[motorcycles] getting started

first lesson.


get a helmet.

 

take the course.

 

Kawasaki Ninja 250 - This would be the bike I would recommend to anyone with no prior street riding experience. It is a very solid, reliable design without a scary amount of power. This bike is very practical and will comfortably be able to accommodate a passenger or possibly a tiny amount of luggage. I rode this bike during the test for my 2 wheel endorsement on my liscence and it seems to be a very well rounded bike, perfect for a new rider. These can be had new for right at the $3000.00 mark and would be my #1 recommendation for a new rider. The downside is that it will usually be outgrown by a rider once he gets a good amount of experience under his belt, and may leave him wanting more out of his machine at that time.

Honda CBR600F2/3/4 - This bike would be a great choice for someone who is planning on moving on to a modern sportbike in the future. It is an Inline 4, which will allow you to get familiar with the engine characteristics of this type of design, without having the absurd amounts of power to cope with as you learn to ride. It has good wind protection and a comfortable, upright riding postition. This is a great all around motorcycle. (NOTE: These machines cannot be purchased new anymore. Used only).

Suzuki SV650 - This is Suzuki's bread and butter bike. This bike, being a V-twin, makes much more torque than an inline 4 (i.e. CBR600F2), and does not rev as high. For a twin, this bike is very forgiving and easy to ride. Twins will require much less shifiting anytime than a 4 cylinder machine. This bike is also passenger or luggage capable, and is available either naked, or with a front fairing depending on year and version (there are also aftermarket fairings available). This bike is also one that most will never outgrow skill wise, is also a very common bike to see at the track, and is comparatively the cheapest bike to race at the club level (though thats getting way ahead of ourselves). This bike is many times what the 250 is in every area, yet it has a relatively forgiving nature. A good example can be had for around $4000.00.

Those are my 3 favorite recommendations for a new rider, any of those bikes should serve their owners very well. I tried to hit on bikes of different style and price range to cover the needs of most everyone. Before I move on, a word on the 600 Superbikes (The R6, the GSXR, the ZX-6R, the 636, and the CBR600RR). I will never recommend these bikes to a new rider, for several reasons. These bikes focus (Focii?) are all track oriented. The egronomics of the machines are all very uncomfortable, and can be a pain in the neck (back, wrists, and arms) literally, when used in normal riding situations. They can not accomodate a passenger (some dont have rear seats at all, and those that do are so pathetic i'd feel very sorry for your passenger; they're not going to be happy at the end of the ride). The powerband of these machines is also very track oriented which means the powerband is very high up in the RPM range. These bikes have virtually no turn radius, which can make simple parking lot manouvers (or any tight situation) more difficult to handle. They have an incredible amount of power for any level of rider, and are very unforgiving of mistakes. You can get yourself into trouble with these machines faster than pretty much anything other than their 1000cc counterparts.

1. The Learning Curve ("Why should I start on something smaller?")

Ask yourself this question; in which manner would you rather learn to walk on tightropes: A) with a 4x4 board that is 2 feet off the ground, or B) with a wire that is 20 feet off the ground. Most sensible people would choose “A”. The reason why is obvious. Unfortunately safety concerns with a first motorcycle aren’t as apparent as they are in the example above. However, the wrong choice of what equipment to learn on can be just as deadly…regardless of how safe, careful, and level-headed you are.

2. "But I’ll be Safe, Responsible, and Level-Headed While Learning on a superbike!".

Sorry, but that excuse doesn’t cut it. To be safe you also need SKILL (throttle control, evasion technique, corner technique, braking technique, body position, etc). Skill comes ONLY with experience. To gain that experience you must spend time in real world riding scenarios. Before skills are developed which can foster safe riding, you need a bike that can mirror the level of skill that you’re currently at, not a cutting edge race bike that will throw you off the first chance it has.

