Yamaha FZ6 good starter bike.

[VermilionX]

Verm, stop just telling riders to go ahead and get 100hp bikes as their first bike. You say it worked for you, but you did crash it, so I say no.. it did not work for you. I am a firm believe that starting on a smaller bike puts you in a much better position to avoid a crash during your learning phase.

people can crash while learning on 250 bikes as well. i always say that you must be willing to accept the risk like i was since it's more risky to start on a high powered bike.

keep it mind though, i crashed while practicing more advanced stuff. but the basics while i haven't mastered it yet. i did learn it on the 1000.

you can say that it didn't work out for me, but to me it did, until it got stolen.

also, the 750 feels very tame to me. im sure it's bec i started on a 1000 that makes it feel that way.

so yeah, while i haven't mastered the 1000. the experience i got from her helped a lot when i got my new 750.

again, i always say it's not impossible but it's more risky. riding is risky in general having a high powered bike for a started adds to risk. whether you are willing to accept that risk is up to you. i chose to accept it.

[DivideOverflow]

right, but when people ask if it is a good idea and you say yes, that is being a little irresponsible in my opinion. Would you tell a family member to start out on that type of bike? It is easy for you to recommend something more powerful for a stranger because you have no emotional attachment. I always think to myself "Would I recommend this to a personal friend or family member?", before I answer these questions.

You would hate to say "Yeah, starting with a 100hp Inline-4 is easy", and then the person crashes. Where if they started smaller, they would have minimized that risk substantially.

[VermilionX]

right, but when people ask if it is a good idea and you say yes, that is being a little irresponsible in my opinion. Would you tell a family member to start out on that type of bike? It is easy for you to recommend something more powerful for a stranger because you have no emotional attachment. I always think to myself "Would I recommend this to a personal friend or family member?", before I answer these questions.

You would hate to say "Yeah, starting with a 100hp Inline-4 is easy", and then the person crashes. Where if they started smaller, they would have minimized that risk substantially.

fair enough.

besides, i never suggest getting a RR bike to a newbie.

BUT i do say "yes" to those who say they like it in the 1st place and i just remind them to be aware of the added risk.

also, i never say it's good idea. i just don't think it's that bad either.

in fact i even say what people here would say... and then i say my opinion. i probably haven't done that lately but if you dig some of old my replies, you'll see i also mention that 60hp limit for a starter bike.

[Sev]

Verm, stop just telling riders to go ahead and get 100hp bikes as their first bike. You say it worked for you, but you did crash it, so I say no.. it did not work for you. I am a firm believe that starting on a smaller bike puts you in a much better position to avoid a crash during your learning phase.

people can crash while learning on 250 bikes as well. i always say that you must be willing to accept the risk like i was since it's more risky to start on a high powered bike.

keep it mind though, i crashed while practicing more advanced stuff. but the basics while i haven't mastered it yet. i did learn it on the 1000.

you can say that it didn't work out for me, but to me it did, until it got stolen.

also, the 750 feels very tame to me. im sure it's bec i started on a 1000 that makes it feel that way.

so yeah, while i haven't mastered the 1000. the experience i got from her helped a lot when i got my new 750.

again, i always say it's not impossible but it's more risky. riding is risky in general having a high powered bike for a started adds to risk. whether you are willing to accept that risk is up to you. i chose to accept it.

For the love of god, you crashed on a delayed apex attempt. That means you start the turn a little late so you lean more. This is NOT advanced riding. It is simply taking a corner sharper then absolutely necessary.

In fact I was doing stuff like that on my first bike, on my first real ride, because I had trouble making lines. Now I do it on purpose because it's fun to lean more.

Once again, these are NOT advanced riding techniques, they are standard riding fare for nearly every member.

[VermilionX]

For the love of god, you crashed on a delayed apex attempt. That means you start the turn a little late so you lean more. This is NOT advanced riding. It is simply taking a corner sharper then absolutely necessary.

In fact I was doing stuff like that on my first bike, on my first real ride, because I had trouble making lines. Now I do it on purpose because it's fun to lean more.

Once again, these are NOT advanced riding techniques, they are standard riding fare for nearly every member.

oh sorry... i thought canyon riding was more advance. apparently not to you.

[Sev]

Canyon riding just hurts more when you go over the line. Or it's more likely that you'll find gravel (which is very likely up north because of snow) or a rock on the road (less likely up here).

More dangerous does not equal more skilled or more advanced. In fact, it seems stupid to attempt "advanced techniques" in an area where a mistake could kill you. I'd rather go off the road at 100mph in a twisty highway through a field, then in a canyon where the same mistake means you get to chew on a stone wall. Especially while I'm learning how to delay my apex.

[VermilionX]

Canyon riding just hurts more when you go over the line. Or it's more likely that you'll find gravel (which is very likely up north because of snow) or a rock on the road (less likely up here).

More dangerous does not equal more skilled or more advanced. In fact, it seems stupid to attempt "advanced techniques" in an area where a mistake could kill you. I'd rather go off the road at 100mph in a twisty highway through a field, then in a canyon where the same mistake means you get to chew on a stone wall. Especially while I'm learning how to delay my apex.

again, it's all about willingness to take the risk.

i'll never improve if i don't push myself. i try my best to push my self little by little but i failed on that day. did i learn from it? yes. i learned what i could have done to avoid it. and to me that's a good lesson since i was able to not just walk away but also ride away from it. bike only suffered cosmetic damages.

also, as mentioned several times already... the throttle is not an on/off switch.

[Loonette]

I don't have an opinion on whether or not you should get an FZ6, but I can tell you of my experience on it. I moved from a Honda Rebel 250 to an FZ6 after about 1,200 miles of newbie ride time. It was okay. The bike is very twitchy both on the gas and the front brake. And it is a bit top heavy. I'm short (5'2"), so that was a challenge for me. I dropped it once after applying too much front brake on gravel. I changed over to a cruiser after awhile, but my husband continued to ride the FZ6 for several months. He was as much a newbie as I was when he first started riding the FZ6. He eventually became very proficient on that bike, but had also dropped it once. Damage to the small amount of fairing that it does have is not cheap to replace. We even left one blinker cover broken right up until we traded it in for his current bike.

So, you know, read around here - you'll see lots of different opinions. Generally speaking, it will provide a challenge for you especially in the beginning. It will react perhaps a bit more aggressively than you anticipate, and you have to be able to control it. If you're a newbie, you should be spending a good amount of brain power on developing skill. So, just know that with a bike like the FZ6, you're gonna have a lot of stuff to focus on. Good luck!

Cheers,
Loonette