Thinking about getting a sport bike...

[halik]

Commuting on a bike is a dumb idea - nothing like bumper to bumper traffic on daily basis to decrease your life expectancy. You're basically trading off the gas mile for much higher odds of getting hurt.

I ride an 03 GSXR 600 and I'd never actually commute on it, because a) long rides kill your back b) the more you ride, the more likely you're to wreck... and I'd much rather wreck in the twisites than rush hour traffic on the highway.

 

[ViviTheMage]

my friend and I just picked up two 2006 suzuki sv650s for 3700$ a bike!!

great first time bikes for the both of us. I would take the motorcycle lessons, they really help you out.

 

[michaels]

Insurance on my cruiser is 180 for a whole year, full coverage. I get about 45 mpg.

 

[TBone48]

Good gear is essential. Try newenough.com, they have everything you'll need at a great price. Definitely take the MSF Ridercourse, it will help you a lot. Be alert and don't try to be a stunter. Not right away. at least.

 

[kindest]

everyday i pick up the newspaper theres a article about a motorcyclist killed here in the bay area.. scary stuff. dunno about florida but i wouldnt dare drive a motorcycle on the freeways here.

 

[imported_Imp]

Sports bikes are probably more dangerous cause they're just that: a sport bike. Read somewhere that a racer just bought a 600cc off an auto-dealer floor, ripped off the mirrors, made a few "small" cosmetic changes and raced it to get in the top 10 of some league. They are very responsive with amazing brakes and throttles cause they're designed for racing. I'm really looking at the CBR125 more than the Ninja 250 as a starter bike now. I like how cruisers look, but I hate their feel and engine noise (love hearing crotch rockets rev down a street). Oh and freeways are death traps with 4 wheels, no way I'll ever get on one with 2.

 

[MrBond]

Originally posted by: Cuda1447

Originally posted by: Whoozyerdaddy
Mind if I ask how old you are?

22. I understand where you're coming from with the 'killing yourself' stuff. I respect that and to be honest, the danger factor is one of the MAIN factors holding me up. But Ive always considered myself to be a very good driver. Never had any accidents is my 6 years of driving. Ive had many friends that have owned bikes and often times they've told me the horror stories we all hear. I completely respect the power of a motorcycle and the danger that comes with one.

It helps that you're a good driver, but a lot of motorcycle accidents are caused by other people. Cars turning left in front of you is a big one, a lot of times people in cars just don't see motorcycles. I'm a pretty new rider and there is no way I'd ride in Florida without more experience - there's just too many old people down there.

Get a bike if you want one, but I'm seconding the "buy an old standard and learn on that" comments by everyone else.

Take the MSF course before you buy a bike. You don't need a bike for it and you really don't even need gear (I'd pick up a helmet from NewEnough just so you don't have to wear a loaner). You'll have two days of riding time on a bike and you'll have a ton of fun. It will also give you a chance to see if you really like riding, although chances are you're going to have a ball and want to run to a dealer and buy a bike right after the class. They tend to book up fast, I signed up about this time last year and got into one of the last classes of the season. Since you have better weather down in FL, they may do them year-round.

 

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: halik
I ride an 03 GSXR 600 and I'd never actually commute on it, because a) long rides kill your back

Well no sh*t a GSXR will hurt your back. Friggin' curled up like a pretzel like on every other sportbike out there. Get a cruiser or a standard and it's comfortable in the saddle for hours and hours and hours.

ZV

 

[sjvlad]

I actually just picked up an '03 Nina 250 about two weeks ago and am loving it.

I previously took the MCSF safety class and picked up my class M license shortly after. Looking back it would have been horrible to try and get a bike without taking the safety class, I'd never wridden a motorcycle before and it really gave me all the basics needed to zoom around.

Anyway, I was able to pick up an '03 for 2400 bucks, which is a bit high normally, but they're in quite high demand in the Bay Area. It gets between 60-70 mpg, and although it's a bit choppy in freeway winds it's still quite fantastic for commuting.

 

[RelaxTheMind]

Hayavespa

 

[soydios]

organ donor...
the question is not *if* you fall, but *when*

 

[Superwormy]

If you're looking at a Ninja 250 or a Ninja 500, forums.ninja250.org is a great forum/board for it.

The 250 and the 500 are very close siblings, most of the maintainence/repair type stuff for the 250 is identical or very similar to the stuff for the 500.

 

[michaels]

My first bike was a Ninja 250, it's not fast(mine would do about 120) and not too powerful, great for a noobcake.