i need a bike and i am new

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Psycluded · Wed Jul 20, 2005 1:43 am

#12 Unread post by **Sev** » Wed Jul 20, 2005 2:37 am

ZooTech wrote: so unless he's up for a race (i.e. instant death by mailbox) he should stick to SUV's or, better yet, stay indoors at all costs while wearing a life jacket (never know when there might be another great flood!).

But the SUV could flip for no apparent reason and kill him!!!! We should put him in a bubble, we'll boil everything that goes in, and if he needs to go somewhere... to bad.

Psycluded · Wed Jul 20, 2005 2:46 am

Maybe we should just inject him with arsenic and mercy-kill him, since that would be better than being road pizza.

iwannadie · Wed Jul 20, 2005 6:04 am

ZooTech wrote:Yeah, in my opinion he should buy a moped and only after ten years of consistent safe riding should he consider maybe moving up to a Kawasaki Eliminator (125cc) if he promises to do all his chores, wear a bullet-proof vest, eat all his vegetables, and stay in first gear for the first year because, after all, everyone knows that crotch rocket throttles have only two positions...OFF and WIDE OPEN and the clutches are either fully engaged or fully disengaged (no modulating those bad boys!) so unless he's up for a race (i.e. instant death by mailbox) he should stick to SUV's or, better yet, stay indoors at all costs while wearing a life jacket (never know when there might be another great flood!).

you just dont get the idea of a middle ground, its either one extreme or the other for you. oh well

#15 Unread post by **ZooTech** » Wed Jul 20, 2005 6:24 am

Sevulturus wrote:
ZooTech wrote: so unless he's up for a race (i.e. instant death by mailbox) he should stick to SUV's or, better yet, stay indoors at all costs while wearing a life jacket (never know when there might be another great flood!).
But the SUV could flip for no apparent reason and kill him!!!! We should put him in a bubble, we'll boil everything that goes in, and if he needs to go somewhere... to bad.

Touche', Sev! You're right! So, leaving the house in a vehicle of any sort is definitely outta the question!

And I think you're on to something with that bubble idea....

iwannadie wrote:you just dont get the idea of a middle ground, its either one extreme or the other for you. oh well

No, you're wrong. I've never recommended a Hyabusa to a newbie, but I don't subscribe to the belief that it's a guaranteed trip to the grave, either. The type of people who would horse around and get themselves killed on a liter bike while learning to ride are the same kind of people that kill themselves trying to steal a can of soda and the machine falls on them. Reading such stories gives me hope for a better future for my kids since that many fewer idiots will be running around putting them in danger. On the other hand, the type of person who is mature enough to learn to ride on a liter bike without being stupid with it are the people who deserve to own and ride one in the first place.

#16 Unread post by **Sev** » Wed Jul 20, 2005 7:00 am

A bike like that isn't a function of maturity. It's a function of skill. While we ALL know it is possible to learn on a bike like that. Just as it is possible to learn on a 250 ninja, or a 600 gixxer the first and the last are not recomended. This is because it becomes more a question of suriving the bike, then learning how to get the most out of it.
In the long run the biker who starts small and works his way up will be a better rider then the one who starts big and tries to survive.

Newrider42 · Wed Jul 20, 2005 7:12 am

Sevulturus wrote:A bike like that isn't a function of maturity. It's a function of skill. While we ALL know it is possible to learn on a bike like that. Just as it is possible to learn on a 250 ninja, or a 600 gixxer the first and the last are not recomended. This is because it becomes more a question of suriving the bike, then learning how to get the most out of it.
In the long run the biker who starts small and works his way up will be a better rider then the one who starts big and tries to survive.

I agree with the last part about learning on a smaller bike. Kinda like the 'you gotta learn to walk before you run' kind of thing. Now you are gonna hate me for this, but I also agree somewhat with Zootech about the maturity level. While I know that skill is a very important factor in riding, I also know that an immature person will be more apt to do stupid things on a bike on purpose, such as trying a wheelie for his friends to show off. ( But I do understand where you are coming from)

#18 Unread post by **cb360** » Wed Jul 20, 2005 7:14 am

Sevulturus wrote:
In the long run the biker who starts small and works his way up will be a better rider then the one who starts big and tries to survive.

Touche'

We're dealing with strangers on an anonymous web forum here. Most of us make suggestions that will work safely for most of the people most of the time. There aren't any rules. But we all know a pretty high percentage of new riders wreck the first time they get on a bike. Advocating a safe method that worked for many of us is simply practical and responsible... it's not the law. YOUR MILEAGE MAY VARY. I understand people disagreeing with this tried and true recommendation as an introduction to learning - opinions are opinions - but I don't understand people who get angry that anyone would suggest this method.

#19 Unread post by **ZooTech** » Wed Jul 20, 2005 9:20 am

cb360 wrote:I understand people disagreeing with this tried and true recommendation as an introduction to learning - opinions are opinions - but I don't understand people who get angry that anyone would suggest this method.

I'm not the least bit angry about it. Mr. iwannadie was trying to be funny and say that I recommend liter bikes to anyone wanting to learn to ride. That's not so. My ultimate recommendation (do a search if you like) is to buy an old dirtbike to learn on, then move to street. What I don't like is this overwhelming majority opinion that you almost can't learn on a bigger bike, which is so hypocritical considering that so few of the forum members learned on the very bikes they push on newbies. I didn't learn on a small "safe" bike. My first bike was top heavy, had wooden brakes, had seriously dry-rotted tires, and was barely road-worthy. But I put just under 3,000 trouble-free miles on it and never dropped it or had any close calls. And with bikes getting bigger every day, going out and learning on an unrealistically small bike just puts you even farther behind the status quo when you're sick of the thing by the end of the second week.

Bottom line is, motorcycling is NOT ABOUT BEING SAFE. We have vehicles on the market that wrap you in a nice, over-protective blanket if that's what you're into...they're called Volvos. 'Round here the bikes are big, and the riders are helmetless. And we don't watch corny movies from the 50's about "safety first" and then go out and have a swell time. The danger of riding is worth the price of admission.

earwig · #20 Unread post by **earwig** » Wed Jul 20, 2005 9:43 am

If someone is 5'11 and has decent muscle strength they can learn just fine on an 1100 (cruiser) or a fast sport bike, after seeing it with my own eyes, and riding one myself I think its bull that they can't or shouldn't. Yes the person should feel comfortable on the bike before they try but I hate how everyone tries to scare new riders into learning on tiny slow bikes that they will outgrow and wish they didn't buy after a few weeks. Yes there are exceptions, yes some of you ride 350s and love them for decades, but from what I have seen and from what I hear from everyone IRL I have to disagree with the Nervous Nellies.