I agree that most people will not listen to your cries about starting on a reasonable bike, but if its any consolation to you; this newbie is listing very closely. I’m just now getting into the whole biking world and I am taking the advise of you and all those who urge caution by planning to get a sv650 and start out slow.
ther are all good tipes i have a friend that wants to get a new bike and i thought that if he read this he would get a good idea. so i printed it out for him .. thanks fellas!!!
I've been riding MX since 1987 and you do actually learn a lot from riding motocross. I understand they are completely different animals in most senses, but sometimes not. You still have to use the clutch, modify the power delivery (with or without clutch) and body positioning is a factor. That would even help you avoid something in your way on the street. I understand things happen pretty damn quick on the street that you have to react to, but in actuality, it's the same in MX. Ever try to miss a downed rider right in front of you? Your instincts take over and you manuever the bike to miss that person (well you hope you miss them). I feel a lot of that transfers over to a street bike.
Does this make me an expert? FAAARRR FROM. I still have TONS to learn on a street bike, however, what I have learned from MX experience is to be careful, respect the bike, respect the others around you and look where the hell you're going and don't do anything stupid. heehehhe
Well, that's my $0.015 cents. I'll put the other half a cent in some other time.
hello, well i consider myself to be one of the lucky few, bought my first bike gsxr6, 99' and loved the damn thing to death. logged 10,000 total miles without dropping or crashin an' although i wouldn't ever recommend anyone ever doing it like i did, i learned to ride carefully and slowly over hours and hours of continuous riding (not just gettin on to work). I would ride for 12 hours every day stopping only to eat, sleep et c. ( kissd and hugged the thing at night wouldve slept with it if i couldve rumored that i wore a groove in the seat!). I dont think that gettin on for short periods does any good, doesnt give u the feel that u are one with the bike and feel the road. And i met lots of other riders during that time that didnt have their bikes for very long because they couldnt really handle them. Choose who u ride with carefully too, if you ride with a ego you might eventually be brought down by em' too. I dont ride next to idiots. you are the company u keep.
my first bike is an 01 gsxr 600, i can ride fine and thats the bike i learned on, if you respect the bike and stay within your limits its a fine learning bike and then once your good and ready will scare you on a daily basis as someone said before.....im just curious, all the guys who say so start out on an sv650 or a bandit or anything like that...what did you guys start on? i bet a bunch of you started on a 600
The SV650 is a great bike to start out on since it is very forgiving and easy to ride and has enough power to keep you happy if you want to go fast. It will power away from alot of 4 cylinder bikes off the line but they will catch you and pass you at speeds that are starting to get scarry. If you read the articles on it it is a great bike in the twisties.
When I got mine I was doing wheelies by accident until I got used to it. I even had it doing a small wheelie going from 4th to 5th gear off the line one day. didn't realize it until I hit 5th and the wheel came back down.
I traded bikes with a guy on a Katana 600 and it was so lame off the line that I wouldn't be happy on that bike. funny thing was, he got off my bike and said "that was scarry".
I also didn't like the feel of the Bandit 600 since it was almost 100lbs heavier and seemed top heavy. like most of the "R" bikes , I can put the SV between my legs when stopped and bounce it back and forth without it getting away or dropping it.
Before you buy any bike, call and get a price on insurance first. I'm 42 and progressive wanted $340 for a Bandit 600, $750 for the Katana 600 and $1000 for the SV650S . I called Formost and got the SV650S for $340 with 3 times the coverage that progressive was giving.
Sorry for the long post but I hope this helps anyone.
Had a friend just get his new bike, a Ninja 250. He asked me what I thought both before he got it and after I rode it one night, and I told him both times that for him and for a first bike he made an excellent choice. He is too short for anything much bigger, and he has no other motorcycle experience other than the basic knowledge of what controls do what. It is a very forgiving bike that will definatly not overpower him in the enigne department. Those of you that started out on an "R" bike and are still here today without mishap are in the vast minority. Everyone has to start somewhere, it just isn't always in the same place. No matter what your first bike is, be careful, learn the basics, and as someone said above, DON'T let anyone push you.
i may be a bit out of tune here but i started out on a gs 750 e and after riding that for a while learning the basics i bought a gpz 900 r and i must admit although it was a small step cc wise i was overwelmed by the power the first months i had it,.
so i guess after you learned the basics on that you could easily take the step tot a 1000 just make sure you're not over confident and respect the power at hand
i was reading your post and i dissagree. it was some good advice so i dont know if it is me or not but i recently bought a 2003 gixxer6 and i have had no problems on it. it is my first street bike but i have been riding dirt for a while now. i think its all in the rider and how he precieves his own skills. but it was very intresting and thank you.
i was reading your post and i dissagree. it was some good advice so i dont know if it is me or not but i recently bought a 2003 gixxer6 and i have had no problems on it. it is my first street bike but i have been riding dirt for a while now. i think its all in the rider and how he precieves his own skills. but it was very intresting and thank you.
