Thinking about getting a crotch rocket in spring...

[NAiL05]

PRactice helps a lot...Buy something small and easy to repair (250-400) since the first time your prob gonna mess up a few times. 600 is nice but a bit pricey to fix I would think. My friend has a few 150/250 easy as hell to repair and cheap. After you get used to it I would upgrade to a nicer bike. Pointless to spend the money on a new bike then trash it.

[Smokinspeeds]

PRactice helps a lot...Buy something small and easy to repair (250-400) since the first time your prob gonna mess up a few times. 600 is nice but a bit pricey to fix I would think. My friend has a few 150/250 easy as hell to repair and cheap. After you get used to it I would upgrade to a nicer bike. Pointless to spend the money on a new bike then trash it.

exactly. Probably getting a 250 of some sort here soon myself. Actually looking at this... mobstyle chopper...

[boosted4life]

I suggest you get a 600rr that is what i bought as my beginner bike and I love it and

[93Lx]

It was easy for me to learn, if your good at driving a 5spd then that helps alot. Hopefully i will be back out this spring with something. I may hop on the new GSXR 750. Here's a pic of the old ZX-7

[verothacamaro]

It was easy for me to learn, if your good at driving a 5spd then that helps alot. Hopefully i will be back out this spring with something. I may hop on the new GSXR 750. Here's a pic of the old ZX-7

thats my favorite bike....raw power, sounds godly, and looks the part too

98 ZX-7 is my dream bike....hard to find.

[93EXaesthetic]

i hate to say it but 250's are for girls !!!

[NAiL05]

i hate to say it but 250's are for girls !!!

Yea they are but they can take some abuse plus buying parts for them are cheaper if you scratch up the fairing etc etc. Plus a lot of parts for them on ebay lol.

[Straight Success]

Check this out. There is a good chance I will be purchasing a bike this year (2008) if my money is right. See I am 6'00" and I weight one 45 (inside joke...Imma a little dude). But see I'm crazy; I am what they refer to as a rida'. I'm the type of dude who flies by you on one wheel @ really fast mph's on the highway (watch when I get my bike, with a lil' practice, um... Naw just jokin' ). My first bike will probably be a litre bike if funds are right. I don't reccommend that for you. If possible an R1, or GSX-R 1000, or a CBR stack for meeee... If my funds aren't right then I will grab a six. That's normally a good beginner bike if you plan on keeping it for a while. Good power, light, controlable, more forgiving than bigger bikes. And you have room to grow into it.

It's been said before, for an all around beginner bike, go GSX-R 600. I am personally a fan of Yamaha, so if worst comes to worst, I will grab a Yamaha R-6 (not the sport version, the track version baby, yea. )

All in all, do some research and some reading. Look and see what you like design wise and see what feels comfortable to you while sitting on a bike. Honestly, a 600 should suffice for you.

GOOD LUCK!

[SteveB]

I am what they refer to as a rida'.

You misspelled "organ donor".

You're giving advice to others to get a gixxer 6 for a first bike....but claim to be getting a litre bike for *your* first bike?

[Straight Success]

You misspelled "organ donor".

You're giving advice to others to get a gixxer 6 for a first bike....but claim to be getting a litre bike for *your* first bike?

Yea, notice I said me. I am very responsible, but yet I'm still a rida'. Nothing will eva change that. It's in my DNA. That's why my family has always used their networking capabilities to stop me from getting a bike. When I had all of my 5 dirtbikes, I had my fun but was semi-responsible. Now I am older and maturer, soo... I gonna get whatever I can, yes that's me. Anyone who knows me personally, knows that's how it goes... YOU GET IT!

EDIT: Another thing, It's not like I am giving bad advice. I am steering the young lad in the correct direction. I make my own choices and I live with them.

[Jarrett]

Thank you Steve.

OK, this is not something people should be offering opinionated advice on. These next few comments may get me banned for a while but that's alright if this point gets across. You are an asshole of a person if you are trying to get someone else to buy something you don't know for a fact they should be able to handle. Just because you(general population offering dumb riding advice) got on a 600 or a 750 your first time riding and have been doing absolutely fantastic commuting around town these past couple of months doesn't mean the person asking for advice has your Superman skills. I guarantee you didn't just find a bike with a key in it and take off. You AT LEAST had someone show you the basics of what you were doing. You again don't know if the person asking has that luxury. I myself fall into the dumbass category of getting a too-big bike for my first bike as well though. I got a modded GSX-R 750 for my first bike and I wrecked it within hours. It cost me $1300 to fix it. I didn't have anyone there to show me anything and I did something rash. I am an idiot for that. Luckily I cost 1 Band-Aid to fix. The person who you tell to hop on a 600 may not be that lucky. After that I took an MSF course and with newfound knowledge approached riding my bike again. I am still not as good as I could have been had I started on a 250 or 500. So think about the advice you're giving dumbasses.

