Recommending small bikes for new riders in the GTA | Page 3 | GTAMotorcycle.com

Recommending small bikes for new riders in the GTA

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Baggsy said:
At this point, it's still you. You need to take some time and learn to ride the bike. A small bike is good, because you have to actually shift gears and work it to go.
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So true. You can/must upshift five times just to get out of the 'hood. Then it's five times down to get into Timmies. Cycle thru this a couple thousand times over a long weekend and you're well on you're way to mastering other skill sets. Why somebody wants big thundering pistons pounding away providing the energy, if not the efficiency, of a small nuclear reactor is beyond me. Enjoy the small morsels life has to offer today to appreciate the triple xl treats further down the road of life.
 
sevet said:
And with how fast modern family cars are nowadays (and how lead footed some drivers can be), I can't even pull ahead at a light to change lanes or whatever without winding the N300 up a decent amount. I'm not going to complain about how the bike feels on the highway since that's not what the bike was designed to do so it would be silly to complain about it.
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I have no idea what you are talking about... I rode a ninja 250 for 3 seasons and unless a car was actively trying to get ahead of me I never had a problem pulling ahead of cars and the ninja 250 isn't even comparable to a 300. Like is everyone going 120 on your roads or something m8.

Had the pleasure of trying out the 300, CBR500R and now I have a ZX6R and if it wasn't for insurance I would have moved up from my 250 after the first season. The 250 was great bike to learn on, really had a "motorcycle feeling" that a noobie could enjoy meaning cranking the throttle, hitting all the gears, flicking around cars and corners; just don't take it on the highway or try and 2up because then it's literally a bicycle. I would have loved to start on the CBR500R, I feel like it had the right amount of power for someone to start out on (if they go into riding with a responsible mindset). Even if you get a little carried away with the cbr500 I feel like it's still a little forgiving. My ZX6R is anything but forgiving and I prob would have been really scared to start out on it, not to mention I really didn't appreciate safety too much my first season so I might have gotten myself into trouble. Didn't really get that appreciation for how dangerous being on a bike "can be" until a few seasons riding.

In terms of geography I dunno, might come down to personal preference but I enjoyed riding my bike wherever I went... whether it was downtown around the clubs at night, up around the lakes on group rides or just cruising on my commute to school or work. The only time I would imagine not enjoying my 250 would have been if I ever felt like racing cars on the streets.
 
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This young lady on a 125 seemed to be doing very well in traffic (check my speedo). Maybe she's on this site. Maybe she offers lessons.

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Been riding a 250 Ninja/ZZR since 2001. Surprises me every time out. Get the revs up and use them to your advantage. Not much passes by! Who needs another 50 cc's anyway?
 
DoubleJ said:
Been riding a 250 Ninja/ZZR since 2001. Surprises me every time out. Get the revs up and use them to your advantage. Not much passes by! Who needs another 50 cc's anyway?
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i dunno iv heard those extra 50 ccs make a world of difference on highways

(fyi i have no problems with people starting on 300s)
 
I'm not saying the 300 isn't sufficient around town. I guess I just want more than sufficient.

Like how an econobox like a civic is sufficient for a car, but lots of people want a little more than that...
 
sevet said:
I'm not saying the 300 isn't sufficient around town. I guess I just want more than sufficient.

Like how an econobox like a civic is sufficient for a car, but lots of people want a little more than that...
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How can we help?
 
FLSTC said:
This young lady on a 125 seemed to be doing very well in traffic (check my speedo). Maybe she's on this site. Maybe she offers lessons.
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I dunno what the top speed on a 125 is (cant imagine its much more than 120km/h if that) but seems a little sketchy taking one on the highway
 
sevet said:
I'm not saying the 300 isn't sufficient around town. I guess I just want more than sufficient.