Imagine someone saying, "I want to learn to juggle, but I’m going to start by learning with chainsaws. But don’t worry, I’ll go slow, be careful, and stay level-headed while I’m learning". Like the tightrope example above, the answer here isn’t hard to see. Be careful all you want, go as slow as you want, be as cautious as you want…you're still juggling chainsaws! Without a foundation in place of HOW to juggle there is only a small level of safety you can aspire towards. As such, it’s better to learn the skills of juggling with tennis balls first. The same holds true for learning to ride a motorcycle.

3. Cost (“I don’t want to waste money on a bike I’ll only have for a short period of time”).

Smaller bikes have good resale value, because other (smart) people will want them as learner bikes. You’ll probably be able to sell a used learner bike for as much as you paid for it.
If you drop your brand new bike that is fresh off of the showroom floor while you're learning (and you probably will), you've just broken a directional, perhaps a brake / clutch lever, cracked / scrapped the fairings ($300.00 each to replace or often more), damaged the bar ends, etc. It's better and cheaper to drop a **** bike that you don’t care about versus one you just spent 9k on. Most new riders drop bikes going under 20MPH, when the bike is the most unstable (parking lots, anyone?). They often don’t result in physical injury, just a big dent in your pride and your wallet (depending on what you're riding).

4. EGO ("I want to look cool cruising the Boulevard!")

Worried about not having a modern, flashy sport machine to show off to everyone? Well, you'll look like a tool with a brand new, but ****ed-up, 2005 superbike (or a bike that you can’t pull away from a stop on without stalling 15 times), versus something less flashy that you can safely, responsibly, and comfortably ride. Any real rider would give you credit for going about learning to ride the *correct* way (i.e. on a beginner oriented bike). If you’re worried about impressing someone with a sportbike, or embarrassed about learning on a "lesser" bike then you're not mature enough to handle the responsibility of a motorcycle. Try a moped. After you've grown up revisit the idea of a motorcycle.

Riding Gear

As far as a helmet goes, a SNELL and DOT approved helmet (stickers on the back of the helmet tell its approval rating) is a must, FULL FACE or 3/4 only. Half helmets or anything of the like WILL NOT sufficiently protect your head in the event of a crash, and will not be DOT and SNELL approved. Brand and price range is preference and cash availability, but dont skimp here. Pay what your head is worth to you. You can, however, save hundreds by buying a plain helmet versus one that is covered in a pro riders favorite graphic design. Try it on before you buy and make sure visibility and comfort is where you expect it to be. If you're going to be wearing it for hours at a time, you dont want your attention drawn by neck or head pain and you want clear visibility of everything on and off of the road.

Now, heres where things get more complex. My personal opinion on riding gear after being hit by a car twice, once is street clothes and once in full racing leathers with boots, gloves, and a spine protector on, are that I will NOT ride a motorcycle without the latter FOR ANY REASON. This is not the typical (or practical) view, however. As the old saying goes, dress for the crash, not for the ride.

Leathers are made in two piece and one piece form. I street and track ride in a Joe Rocket 2 piece GP suit. Joe Rocket makes very good leathers at a very good price, probably the best bang for the buck on the market. A 2 piece suit allows you to unzip and take the jacket off at the waist so you dont have to walk around at 100 degrees when you get off of the bike. The type of riding I do calls for this kind of gear, but I realize this is not practical for the daily commuter.

In this case I recommend a leather jacket with armored riding gloves, a good set of boots, and a pair of blue jeans. This will offer good protection, FAR better than any street clothes, but can result in broken ribs in the event of a lowside, as the jeans tend to grip asphalt and the leather is designed to slide causing you to twist at your midsection. They also offer no impact protection or abrasion resistance. *UPDATE* There are CF armored kevlar overpants that you can buy now to zip over a pair of jeans. I highly recommend this for commuters. There are several companies making very well armoured mesh style jackets right now, which are worth a look for summer riding, though some are virtually useless they're so lightweight. Nitro has a great line of armoured mesh jackets out right now for right at $100.00 that is a STEAL of a deal.

