping someone could point me in the direction of a good (could have for a couple years upgrade etc...w/o to much hassle) inexpensive way to learn how to ride. Any experiences?

Thanks,
-Z

 

[F18Guy]

www.ridersedge.com

 

[Chris-St Louis]

My wife wanted to learn how a couple of years ago. We got her a Suzuki 500E.
They are cheap, reliable, light, and predicable in its power curve, and super easy to service.

Also, its big enough that you wont be bored with it in a year. And, there is Jets kits and seats and pipes avalible.

Overall, it was a good choice for her.

 

[syoung]

You wanna sport bike or a cruiser? Best beginner sport bike is the Ninja 500R. Beginner cruiser- probably a VStar or one of the other Japanese 600's. Staying under 600 keeps insurance down for a new rider.

 

[old school]

do you want a sportbike? my first bike was a cbr 600 and it was a lot of fun. i had friends start out on smaller bikes ( katanas, smaller ninjas, gs ) and they were bored with them after a couple of months.

 

[spydrjon]

I'll sell you my st1100

 

[grahamzr]

I think i'd prefer a sport bike....i'm a little bit of a road biker so it would be a similar riding position....great ideas about the suzuki and ninja. Thanks alot.

-Z

 

[Andrew Homan]

Triumph Speed 4 or bonnie

 

[syoung]

FWIW- you can probably pick up the Ninja 500 used for $2500-$3000 for a perfect, low mile example and resell it for what you paid for it after a year when/if you decide to move to a bigger bike. I bought a Ninja 500 for $2500 and sold it three years later for $2500. I thought I'd go bigger, but the little 500 twin keeps up with many of the 600's and is a lot more tossable because it's lighter. Insurance would double going from a 500 to a 600 in my case.

 

[LittleCountry]

State offered training programs

grahamzr,.

You may need to do some checking on this since you are out in VA... However, often times State Dept. of Licensing, State Motorcycle Safty Board or other state offered training programs exist for you to take advantage of. I'm sure you may have something available in your state.

For example: http://www.dol.wa.gov/ds/wmsp.htm

Costs for these types of programs and courses vary... in MN the cost of the beginner training course is around $350... While here in WA, it was just bumped up to $100 this year. I also found that the wait list are consistently months long.

Washington state also offers both beginer and intermediate sessions depending on your experience level.

Hope you pursue it (riding).... and have fun.

 

[syoung]

There are motorcycle safety foundation training sessions in the area, but the local cycle dealers pre-book ALL the spots so they are impossible to get into. On the up-side, if you buy from a dealer, they can give you a spot. MSF training gets a big discount on insurance and teaches things like countersteering that otherwise you would probably never learn- without knowing how to countersteer, you will die.

 

[Eric N.]

Well, Buell made ( designed ) a bike specifically for beginers. It's called the Buell Blast. It's an air cooled 500c bike that is easy to ride since it was designed with that in mind. Most of the Harley Davidson bike schools use them in their classes.. There was a deal ( don't think that it's around anymore ) that you could get the Blast ride it for a year and then trade it in for full value on a bigger bike. Like I said though I don't think that they do that anymore.. It's worth a look if you are looking for a beginer bike that is a little different then what everyone else has..

http://www.buell.com/en_us/bikes_gear/blast/blast/index.asp

Just my 2 pennies.

 

[marc olivares]

i agree w/ Andy
the Triumph makes some great starter bikes. especially the Bonneville.
and if you get it used you'll save tons.
but more importantly, look for a bike w/ an upright seated position, until you master counter-steer turning. from there the sky's the limits.

 

[Kyle]

Why dont you just stand in the road one time and let me hit you with the truck. Then it will be just like you had a bike....

 

[Joey]

Why dont you just stand in the road one time and let me hit you with the truck. Then it will be just like you had a bike....

I take it Kyle that you don't like bikes? or what? Don't get me wrong there is a saying. "there are those who have gone down and those who will"

The average rider lays a bike down in the first six months of learning to ride.

I have laid down three bikes now, and only have a small scar on my knee..... not bad for putting over 10k on my first bike the first year.... but then again I am just a hobby rider.

 

[Kyle]

Off road , yeah... On road ??? Hell no..... Just hamburger waiting to happen.....

 

[Blue]

check out the BMW F650 GS

I've got my eye on a few lightly-used ones that sell for around $5-6k

 

[Joey]

Okay kyle.... that works. I can't ride off road bikes (non-4 wheelers) anymore due to bad knees, But I guess I understand...

You don't normally have to worry about how well you can ride, you have to worry about who is not paying attention to you while riding.

 

[Todd Nash]

Crap Advice

Be careful who you listen to on this post. Much like the handgun post, you're bound to get some crappy advice. Maybe its me.

Don't let your first bike be a $5K-$6K brand-new honey of a bike. And you don't need to start on a crotch-rocket. Too much power and too agressive of a riding position gets newbies into trouble. Get a 250cc or 400cc crap-mobile and plan to dump it on its side a few times. Lots of beginners drop their bikes in the garage or in the parking lot. If they get off balance, they can be heavy. No sense in learning on a $20K Harley either.

Once you learn what you're doing (take a Motorcycle Safety Foundation Course or two) and ride for a while, upgrade. If the beater sits in the garage and you don't love riding, at least you won't take a big hit $$-wise. If you love it, sell it and buy your dream machine.

Just one guy's advice.


Nash

p.s. As Kyle noted, these things are dangerous. I'm an ER doctor and the most physically devastated patients are almost invariably motorcycle riders. Usually not at fault. If you take a walk through our Trauma ICU, at least 1/2 of the patients are motorcyclists even though there are not that many riders on the road. If you get hurt, it can be bad. Its not uncommon to have a MC rider in the ICU for MONTHS, in traction and intubated (breathing machine), if they live.

 

[syoung]

There are lots of ways to go for a beginner, that doesn't make it 'crap advice' though. I don't think anyone has given 'crap' advice, although I don't agree with them.
The beater route is valid, but then again if you don't know anything about bikes- have a mechanic look over ANY beater bike before buying. Many cheap old bikes are even MORE of a deathtrap than a regular bike. My college roommate went the beater route and was killed on his way home with the bike because the chain came off at 60MPH and locked the rear wheel. He would have been OK except for the car behind him.
It's possible to score something like a Honda CM400 for under a grand in good shape, but if you weigh more than 175lbs you won't have enough grunt to keep up with traffic.