Eyal 951

My brother is selling his bike. It's real nice. It would be great to learn. 600 cc, most importantly, its a crusier, and the seat is very low, giving you much more stability when stoped at lights and such so you dont drop it. Remember, don't look down while stopped, you'll drop it. heres what I posted about it in OT:

https://rennlist.com/forums/showthre...hreadid=116166

I'll have photo's soon.
~Eyal

Graufuchs

Geez...I get myself in trouble with mini bikes with 75cc's.....and nonetheless dumped my friends 600cc ninja twice after pulling a wheelie the first time riding it...Im to immature for a bike and its to crowded to have one around here....so ill stick to my cars...I seem to be a bit responsible with them anyways...

Devildog2067

I'm 22, married w/ 1 kid, 2 tickets 4 years ago. I have a Suzuki Bandit 600 (GSX-600, NOT GSXR). The liablilty only on my bike runs me about 180/year, but with the full coverage my insurance is more than my motorcycle payment--2166/year. I'm with Progressive, Geico was about the same, most of the big name insurance companies were higher and/or didn't write bikes.

marky522

Thanks for all the great info, i need to get a hold of the guy selling it he has yet to e-mail back... i really want it...

Mark

86 951 Driver

I say get a yamaha if possible. Maybe its just me but Kawaski's aren't that great, and Honda is ok but I have had a lot of problems with mine. All my yamaha's run like new. Just my .02 cents. If you get a bike start somewhat small like a 250,500,600. They should all be good sizes no matter what brand to start on.

Danno

Yeah, I vote for the EX500 over the 250. Same twin-cylinder construction so they're equally easy to work on. I've rebuilt my buddy's EX500 in one weekend, they're so basic. It's not the size of the bike that hurts beginning riders, it's the discipline and control. Personally I think small bikes are too twitchy and unstable. Especially those thin tires and small brakes. A 600 would be optimum since parts are abundant and cheap. They're more stable in a cross-wind and have better brakes and handling.

If you look at the statistics, it's can be a little mis-leading. The highest death-rates are for teenagers with scooters. Then as the bikes get larger and larger in displacement, the safer they become. This was the data that shot down the Hurt/Boxer bills.

This data really says nothing about the bikes themselves. Just that older more experienced riders who tend to buy the bigger bikes are safer than new ones.

josephsc

I started out on an EX500 and grew out of it pretty quickly -- and I'm a 140lbs featherweight. Your experience may vary, but I learned on it, used it for the daily commute (in SoCal), practiced the Art of Lane-Splitting, and eventually stepped up to something slightly larger -- all within a year. I even took the EX500 out for a couple of LA-SF runs. I found it to be very versatile.

But make sure that you DO NOT skimp on proper training! Always take the opportunity to build up experience and training (take a beginner course and come back for an advanced course, talk to other riders, learn everything about your bike). The best way of surviving accidents is to not get into one.

Oh, and don't be a squid.

mrjosh43

Excellent advice. I'm taking one of Honda's courses next week. I can't wait to get a Yamaha FZ6... I had to go drool over one at the local dealer today

tyler

Ditto on the rider course.

I started with motocross...learned on a 500cc street bike beater and graduated to a ducati 748s, 916 and last a 998.

If you start out with a liter sized rocket you are asking for trouble...not because of lack of skill, but just the reaction time you lose going 75 in a 25 and a mini-van pulls out in front of you

unfortunately most of the problems you will run into is people not seeing you...which is usually exacerbated by the fact that one is flying down the road on their bike.

start off with something you don't mind laying down.

my ducati's spent more time in the living room than on the road. You are faster than everything on the road. it gets boring fast. sportbikes are uncomfortable after 30 minutes. The only joy is racing dudes in cars trying to show off to their girlfriend. then that gets old.

just start off with an old junker...you will be much happier in the end. If you enjoy riding get the 929 and take it to the track

every reply from someone who has ridden is saying the same thing. bike wrecks are nasty things

Danno

"not because of lack of skill, but just the reaction time you lose going 75 in a 25 and a mini-van pulls out in front of you"

Uh, that doesn't have anything to do with the bike. I got tagged by a lady in a Volvo pulling out from a side street when I was going 50... on my BICYCLE! Flew over the car and got tonnes of road-rash, sprained both my knees and ankles, etc. Wish I was on my motorcycle because I tagged her right on the driver's door; that'll have taught her a lesson!