For gloves I recommend full length armored gloves from any reputable leather company (Alpinestars and Joe Rocket have quality units at good prices). Armored gloves will have either plastic or carbon fiber on the joints and will help prevent broken knuckles and other small bones of the hand from being broken and/or dislocated in the event of a spill, and prevent the asphalt from turning your palms into jello.

A quality pair of boots is imperative to any rider. I use alpinestars GP boots. My first wreck in normal shoes resulted in nerve damage in my ankle which, over a year later, still has numb and inflamed areas. I recommend something with reenforcement along each side of the shin and foot to keep the foot from hyper-extending. Most boots are designed for leathers to fit inside of them so be sure to try them on before you buy in whatever pant you will most commonly use them with. European companies also have different size charts. A properly fitted boot should be as comfortable as a tennis shoe.

Accesories that are worth having are a pair of sun glasses that will fit comfortably in a helmet (take your helmet to a flea market and try some on, a cheapo $2.00 pair that fits well is worth having stored away on the bike), a rain suit, a copy of all insurance papers and your DL, the owners manual and a basic tool kit which will include things such as a tire guage and any specialty tools the bike may require.

Instructional Courses and Media

The Motorcycle Safety Foundation (http://www.msf-usa.org) is probably the most well known course that a new rider will take. The MSF's website allows you to find classes in your area and sign up for the 3-day weekend course. The course consists of a 15 hour curriculum of both on-bike and classroom training to provide a very basic knowledge of the rules, procedures and operation of a motorcycle. This course is a must-take for any new rider, and will also provide you with a card upon completion that may be good for an insurance break in your area.

A gold mine of information can be found in the book "A twist of the wrist". While this is a book with focus on the basics of performance riding, it has a wealth of information on correct cornering and braking techniques, and is a wonderful rescource for a new rider wanting to learn how to do it right, and avoid many of the common bad habits people form. It's worth learning the correct techniques now instead of trying to break your bad habits later. No matter what kind of riding you plan to do, this book will be a great help. This comes in both book and video form and can be found at many book stores.

This covers the most common questions I receive, but I would be glad to answer any further questions about these or any other topics of concern. Feel free to PM me with any questions or comments, and I will add onto this as needed.

http://www.pbnation.com/showthread.php?t=665225

 

this is what i want to get
suzuki sv650s

 

1) I started on a Suzuki GS500. Super durable, lots of cheap replacement parts available on eBay, and extremely easy to do maintenance on. I feel one should learn to do most of their own motorcycle maintenance. I bought mine used for $2000. It wasn't considered a sportsbike, so insurance was cheap. Liability only was $75/year for me.

The new, faired ones, look pretty good. Most people won't even know it's a 500cc bike.

http://www.suzukicycles.com/Products/GS500FK7/Default.aspx

2) A 500cc bike (40-50hp) will do a 13-14 sec 1/4 mile, or around 5 seconds 0-60. That's as fast as most sports cars. Your choices here are a Suzuki GS500 or a Kawasaki Ninja 500. A newer 600cc sportbike is usually a minimum of 100hp. These are built for performance, not low speed stability or durability, and aren't so great to learn on. Minor drops or accidents can get very expensive quickly.

3) This is what I have

Helmet: Arai (My next helmet will be a Shoei)
Gloves: Held
Boots: Sidi
Jackets/Pants: Fieldsheer

I never go anywhere without my boots, gloves, and helmet at a minimum. People always overlook the boots but I can't imagine riding without them.

4) twtex.com or gstwin.com (for the GS500) motohouston.com or tamumc.org are easy places to check online.

 

man, just go for the Hayabusa.

 

holy cow

whats the infatuation with crotch rockets???

you plan on taking long drives on it?

go with a cruiser..you dont have to go with a big monster Ultraglide or Goldwing....just a nice little 750+ from HArley, Yamaha or Honda should do just fine for a beginner.