To answer the original question the only advice I would ever give after my own experience is to TAKE THE MSA COURSE. It costs $180 but it's worth every penny. Also, get a good set of riding gear. This will be expensive but worth it when you fall over the first or second time. I've done it twice since I've been riding. Finally, get a small bike. I always recommend the Ninja EX250 or 250R, whichever one you find. You can find them used like they're going out of style(even though it's styling literally already did). They're not much to purchase, cheap to fix and maintain, plus, when you're ready to sell there's a whole line of people in the same boat you were in to buy it from you for little or no loss. The reasons for a small bike extend beyond safety. Your riding dynamics will be much improved. People tell you not to get a 250 because you will quickly reach its limits. This is a good thing though. When you encroach the limits that you can reach on your motorcycle you begin to try to push it. You get a little more brave. Not stupid, just brave. You're trying to squeeze 600 riding performance on a 250 so naturally you'll be trying harder. This confidence does wonders when you get on a larger bike. The added capabilities of the larger bike won't be as much of a shock and it will be sooner and more likely that you will be able to physically push that bike too. Either way, think smart, not cool. Besides, it's not that long before you'll really get the hang of things.

Ride safe.

[Straight Success]

Thank you Steve.

OK, this is not something people should be offering opinionated advice on. These next few comments may get me banned for a while but that's alright if this point gets across. You are an asshole of a person if you are trying to get someone else to buy something you don't know for a fact they should be able to handle. Just because you(general population offering dumb riding advice) got on a 600 or a 750 your first time riding and have been doing absolutely fantastic commuting around town these past couple of months doesn't mean the person asking for advice has your Superman skills. I guarantee you didn't just find a bike with a key in it and take off. You AT LEAST had someone show you the basics of what you were doing. You again don't know if the person asking has that luxury. I myself fall into the dumbass category of getting a too-big bike for my first bike as well though. I got a modded GSX-R 750 for my first bike and I wrecked it within hours. It cost me $1300 to fix it. I didn't have anyone there to show me anything and I did something rash. I am an idiot for that. Luckily I cost 1 Band-Aid to fix. The person who you tell to hop on a 600 may not be that lucky. After that I took an MSA course and with newfound knowledge approached riding my bike again. I am still not as good as I could have been had I started on a 250 or 500. So think about the advice you're giving dumbasses.

To answer the original question the only advice I would ever give after my own experience is to TAKE THE MSA COURSE. It costs $180 but it's worth every penny. Also, get a good set of riding gear. This will be expensive but worth it when you fall over the first or second time. I've done it twice since I've been riding. Finally, get a small bike. I always recommend the Ninja EX250 or 250R, whichever one you find. You can find them used like they're going out of style(even though it's styling literally already did). They're not much to purchase, cheap to fix and maintain, plus, when you're ready to sell there's a whole line of people in the same boat you were in to buy it from you for little or no loss. The reasons for a small bike extend beyond safety. Your riding dynamics will be much improved. People tell you not to get a 250 because you will quickly reach its limits. This is a good thing though. When you encroach the limits that you can reach on your motorcycle you begin to try to push it. You get a little more brave. Not stupid, just brave. You're trying to squeeze 600 riding performance on a 250 so naturally you'll be trying harder. This confidence does wonders when you get on a larger bike. The added capabilities of the larger bike won't be as much of a shock and it will be sooner and more likely that you will be able to physically push that bike too. Either way, think smart, not cool. Besides, it's not that long before you'll really get the hang of things.

Ride safe.

I am sure you are not an expert. However, throughout various sources (ie. motorcycle magazines, local dealerships, television shows, and SuperBikes the show) it is told that a novice rider should obtain some lessons before riding. In addition to that, the EXPERTS reccomend that a novice rider should began learning on a 600. Not a 250. I am pretty sure that they reccomend 600's for a reason. They also state, try to obtain a bike that you feel confortable on.

So the advice that was given here is pretty much the same advice comming from experts in reference for a first bike. And yes I agree with you, taking lessons is a very good idea.

I like to conduct research before I give advice.

EDIT: If you want, I have so many motorcycle magazines that I can mail to you if you want to do some reading. Imma a subscriber. . Then you can know what you need to know, from basic riding to whatever... I have read them all from cover to cover and if you want I'll send some to you.

[Straight Success]

If you want, I have so many motorcycle magazines that I can mail to you if you want to do some reading. Imma a subscriber. . Then you can know what you need to know, from basic riding to whatever... I have read them all from cover to cover and if you want I'll send some to you.

[NAiL05]

Reading is a lot different from riding.

[Straight Success]

Reading is a lot different from riding.

I understand that. But the advice throughout the mags and various sources really come in handy. When you want to learn something on your own, and there is no one to teach you, what do you do (use working on a CB7 for example)? You read. Most likely a DIY, and then you try it.