Right on.. its all a matter of attitude. You can preach SV650 or ninja 250 all day.. but you can take one of those out, think your a badass and your still gonna end up gettin hurt. I learned on a cbr900rr.. what a horrible choice.. but i did spend *weeks* riding figure 8's in parking lots and up and down a driveway.. slow turning.. and admitted that i didn't know ANYTHING about really riding a streetbike, and let my friend with 10+ yrs of riding experience teach me.. eventually i took his 900 out on the road and everything went fine... It can go fine if you respect it... I respected it because i knew it WOULD kick my ass. I put more miles on his bike than he did till he got rid of it recently. never droped it.. 2 yrs later i I just got my first bike (first one i owned, not first one i rode of course).. i got a gsxr-600.. everyone says its a bad choice, but i respect it and i haven't went down yet.. i know i will though.. i have never went down so i know my time is coming, everyone goes down, but its getting back up that counts. Instead of just preaching about not getting an 'R' bike, preach about attitude... The guys that don't know anything and think because they see all these kickass bikes going down the road its not that hard and want the bike today and plan on driving off the lot straight to join the big group of riders, are the ones who are screwed.. The dealer can talk them into gettin an sv650 but it can still end up a nice tree ornamant. I know i still have a lot to learn, but i haven't/don't regret learning the way i did.. In 2 yrs i have never rode with other people.. so i guess i may just suck and have gotten lucky all this time.. but riding alone is great, take everything at your own pace, go where you want to go and wave at all the other riders
I'm happy with my 600.. i think its hella nice and comfortable.. I doubt i will upgrade for a long while no matter how much of the bike i feel like i am using.. why do u need to go faster than 150? But looking back.. i think the sv650's are kinda dope now.. Maybe when i get some more flowage i will grab one and turn it into a track bike.. But anyways.. don't let dumb people hurt themselves on a smaller bike.. if they are gonna be stupid, they are gonna be stupid no matter what kind bike they are riding.. If they last for a while with a ninja 250 and go get their first R bike.. they are gonna eat there ass.. its more about attitude and respect than it is the type of bike you get.
A 1000 is not to be taken lightly if you can ride one "well" you can ride them all. Notice I said well. Start low and work your way up. It does make a difference gain experience on a smaller bike, the throttle on a bigger bike is very unforgiving and it isn't as easy to sling around in turns. Respect is one thing being thrown into a situation to make a decision on a big bike is another. You have to be able to ride because a lot of drivers in cars do not pay attention and do not see us. You can never have anough training.
The GSXR600 is no learner bike... Mabye in the states where roads are straight and wide then blasting for miles in a straight line may be fun (for a while). Come visit Scotland to find some of the best roads in the world with the fewest number of speed cameras in Europe.
On the narrow twisty A roads arround Loch Lomand the Gixxer 6 will keep up with the biger litre bikes no problem. Keep it near the top end and it is as nervous as a coke head at the policemans ball.
Even to go from a learner bike (125cc in the UK) to the Gixxer 6 has to be done with a totaly new mindset. Way too much power for a newbye (new bee) if its to be ridden properly in the twisties.
Go as fast as you dare but never go into the bend too fast... You only scare yourself and fixate on one point of the bend (where you look you go) instead of the vanishing point.
Anyone who thinks they can learn to ride a bike safely on a sports 600 is likely to end up a statistic. A GSXR600 is, for Suzuki, the pinacle of performance for a bike in the 600 class. What you ride on the road is more or less what you race on the track. Do Suzuki advertise the Gixxer 6 as a learner bike? No, its a race rep. Its function is not to putter about. It was bred to be thrashed to the very limit of its existance to give all the performance it could.
I just bought a gsxr600 7/24/03 . 4 my first bike at age 25. B4 that I had practicly no experience besides many hours as a kid on a little Rupp at my grandmas cottage. Well anyways its sweet but wish i got the 750. Took me an few hours to feel confortable in tight turns. Just have to trust your bike and take it slow at first.
my first bike was a 750 00' and i never rode a bike in my life except a damn scooter. fucking loved that thing untill i crashed it a year later though. got me a 600 now. almost as fast and easier to do tricks
Another great bike is the Honda Nighthawlk 450. I learned to ride on that bike, great bike and very easy to ride. I also like most people dropped it in my garage and dropped it on the street on a slow turn out of a parking lot. These are things that just happen, to everyone. A nice GSXR would cost some money to have fixed, but with this type of bike (nighthawlk) it dosn't matter. After that I bought a Honda CBR 600 1992. This was another great transition bike because it had some power, but not that of the more modern 600's especially Suzuki. I rode this for a couple years and now I just bought a 1997 GSXR 6 and I love it. The 1997 has more power than my Honda and is much more nimble. Starting out slow is just the way to go and if you are told anything less than that person is crazy, or just watched Biker Boyz and thought it was real. In real life your "life" is on the line and a 600 will take it from you just as easy as a 1000 would. You have to respect the bike you ride no matter what it is. A 6 is big enough for anyone, I have never seen someone that is so good that a 6 will just not do, and when I hear this type of bull shit that a 6 is just too small, thats all it is, is bull shit.
. I called Formost and got the SV650S for $340 with 3 times the coverage that progressive was giving.
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