The 1st bike debate.

[OreoGaborio]

Mark, I pictured you more as a plaintiff than a judge.


Nice bouffant.

[ThisBitch]

Mark... allot is a verb, a lot means more than a little.

To be a tyrannical dick bag, you need to be literate.

[naked-daytrader]

Mark... allot is a verb, a lot means more than a little.

To be a tyrannical dick bag, you need to be literate.

You're dumb











And aren't you banned?

[ThisBitch]

You're dumb











And aren't you banned?

Nope, apparently just Miserable Usered or having server issues.


Wouldn't you miss me if I were gone?

[naked-daytrader]

Nope, apparently just Miserable Usered or having server issues.


Wouldn't you miss me if I were gone?

ummm, yeah sure...I'd miss you like those genital worts I just got rid of..

[Crash Dummy Denno]

god dammit!

mark rendered his decision before I could make fun of Oreo's super interesting VIR EX500 tale...

[derek]

I didn't really choose my first bike; the bike chose me. I bought it from a sketchy guy that was being kicked out of the country, who, well, happened to be a friend.

I'd definitely do it over again but I got a smokin' deal (obviously). It was a carb'd R1. I didn't really enjoy riding as much as I did because I'd only whip through a few gears. Bike was way too powerful for the street, and for my abilities. Plus, insurance on a liter bike for a kid was ridiculous. I did however spend 3 months on a 250cc throughout the motorcycle training course.

I never went down on the R1 because I respected the power and I made sure I took baby steps. I think a lot of people who start riding a bike, a 250, 600, or a liter, don't respect the power of the bike and don't get educated. Starting out on a 250 compared to a 600 or to a 1000 allows for a greater margin of error because everyone makes mistakes in the beginning. That and reading our local forum from Vancouver (bcsportbikes), every single day you'll read RIP threads. That put everything in perspective.

I ended up selling the R1 after one season with no regrets and went a few seasons without riding and focused on my car. I would have loved to start out with a 600 and keep it, but, as Costanza would say, I'M BACK BABY.

[Jason P.]

This was the first bike - for my first riding season.

It was affordable TO ME and i learned a lot on it.

[hskater26]

i got a yamaha seca II for my first bike. i didnt really want to go any bigger then that because i never rode anything. i liked it for the year and a half i had it and then moved on to the ducati

[SRTie4k]

First bike I ever rode was my cousin's 03 or 04 GSXR-750. I rode that around my uncles field a couple of times until I got the hang of basic operation, then took it up and down the street a few times in first and second gear. After that experience, I was hooked.

Shortly after I bought an old POS Kawasaki KZ305 and I spent the year riding it (after getting my permit). I also got my license on that bike. I stayed close to home with that bike since I didn't trust it very much, although it never left me stranded.

Next season I sold it and bought a 98 GSXR 600. I rode that for a year and a half and learned how to do some basic maintenance myself. I rode that all over the place, but it did leave me stranded once when I wrapped the chain around the passenger rear set. Thankfully it happened at work and not in the middle of nowhere.

In August of 08 I walked into Keene Motorsports and saw the Z1000 sitting there and fell in love. A month or so later I bought it, and I still love it to this day.

I would never recommend anyone start out on a sportbike, but I do know that there are people out there that can do it without a problem and without hurting themselves or anyone else. Regardless, that's why I also bought an 01 Ninja 250, so that those people I know that want to learn how to ride can get on a bike that they're not going to loop with a slip of the wrist, but they can still have fun.

[wego72587]

'95 Ninja EX500. Not a pretty bike by far, but I loved it nonetheless. Reasons why?

1. Cheap. $1400. if I dumped it, wouldn't be too much of a loss. and of course, I did

2. Inexperienced. Never rode a bike before, hadn't even been on a bicycle since childhood.

3. Comfortable. very easy to get on and just ride. i could concentrate more on how to handle shifting, braking and turning

4. Power. compared to my current 675, the 500 has virtually no power. although when I first started riding it was pretty scary to bring above 7k RPM.

my two cents? I think everyone should start on a smaller, comfortable, less powerful bike. learning the basics is so important, there are so many things to consider while riding on two wheels. and statistically, you're more likely to drop your first bike, so why not have it be a beater?

[SteveM]

It seems to just make common sense that everybody starts on some type of easier to handle, lower-powered beater. I don't think anyone would argue with that.

The trouble with these threads is that there's a cadre who insist that this is the ONLY possible decision and person could or should ever make.

Even if we agree it's reasonable and sensible, that doesn't make it mandatory or create the automatic connection that a rider who chooses a different path is doomed.

