First bike for girl rider 5'2" tall.. suggestions?

[Loun]

A friend of mine is taking her riders course this weekend and is looking for a first bike. I keep kicking around the general ideas.. and want some outside thoughts on it.

First idea is always go small, get a 250 and learn to ride then in the spring get a 500 or 600 once shes comfortable on 2 wheels.

Second idea is get a 500 or 600 that just has a little bit less torque and she should be fine and then decide what she wants to do.

Considerations is that shes a shorter girl probably a 29 inch inseam or smaller and is 5'2" over all. Obviously shes not looking to get something new but it looks like EX 250s are everywhere for 1500 - 2500 (almost new). late 90's 600 are still fairly cheap too. What do you guys recommend? And no im not posting pics until after she gets the bike :p

There might be something in it for whomever helps the most and no not from me!

[Wishbone]

2fiddy ninja or maybe the hyousung

but

[slaps76]

I think starting small is the smart thing to do, female, male, large or small. Starting on a 250 or 500 can only help build confidence faster than a bike that'll rocket you 0-60 in 3 seconds. Not to mention the lighter weight helps build up slow turning skills(that was the hardest thing for me starting out). A good used Ninja 250/500 will hold it's value, so if she wants to sell it after a year or so of riding, it's easy to get most, if not all, of your money back.

I just don't see any positives in starting on a 600, only potential negatives. The whole "grow out of it" line is complete bullshit, IMO.

[Loun]

What do you guys think about a Buell Blast?

[RandyO]

What do you guys think about a Buell Blast?

the blast is expensive, heavy & clunky, one of the few bikes anybody can outgrow in a couple weeks


a 250 nitehawk will outperform the blast, and weighs 160lb less

the only advantage to a blast is the cruiserish seat height for very short noobies

[lady flyin' low]

ninja 250...i'm a girl and 5'3 and thats what i started on...best choice in my opinion

[union]

ninja 250...i'm a girl and 5'3 and thats what i started on...best choice in my opinion

+1 on the ninja 250. If she is really sketchy about not being able to flat foot then she has limited choices at her height. She might even be better off on something like the the Honda rebel which has a nice low 26.6 inch seat height. It doesnt have the sport bike look but its what she will probably learn on at MSF so at least its something she will know.

[Rick Lee]

Dude guy she should totally get an R1!!!!!!11!!

[DucDave]

Suzuki SV650???

Nice Twin Power...lots of after market stuff....







Fun for everyone....good to learn on...and a keeper forever!

[Evil_Weasel]

EX250

best bike ever for short noobs to gain confidance on. i'm a pretty small guy (think dani pedrosa kinda small). i started out on an EX. my time spent bashing around on that little thing ment even as a short guy i'd never have to ruin any of my future bikes by lowering them.... even the 12R

[union]

my time spent bashing around on that little thing ment even as a short guy i'd never have to ruin any of my future bikes by lowering them.... even the 12R

+1
I feel that is a big issue with shorter people. Obviously everyone wants the best bike out there and blah blah blah. The problem is they arent really comfortable with the height and they lower the bike pretty much ruining the handling characteristics of it. A certain someone who I wont mention has a problem like this. Pete seems to think its the reason the bike keeps getting dropped at low speed. It got lowered so much that its very difficult to turn in tight areas at like walking speed.

Being short myself I can fully understand the problem. At some point you just need to bite the bullet and learn how to ride and stop without being able to flat foot if you want the sportbike thing. On my bike I cant touch at all with both feet. Its one foot on the peg and one foot on the ground.

[Wishbone]

Monster 620???

Sweet, Sexy and Italian...



Fun for everyone....good to learn on...and a keeper forever!

damn why didn't i think of that? that was my first bike I bought it with 12 miles and Loved it right up till 6166 miles when the piston shattered

[xrocket21]

+1
I feel that is a big issue with shorter people. Obviously everyone wants the best bike out there and blah blah blah. The problem is they arent really comfortable with the height and they lower the bike pretty much ruining the handling characteristics of it. A certain someone who I wont mention has a problem like this. Pete seems to think its the reason the bike keeps getting dropped at low speed. It got lowered so much that its very difficult to turn in tight areas at like walking speed.

Being short myself I can fully understand the problem. At some point you just need to bite the bullet and learn how to ride and stop without being able to flat foot if you want the sportbike thing. On my bike I cant touch at all with both feet. Its one foot on the peg and one foot on the ground.

If its really hot and my butt is hot I stand up at stop lights and my butt is like 6 inches off the seat I feel I do look a little silly on a sportbike though. (6'5" 240)

[Jaynnus]

EX2fiddy...

I just shaved a seat for someone that is 5'nothing....lots of padding to play with!!

[Honclfibr]

damn why didn't i think of that? that was my first bike I bought it with 12 miles and Loved it right up till 6166 miles when the piston shattered

So apparently forever is 6165 miles

[Fast_Eddie]

I think the old GS500's were pretty small bikes too and I see them around real cheap at times.

[rolker]

EX250!

That was my starter bike, and is still my commuter bike and track bike!

I was in Turkey last week, and saw lots of motorcycles and scooters around, but the biggest one I saw was a Hyosung 250. Why are we so obsessed with HP on this side of the pond?

This notion of starting out on a 250 with the expectation of outgrowing it is crap. Most riders don't outgrow a 250, they simply don't have the patience to master it and bring out its full potential...

So, get her started on an EX250, then send her to TonysTrackDays.com

[mzdagrl]

EX 250 is great for someone her height, and if she is very lightweight that is also a consideration. A lot of you guys in the 180+ lb range don't realize that when you're 125 or less, those 50-60lbs in engine weight make a huge difference. Once she is comfy on the smaller bike, she'll be much more comfy getting a bigger one.

[Zed]

Does it have to be a sportbike?

My suggestion: Vulcan 500.

Great little cruiser; low seat, low CG, easy to handle. Drop it and there is no bodywork to damage. Plus it has the EX500's parallel twin motor, so it's way peppier than one would expect of small cruiser.

[KillBill]

Right here

2006 Kawasaki Ninja EX250 for sale

[Wishbone]

So apparently forever is 6165 miles

Yeah apparently its in the maintenance schedule to change the motor ever 6k

So I got 166 miles for free

[Loun]

she wants a sport bike. shes up taking the first day of classes now. Shes really leaning towards a 02 SV 650 with lowering links for fairly short money. But shes going to look at and sit on an ex250 first. Thanks guys!

[DucDave]

Suzuki SV650???

Nice Twin Power...lots of after market stuff....







Fun for everyone....good to learn on...and a keeper forever!

So....I am the winner for giving the most help??? What did you say the prize was???

[Honclfibr]

Just my opinion, but I'm not a big fan of the 250. There's pretty much zero damping in the forks or the shock; on the highway it's a pogo stick. And it's a pain to work on. Just getting the sparkplugs out is a chore, and the stupid blowmolded airbox makes working on the carbs a real PITA. Everything about that bike just smacks of cut corners and nickel-and-dime manufacturing.

It does have a low seat height, and if that's the issue it might be the right bike for her. But if she can flatfoot an EX500, I'd argue that as far and away as it is from a real "sportbike", it's a better bike than a 250.

[CMG241]

What do you guys think about a Buell Blast?

Not saying a Buell is the right bike for a girl but there is little thought to clutch / throttle coordination with all the torque (1200) and little concern what gear your in on the road. You can almost just let go of my clutch at idle and it just walks away. Not to say its great for taking a license road test doing figure eights but easy to ride. Send her to Windham and she can take mine for a spin.