Choosing your first bike

[robfilms]

my first post.

just wanted to thank those who have shared their experience.

i'm a returning rider.

haven't ridden since the 70s.

and loved my yamaha 250RD.

i have signed up for a msf class in june.

even my wife is supportive.

anything for me to stop talking about the craigslist motorcycles "finds"!

that said, a fz6 sure does look inviting.

yup yup.

drive safe.

be well.

rob

 

[Shockwave]

I did everything you guys are saying not to do... my first bike was a 2006 Victory Hammer (1634 cc). Why because it looked bad ass and I wanted it( and all of the other wrong reasons). the only experience i had was on a quad. the dealer had to ride it home. Everything worked out for me but it took me a week to do more than go around the block. I did drop it once the first year but luckily i was only moving about walking speed and just put a small dent on the bottom side of the exhaust.

5 years and 20000 miles later... I sold it today, bought my FZ6 on Monday

you know how hard it was to pass the drivers test on that beast... the highway patrol lady was sure that i would dump it.

I was reading this post and another one like it and just laugh at myself cause I used all of the wrong reasons to buy a bike

 

[lhueagle30]

I have never had any dirtbike experience whatsoever, only drove an automatic 4-wheeler. The FZ6 is my first bike and I am adjusting just fine. It's all about respecting it's power. I've only hit over 100 once and that was on an empty straight stretch where there isn't anyone. I'm doing quite fine with it and think it is a great starter bike if the person on it has brains. I learned to ride in a parking lot one day, kept the bike around town for the next week and now have been riding all over, highways and all ever since.

 

[ChevyFazer]

Some people can start out on a bike like the fz6 just fine, but the problem comes from those people who have zero cycle experience and get on a bike with decent power and get into a panic mode. I've seen it happen a few times in person and numerous videos on YouTube, the person is fresh to the bike world and hops on a bike with some good power behind it, twist the throttle back not expecting the intensity of just how quick it can accelerate then they get a death grip trying to hang on for dear life only making it go faster. If a beginner were to make a mistake like that on a lesser powered bike, for one it might not be as scary to them and they might not go into that panic mode to begin with, but mainly if they do the bike won't take off like a bat outta hell and the person has a better chance to recover from their mistake. Not to mention its a whole lot easier to ride a more powerful bike faster then the persons skill level vs a lesser one, but that all comes down to being able to control yourself and knowing you and your machines limits. Which is 100% avoidable and could also happen just as easy on a smaller bike. The first thing I mentioned is far less avoidable to someone completely new to bikes.

 

[norcalwelder]

My first bike was my FZ6. I got an incredible deal on it from a family member and its already got some cosmetic damage, so the two times I dropped it in my driveway I didn't feel bad at all. Keeping the RPM's under 6K RPM during the first couple months did alot to get me used to bike without it being a rocket. I'm sure glad I didn't buy a 250, but I can definitely see they have their place. I'm also a commercial flight student so risk assessment/risk mitigation has been hammered in pretty hard and it has definitely applied to the riding the bike.

 

[iviyth0s]

This thread is a great thing for new riders. I just bought my FZ6 but have had 3 happy years on a 2001 Ninja 250....heck if Kawasaki weren't jackasses about it and may the 2nd generation fuel injected in the US like the european and japanese models I would have been tempted to get one. (though those sexy 300s I guess are their answer to that problem but it still annoyed me that stuck to horriblerator for US 2007+ 250s) I hate hate hate carburetors but was quite happy with my 250 in most every other way, though when I'd hop on my dad's '85 Honda Interceptor 700 I'd get tastes of some of the allure of some chest flattening torque no matter what RPM I chose.

So I upgraded primarily to escape an archaic fuel/air delivery system and also to move up in size, though I'll likely stay on a 600, if not this FZ6 forever (unless something catastrophic happens and/or it dies somehow) as I am not a large guy. 152lbs 5'11"

I only regret as a newer rider, that I never took a MSF course but maybe I will take a basic and advanced course one of these days because I'm still not 100% confident on slow turning though I feel like I will be able to trust the FZ6 more due to it not being all carb choppy with its smoooooth EFI.

So personal recommendations of mine for a new rider:
Take a course to learn and get your license that way

Great starter bikes were already mentioned though I'll add the Ninja 300 since I believe that may starter/forever bike since it'll be all 95% of riders need. (I still wanna try one out)