At least with a cruiser...you can lean back rather than leaning on the gastank all day. You may not get as fast of a 0-60 time...but you will certainly be more comfortable and safer since you wont feel inclined to test a cruisers accleration capabilities.

seriously...back when I used to ride all the time...I traded with a riding friend for a trip down to Galveston...I rode his Nighthawk and he rode my Virago...halfway thru I was begging to get back on my bike.


and above all...dont be a fool...dont worry about looking cool..

GET A DAMN HELMET AND WEAR IT

Ive seen far too many people die from landings that a helmeted driver would survive just cause they thought they were too cool to wear a helmet.

 

whereever you get your bike from....if you are good at dealing you should be able to get them to cut you some good deals on the extras.

depends on how desperate they are to sell to you.

 

I had a Katana 750 a few years ago. It was sweet. Fast when you wanted it to be, easy to ride. The riding position was not extreme over the handlebars, yet you could lean over if you needed too. Had to sell it when I lost my job, but the greatest 2 years on the road for sure. Just be very safe. Keep that head turning, it's the one you don't see that gets you.

 

I ride almost every day. A couple of things.

Assume that no one will see you, keep your fingers on the brakes when in traffic, all the time. Assume cars will pull out in front of you like you aren't there. When at a dead stop, keep your head on a swivel making sure the car behind you is going to stop. 99.99% of the time they will, but brakes go out... people just decide they don't have to stop or don't pay attention... Pay attention to the road, not just the cars on it... do you have a shoulder to pull off to or are you going into a ditch? Always have a plan in the back of your head.

Oh, and the first time you go over a bridge and ride over a long length of steel expansion link or a drawbridge, expect your heart to jump into your throat because you don't really get to choose where the bike goes, it wants to track grooves in the metal.

 

I was thinking of starting a thread on a similar subject. I bought a Honda Shadow 1100 about a year ago. Its a used cruiser and my first bike. I took the safety course and all that jazz, but I still have questions regarding the handling of the thing.

For example: when I bought my Mustang (5.0 V8), I wanted to know where the tires would break, what it felt like to do a 180 on a wet surface, that kind of thing. I didn't want to know these things in order to have fun. I wanted to know how the car would handle in adverse situations. The solution was easy: I went to a Randalls parking lot about 3am after a storm one night. I hauled ass, cut the wheels, spun the tires, and generally learned very quickly what the car could do, how it handled, what it took to get the tires to break free on a wet surface, and how to steer into a spin and re-gain control.

Obviously, you can't do ANY of that on a bike without hurting yourself. The result is that I'm constantly wondering how careful I need to be. It rained one day when I was at work, and I had to get the bike home. It had quit raining at this point, but the streets were still wet. I had, and still have, ZERO idea at what speed I can take a corner or even a gradual turn before I risk losing control due to tire spin, lack of traction, etc.

I know guys who have ridden for 20 years and the only answer I get from them is to "just be careful." That response drives me freaking nuts and the result of all of this is I have a motorcycle that I'm almost scared to ride out of fear it might rain.

Any thoughts on this? I do love to ride....I just wish I could somehow figure out the above.

 

http://www.fastfreddie.com/
Freddie Spencer riding school?

You're right... the only way to learn how your bike will respond to loss of traction is to experience it. You could try a high performance riding school, or maybe just find a way to get some track time.
Though... I can't picture a Honda Shadow at a track day.
Failing that, find a way onto a dirt bike. It will give you a good idea how a bike handles in less than ideal traction conditions.

 

Lynus

I wish I had a better answer for you.

The way I first learned how my bike(750 Virago) handled was just to ride it...if you have to take a corner slowly at first cause you arent sure...so be it.

just take the corner at a slow speed....make sure you dont take a sharp turn...make it a gentle arc...use as much of the lane as you need to.

every bike handles a little different so thats why you have been unable to get a specific answer from the guys you talked to.

Ill say this much...as long as you have good tread on the tires...and you dont try to speed thru the turn(keep it slow until you have a good feel for it) you should be alright.