Whenever you're on two wheels, you're invisible, so get used to that. Again, the size of the bike has nothing to do with it. The rider has to have the practice of scanning everything ahead, looking for hazards, and the bike-control is simple to pick up really. Just take one of those rider-training courses, hopefully one with time on the racetrack. Some insurance companies also give discounts if you take a course like that.

jc22

Thanks to all for their input.

I don't buy the argument of buying a smaller bike because you will not go as fast. I would NEVER be going 70 in a 25, or race cars, or race other bikes, or do anything stupid like that. I can understand not getting a large bike because they are heavier and therefore harder to pick up, however the 954RR is only like 400 lbs. and I can handle picking that up off the street.

The performance potential of most bikes is unusable on the street anyway, so why not get a bigger bike? A 500 will do 75 mph just the same as a larger bike.

I'll only be using the bike to commute in a smallish town. The traffic is horrible at times and if I didn't live so far from my destination a bicycle would work fine. Maximum speed would probably be 50mph. I like the mpg, ease of parking, and ease of cutting traffic that I would have with a motorcycle in this situation.

I don't get my thrills from driving or riding anything on the street. Once you have been to the track, driving on the street really isn't much fun anymore.....especially where I live.

Thanks again.

944 Hooligan

if you've never ridden a bike, do us all a favor and take the MSF new rider class. it will teach you the basic skills needed to ride a bike of any displacement, 250cc or 1000cc. i still get into arguements with riders that refuse to use their rear brake while riding on the street.

i disagree with starting small. any bike is going to be quick, especially the faster you twist your wrist. it's up to you to show some restraint if you get a bike that can do 0-100 in 2.3 seconds. if you don't have the brains to exercise that power properly, than perhaps a motorcycle is not the type of transportation you should be thinking about.

sorry to sound a little rough about this, but i have ridden with too many people that have no idea on what they are sitting on. you don't have the security of a car around you on a bike. 19 year olds with no responsibility and little street time, t-shirts and shorts, and a new gsx-r 1000 is a frightening thing.

so, buy what you like, take a class (or four), start slow and work up to speed, and practice, practice, practice! i still go to an empty parking lot at least once a month to practice swerves, low-speed turns, and all kinds of braking scenarios.

and buy good safety gear! i have always said that a high quality leather jacket with armor is expensive, but it is a hell of alot cheaper than a skin graft.

marky522

Well, the deal fell through, and i even got the money by selling 2 other projects so i'm kinda bummed... I'll just have to keep watching, i'm jsut afraid that with bike season coming up i am not going to be able to find anything in my prices range > $700, just have to keep looking... thanks for all the great info, I will definately take th saftey course when i do get a bike.

Mark

jeeper31

I hear a new pair of Levi's is good for about 20 ft.

Legoland951

I still disagree with learning on a bigger bike unless you are big and tall. I learned on an old kz750 and while stopped on a steep hill going left, stalled the bike and couldn't hold the bike up with my left leg due to the incline and left lean. The bike was too heavy and went down to the left and my right ankle tagged the header while I went down at 0 mph causing burns (pants has a tendency to go up when you are trying to do a split on a bike). I would have been able to manhandle the 250 and wrestle it up. Most people don't realize its hard to pick up even a 250 when you smash your knees and dragged your bleeding knuckles on the asphalt.

Also, bigger bikes are generally heavier and take longer to stop than a smaller one. Most people don't know how to brake properly in a car or a bike because they never practice emergency braking (60-0 in a parking lot or on a track). In emergency situations, its better to go with something more manageable IMHO. Get something small, learn to ride, sell it 6 months later and get something bigger. Just my .02 from 20+ years and 100k+ street miles on a bike.