A little voice in my head is telling me to buy a bike...

[SketchMaster]

Always wanted a motorcycle since I was old enough to ride a bike and two weeks ago I got to ride a wave-runner for the first time which was the closest I've come to riding.

That was it, I don't care if I end up a stain on the road, I want a motorcycle.

So, I was hoping for some input from any riders around here on how to:

Find a good school.
Find a good starter bike for under $1K.
What gear I should invest in and what makers.

And any other tips you may want to pass along.


Started poking around craigs list and turned up these:

http://cosprings.craigslist.org/mcy/1245808724.html
http://cosprings.craigslist.org/mcy/1241761531.html
http://cosprings.craigslist.org/mcy/1241377292.html

Any input on them? Not being too picky other than it needs to run well, get me around town (~10mi) and I don't want a dirt bike with blinkers stuck on it.

 

[SickBeast]

I don't think motorcycles are practical or safe enough to use as a daily driver. They're so dangerous that I would recommend against getting one.

 

[SketchMaster]

I am aware of the risks, and know that I WILL fall sooner or later and that is why I'm going to take the MSF and make sure I have good gear and hope for the best.

 

[Kelvrick]

Get good medical insurance. My last crash landed me with a 56k medical bill. I was out of pocket about 800 bucks.

Whats your total budget? You should be spending 500+ gear as well. Here are approximate prices. They can range and obviously you can always go used.

$150 helmet
$100 textile jacket
$100 boots
$100 overpants
$100 back brace
$50 gloves

This is what the bike looked like after my accident. Was literally up and running by the time I woke up groggy in the hospital. Witnesses say I got up and walked myself to the ambulance, I just don't remember anything. Had about half a week of hospital stay for observation and tests and physical therapy, but was in damn good condition.
http://www.kelvrick.com/crash2.jpg
http://www.kelvrick.com/crash3.jpg
http://www.kelvrick.com/crash4.jpg
http://www.kelvrick.com/crash5.jpg

I was wearing a Scorpion EXO-700 helmet
alpinestars spinner leather jacket
Tpro back protector
tourmaster textile overpants with upgraded knee and shin armor
tourmaster wp solution boots (about 7 inches tall)
racer high-end gloves

 

[DVad3r]

I just got my first motorcycle a few months ago and it's awesome. But it's not a daily driver where I live that's for sure. If I had to make a daily driver choice, I'd buy one of them auto scooters.

Riding is awesome, go for it. Be safe, respect the machine, and you will be fine. Gear up too, although I must admit I ride in a shirt sometimes, although I wear all my other gear (full face, gloves, boots, jeans).

 

[SketchMaster]

Originally posted by: Kelvrick
Get good medical insurance. My last crash landed me with a 56k medical bill. I was out of pocket about 800 bucks.

Whats your total budget? You should be spending 500+ gear as well. Here are approximate prices. They can range and obviously you can always go used.

...

I have pretty good medical so I should be good there.

I want to spend $1K on the bike, I know it will get me an old "well loved" bike but I enjoyed helping my brother work on his bike when I was younger and since I'm just starting out I don't want anything too powerful right off the go. I'm 6'2 so I'll have to look at larger framed bikes but I figured I would go to a dealer and sit on a few bikes to get a feel for what I should be looking for.

The $500 mark was what I was hoping for with the gear so that should bring the total up to $1.5k

Before any of that, however, I want to get into a class. I work with some riders so they should know where a good school is.

 

[tdawg]

Originally posted by: SketchMaster
Always wanted a motorcycle since I was old enough to ride a bike and two weeks ago I got to ride a wave-runner for the first time which was the closest I've come to riding.

That was it, I don't care if I end up a stain on the road, I want a motorcycle.

So, I was hoping for some input from any riders around here on how to:

Find a good school.
Find a good starter bike for under $1K.
What gear I should invest in and what makers.

And any other tips you may want to pass along.


Started poking around craigs list and turned up these:

http://cosprings.craigslist.org/mcy/1245808724.html
http://cosprings.craigslist.org/mcy/1241761531.html
http://cosprings.craigslist.org/mcy/1241377292.html

Any input on them? Not being too picky other than it needs to run well, get me around town (~10mi) and I don't want a dirt bike with blinkers stuck on it.

Hopefully your state DMV/DOL offers a 2 or 3 day safety course. Here in Washington, the course is a friday night and all day saturday and sunday. It includes classroom instruction, so you can pass the written test and get your license endorsement, and a practical course, where you tool around on little honda 125s in a huge parking lot, learning the fundamentals (absolute blast!).

I highly recommend this course to anybody, even if you're going to get a tiny scooter. The best part is that you don't have to take a driving test as part of your endorsement once you take this class, and your insurance company will give you a better rate if you've graduated from the course. You also become much more confident in handling a bike.

Riding is great. I've never done it as a daily commuter, but tooling around on a weekend ride or something is it's own sense of freedom. Sure, they're dangerous, but we can't all live life in a bubble of safety! Be careful, be safe, be smart and you'll be ok.

 

[SketchMaster]

I found a school that came with high praise from some riders I know (link) and I'll be signing up for a class as soon as I get back from a vacation.

Last night I went to a local bike shop and talked with a guy there, he helped me find what kind of frame would work best for me and what some of the good older bikes I should be looking for. Great guy, knew I wasn't going to be buying my bike from them and still took a half hour out of his day to help me out! Big thumbs up to Apex!

Can't wait to gear up and get out on the road later this year!

 

[Fenixgoon]

old school japanese bike - great choice :thumbsup:

 

[w00t]

get gear and wear it
take MSF course
learn to ride and don't go beyond your limits

What gear to wear? helmet, jacket, gloves, and boots AT LEAST. I like to think If I were to crash, what would I want to be wearing?

be safe

 

[caspur]

There is a good MSF school up by the Chapel Hills Mall (free for the military), I see them riding around every Saturday and Sunday. Honestly, the MSF isn't that useful..its more of a way to bypass the DMV test, I found the Hough books to be more informative for street riding, but the MSF does give you a structured learning environment which is important to some people.

Overall, Apex is a good shop, but as with all retail places, they are a bit overpriced for accessories/gear/equipment...did you meet the hottie that works there yet?

I'm guessing Bike Fest last week on Tejon got you motivated to buy a bike.