Beginner Cruiser/Standard Bike

[sm00thpapa]

My wife is going to the BRC in June and does not want a Sport Bike. She said she wants a cruiser. She knows nothing about looking for bikes so I been looking for her. I think the Honda Rebel 234cc and the Suzuki GZ 250cc would be great beginner bikes for her. Just wondering whats your thoughts on this.

 

[CooperFZ6]

If she has never ridden before, those are good bikes to start on. I'm a firm believer in starting real small and moving up. I rode a Suzuki SP125 for quite a few years before I went to a VSTAR650, which would make a great bike for her after the riding something smaller for a while.

My only comment would be to buy used since you will likely end up selling it in a season or two, and, no doubt, you'll put a few scratches and dents on it along the way. If you buy new, you'll eat the depreciation pretty fast.

 

[sm00thpapa]

If she has never ridden before, those are good bikes to start on. I'm a firm believer in starting real small and moving up. I rode a Suzuki SP125 for quite a few years before I went to a VSTAR650, which would make a great bike for her after the riding something smaller for a while.

My only comment would be to buy used since you will likely end up selling it in a season or two, and, no doubt, you'll put a few scratches and dents on it along the way. If you buy new, you'll eat the depreciation pretty fast.

I know what you mean about starting small. She is 5' 8" 140 LBS and sat on my FZ6R and couldn't even balance it, it was so heavy for her. I am a new rider also and chose the FZ6R as my first bike due to my size 6' 230 LBS. I only have 8 hours of bike time and that was on a Ninja 250R and GZ 250 at the BRC. I managed to handle these bikes fairly well and they did feel underpowered for my size. I hope I can handle the FZ6R which I think I can.

 

[necrotimus]

I agree with buying used and going small. My wife also wanted a cruiser but she is also tall at 5'10" so a lot of the smaller bikes were too "uncomfortable for her". Try your best to get her to logically think of this as a 'throw away' or learning bike. Something that she isn't going to be too upset about if she drops it. If after three months she has out grown it then that is perfectly fine! It is better than three months of not riding because it is too heavy or she is afraid of it. Plus it gives her more time to decide what she wants after she has learned more about riding.

it will be a tough fight though. My wife got a vstar 650 and it weighs a ton. After 6 months she has put about 200 miles on it and now wants to try riding my bike On the upside if she takes my bike then I can get something else.

 

[FZ1inNH]

My wife is 5'2" and has a 30" inseam. She started on the Suzuki S40 and while she did like the bike a lot, she cannot believe that she "suffered" with the S40 so long after getting on the new V Star 650 Custom. While the V Star is quite a bit heavier than the FZ6, she handles it fine because it is all low centered. She can easily handle the bike, stand it up, balance it, etc... The best thing for her though is the comfort. The S40 left her wanting for breaks all the time during a ride. The V Star? She gets on and rides until I complain I need a break. Then there's the tank size and distance to fillups. With the S40, she had to fill up twice for my one. Now we're about evenly matched for distance.

Even though both were 650cc bikes, neither are too much for her to handle as both are not high performance. The V Star also has a lot less vibration, better brakes and suspension, plus it is a shaft drive! :thumbup:

My only gripe about the V Star is the oil filter location. PITA!!!

 

[lewis6681]

I started riding street bikes on a Honda Rebel. I rode it for a year before moving up to a 750 Honda Shadow. The rebel was great as a starter bike. The rebel was easy to ride, low maintenance, and I passed my DMV riding test on it with ease!

 

[sm00thpapa]

I wasn't even aware of the V Star. Maybe the V Star 250cc would be an option for her also.

 

[rbesr]

Try and find a used Yamaha Virago 250. Great beginner bike.

 

[frt96]

Look for the vulcan 500. still very light. low to the ground and a lot nicer on longer rides. has the same engine as the ninga ex500 ultra reliable. not that powerful but still plenty of room for the future. Very cheap to find used.

 

[keira]

All of the above are great bikes to start on. Whatever she gets though, make sure she sits on it at the dealer (and not just on the side stand with feet down, stand it and hold it up for her (if youc an) so she can get a real feel for what it will feel like. You say the weight is a problem, so make sure she can stand it up by herself and maneuver it around a bit on the showroom floor. Also, check and see if there are any dealers nearby that offer test rides (if she already has her license at that point) so she can get a feel for whether they are the right fit for her or not.

I took my BRC on a Honda Rebel 250 and was not a fan. It felt much too small, and I am only 5'6". Of course, I also wanted (and got) a sportbike, so that could be just a personal preference thing.

 

[sm00thpapa]

Yeah I was going to do that with her. But she is such a beginner that while she was sitting on my bike she said "Oh, you mean you have to shift gears on a motorcycle, I thought they were automatics".

 

[Pickax]

I've ridden the GZ250 and Honda Rebel quite a few times and the GZ250 feels a lot better ergonomically to me.

The Rebel feels very small. The gas tank is smaller and the pegs seem higher up. When I sit on one (I have about a 30" inseam) it puts my knees over the tank. The seat on the Rebel is softer but smaller. Considering you're not getting this for long hauls but for learning that shouldn't really be an issue either way.

The GZ250 is perfect for a beginner. It's easy to balance because it's so lightweight but it's not small like the Rebel. It has more of a "big bike" look and feel. My legs rest comfortably on the lower side of the tank and the pegs are far enough away to be quite comfortable. I spent a lot of time riding this bike for hours at a time and it was excellent. I did a lot of parking lot practice with it and it was great for the task.

If she's looking into possibly getting a bigger cruiser later, this is the way to go. Compared to other bigger cruisers, the GZ feels similar whereas the Rebel feels like a different type of bike (I think it's designed to be more standard-oriented).

I don't have any experience with the Virago (now called V-Star, I believe), but it seems to be more along the lines of the GZ. Take that how you will though as I've only seen them and never ridden one.

Starting out on a 250 is great and the absolute right way to go. If you end up going with the GZ250, the site GZ250Bike.com is a great one to check out. I know there are plenty of other sites for the Rebel and Virago too and they can prove useful.

 

[wke4estguy]

One of my biker friends teaches the BRC, and says that the Suzuki GS is a piece of crap, and they can never keep them running long enough to complete the BRC.
I had a Buell Blast (492cc) that I picked up for under $2000 with accessories as my starter. Don't let the ~500cc size fool you though, it only has marginally more HP than a 250 cruiser, and less than the 250 ninja, so it is good for a starter. It only has a 25.5inch seat height, so she can flat foot it too at stoplights. Plus at 360lbs it is lighter than a cruiser, but has the riding position of a standard bike ( probably more like the bicycles she has been on than the "feet forward" cruiser approach)

That same friend (BRC instructor friend) just bought his daughter a Blast from the Rider's Edge used bike acution ($400 + $120 to re-drill the spark plug hole (it was stripped) =$520 for a complete bike.

They are not completely reliable either I admit, but they are SIMPLE to work on.

 

[sm00thpapa]

Thanks to all of you for your informative posts. I really appreciate it. You all have mentioned bikes I never heard of before. I will check them all out and start looking on ebay and craigslist.

 

[rbesr]

The new ones are called the V-Star 250. Older ones still have the Virago logo on them.

 

[sm00thpapa]

The new ones are called the V-Star 250. Older ones still have the Virago logo on them.

Yeah we mentioned that earlier. It is a sweet bike I did some research on it.