Like how an econobox like a civic is sufficient for a car, but lots of people want a little more than that...
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according to wiki

n300 has a top speed of about 180 km/h

If thats slow i dont know what to say
 
bigpoppa said:
according to wiki

n300 has a top speed of about 180 km/h

If thats slow i dont know what to say
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Personally it's not a matter of fast or slow, it's how it feels to my butt-o-meter

Anyway it might not be slow but how many people would call a N300 fast?
 
I started out on a 20 year old 250cc cruiser. I thought it was a piece of trash. My buddy who'd been riding 20 years, hopped on it, and showed me what it could do. If you do take the easy way out, you may never get out of second gear, unless you're really, really breaking the law. You'll never need to anyways. Some people completely skip the joyful part of motorcycling and never find out what they missed. See how fast you can shift that thing, and get her moving. Then do it faster, and smoother.
 
Baggsy said:
I started out on a 20 year old 250cc cruiser. I thought it was a piece of trash. My buddy who'd been riding 20 years, hopped on it, and showed me what it could do. If you do take the easy way out, you may never get out of second gear, unless you're really, really breaking the law. You'll never need to anyways. Some people completely skip the joyful part of motorcycling and never find out what they missed. See how fast you can shift that thing, and get her moving. Then do it faster, and smoother.
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I also keep hearing this, I hope I'm in a place next year where I can buy something bigger if I still feel this way AND keep the N300. That way I'll be able to choose either one or keep both, who knows.

On a pedantic note, according to google the SV650 is geared to redline at ~140km/h in 3rd. So you could get into 4th without really, really breaking the law...just breaking the law a little bit :D
 
This is how you do it:

[video=youtube_share;ub3-nJakADg]http://youtu.be/ub3-nJakADg[/video]
 
sevet said:
So this has been on my mind pretty much as soon as I got my bike earlier this year. So it seems like the general recommendation you find anywhere is you should start on a 250/300 unless:

- You have previous riding experience
- You know you're gonna be doing a lot of highway

But I think there should be a third (and possibly a 4th) criteria:

- if you live somewhere where there are nothing but flat, straight roads near you
- and possibly, if you've driven fast manual transmission cars before

So before I took my M1x course earlier this year, I had never ridden a motorcycle. I did my course, picked up my new (to me) motorcycle and started commuting on it the very next day. I felt pretty comfortable being on a motorcycle and in traffic, so I decided I'd go the trial by fire way instead of putting around in parking lots. And I think within 2-3 days of picking it up, I started to realize I might've made a mistake. Now I'm not saying I'm a good or bad rider, I know I have A LOT to learn. I know that, but that doesn't change how underwhelmed I felt. This is where that 4th point I made comes in - I've always been a car guy and been fortunate enough to drive some fast cars here and there. I know most cars can't even keep up with a SS, but a 500+HP car makes a 300 feel like you're in slow motion.

Now when I've actually had the bike out on some curvy roads, it's a blast. Kawasaki did a terrific job making a bike that's so easy to ride and confidence inspiring even for a new rider like myself.

But the reality is, I live in the middle of Toronto. That means I have to go out of my way and plan in advance to find any decent roads that aren't just completely flat and straight. I commute on my bike daily from Toronto to Markham, so 95%+ of my overall riding is done on straight roads. And with how fast modern family cars are nowadays (and how lead footed some drivers can be), I can't even pull ahead at a light to change lanes or whatever without winding the N300 up a decent amount. I'm not going to complain about how the bike feels on the highway since that's not what the bike was designed to do so it would be silly to complain about it.

So with that all said, I think the geography of where you're going to be doing the majority of your riding should be a bigger factor in choosing what kind of bike to get. I wish I started on something a little bigger.

EDIT: Yes I'm a newbie, I only have a month under my belt. But am I the only one to think that geography should be considered?
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my congratulations to you Sir, it took you only a month to understand what took the rest of us years, you have the game beat!! Well done

having said all that I think anything less than a S1000RR or an R1M will just not do for you.........off to the BMW dealership you go
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