Give good advice, but live and let live, they're not mutually exclusive!

[BikerDave]

My first bike was a 1965 Honda S-65 that I got when I was 9yo. My first street bike was a 1971 Yamaha AT-1 125 enduro(dualsport to you young'uns). Next up was a 1970 Yamaha XS650 that I rode all through college, shortly afterwards I got a job with a race shop down in Houston. From then on it's been an endless stream of different bikes.
So...my take is that people should go with a smaller displacement bike to start
Beginners are GOING to drop the bike....why damage a new one?
Insurance on larger displacement bikes is expensive for beginners under 25yo., and they still surcharge certain bikes.
And as someone else mentioned, resale is GREAT on small bikes!

But then again, what do I know? When I started riding a 650 WAS a big bike...lol!!!

Just an aside: I currently own 10 bikes ranging from 1500cc down to a 125.....the bike I enjoy the most....a supermoto'ed KLR650. Go figure

[Evil_Weasel]

i bought my first bike at 16...a 1993 EX250...because it was cheap, my motorcycle riding pops wouldn't let me get anything bigger..(he talked me into buying a 1200cc buell a year and a half later anyway...just before i turned 18), and because i didn't give a fuck what it was. i just wanted to ride! i learned so much on that bike...but mostly that crashing sucks..it was 10 years and several bikes before i crashed on the street again

[Duffy]

I am finally getting my husband into biking. He turns a deaf ear when I try to tell him about starting on something more forgiving and/or beat up. He keeps telling me he is responsible so he isn't going to crash. He is adamant about learning on mine. Hell, he wouldn't even "really" try on helmets. He walked in store, found the cheapest large, tried it on for a second and said, I'll take this. He wasn't even going to read any manual before taking the permit test because he said he knows the rules of the road (I think he is going to now though). I said you might learn something you didn't know and wouldn't it suck if you have to take it over. He wanted to ride my bike around before going to the MSF. I told him I would feel better if he knew the basics from the class first. Now this is my SO whom I am trying to show/tell the right path on how to do things and its like talking to a wall. I'm like 'fine' do whatever....what do I know right? Hell, you can have my bike, do whatever you want to it, good luck bud. So I understand when people who are starting out and want to do what they want because they think 'they know best'. Hey, if it worked out for you....I'm glad, good for you.

[cdseven95]

I learned on a liter sport bike....Not dead yet..... I am not one for high speed though ( on a bike).. Every bike has a throttle... I didn't use more then 1/4 of it for months... Its self control.

[Wild.Bill]

my first bike was 1972 honda ct70. i then moved on to bikes bigger and bigger as i grew.. my first ride (street) was a 1978 kz 900.........

You don't know how good it was to read this entry. I was starting to feel REAL OLD with years of everyone's first bikes. My first bike was a 1974 Kawasaki F9 350 Enduro that was about 6 months old. I learned a lot riding it and never hit anything hard enough to bend it, but did it take a beating because I did most of my riding off road (trees are hard). I never crashed it on the road only off. Last year I finally took the MSF with my R6 and felt it was a great class and really learned how to handle the R6.

[Doc]

I know for a fact I can teach someone to ride a 250 a WHOLE lot easier than I can teach them on a 1000 or even 600.

[MysteriousR1]

First street bike was 2006 r6 brand new. No problems whatsoever.

This needs to be more subjective though; Who's to say that someone who crashes their first 600 did so only because it was a 600?

People who are going to crash are going to crash anyways, the bike is only relevant when it comes down to how many old turds will give them shit about it on a forum.

Exactly... bunch of preachy pussies on here!

The biggest preacher on here was a squid... so now you're that hypocritical grandpa who has stories about how he was so dumb back in 'his day' and wants to help you do what he should have done... every kid's nightmare... annoyance and eyerolling abound.

Who the fuck cares if a ninja 500 can be piloted by a racer around a track at 1:18's? It's slow and ugly... we are talking about street bikes.

It needs to look good, be badass, wheelie, and get chicks.

Thus my street bike is an 1100 wheelie machine hooligan bike and my track bikes are 600 and 450.

If someone wants to buy a 600 or 1000, let them be. If someone wants to buy a 250 or 500, let them be and maybe give them your godly nod of approval.

I've said it before and I'll say it again... this isn't fucking knitting, this is motorcycling! Jesus!

That about sums this up.

[Mondo]

I get what you're saying... "EX500 Racebike" an oxymoron like "Jumbo Shrimp"... or "Skinny Mondo"... or "Handsome Jim". but my point is it's not always about the bike but what you can do with it.

don't forget "Straight Pete"