Pros + Cons/The Right Time?

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koma said:
It's more like this:

Pros:
- fun

Cons:
- vulnerable

I would think it would probably be a little wiser to get some experience driving a car in traffic first, to develop some intuition etc.
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This^^

There is no way to sugar coat it. Motorcycling puts you in a very vulnerable place. Period. And it goes downhill from there if you ride angry, distracted, tired, have judgement or motor control/balance issues etc. etc.

Riding and the motorcycle hobby can be huge blast and very satisfying. eg, I rode from 10:30am to 8pm today and had an awesome time. Would not give it up for the world.
 
imho get road sense first. this will only happen with experience. a car will allow you to build road sense all year round, while a motorcycle will only let you gain experience for half a year roughly.

start driving... then drive standard. youll have freedom, do things, get chicks.... and its cheaper and less risky than a bike. in a couple years, get a bike.
 
I didn't actually know it only lasted for 3 months so thank you for letting me know! I may just wait until march or so to get the M1 so I'll have good weather to go for the riding school. I do plan on going for my G1 when I turn 16 and it all depends on when I begin driving school. I know motorcycling isn't all that safe and takes a lot more responsibility/concentration, I think I am ready for it though. in a year or 2 when insurance is doable than I will get my bike and ride!
 
I got my learners permit (class L, back in the day) 2 days after my 16 birthday, had an 86 honda xl250, rode that for a year, bought an 83 gs400e, had it 7 months before it was stolen. A week after that I bought a zx7r, scared myself half to death the first day I had it! I've never regretted a single bike I've owned ( maybe that 800 intruder lol), or a single day in the saddle.
 
OP is in New Market so has more of a suburban opportunity.

Get your licence and get an under 100cc for the first year plus your training course.
Suck it up for the first year and do some off road courses as well ( Chatsworth Motopark not too bad for you ).
Don't wait on insurance and riding start....get into it at 16 and build experience as you have a relatively low stress area to learn. Just drive to school and local trips....
Take some runs with the Toronto Scooter bunch.

After the first year clean or even two years depending on finances you can swing a 250 with the main insurance companies. But get the riding in. Millions of Europeans ride small scoots around town. Hey it's wheels and you are on the path to a lifetime of riding.

Ask some questions here

http://www.meetup.com/toronto-moto-scooter-club/

Too much anti-scoot snobbery here. :D


Zuma's are fun and easily resold

zuma-125-dynamic-blue.jpg
 
NinjaNams said:
I didn't actually know it only lasted for 3 months so thank you for letting me know! I may just wait until march or so to get the M1 so I'll have good weather to go for the riding school. I do plan on going for my G1 when I turn 16 and it all depends on when I begin driving school. I know motorcycling isn't all that safe and takes a lot more responsibility/concentration, I think I am ready for it though. in a year or 2 when insurance is doable than I will get my bike and ride!
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You can get your M1 and M2 in the same week (write M1, take RTI). However, you cannot register your M2 with MTO until 60 days after your M1 date. A friend of mine literally got both licenses and his bike within a week. He's registering his M2 tomorrow and he's been riding since 60 days ago :)
 
With regards to the age thing, I drove like crazy person for my first few years on the road (in a car). Was lucky to not have anything bad happen. Had I been on a bike at that age...things would have been much worse.

I didn't start riding till I was 31, kinda wish I started earlier like maybe at 25. With that being said, everyone is different.
 
Considering your communication skills at 15 (no yo wazzup i wantz a busa), I say go for it. I got my bike at 17. It took me a year to rebuild it, so I started at 18. Riding at 18 is amaizing. Dont let the old bozos keep you from enjoing the best time of you life.
 
daught said:
Considering your communication skills at 15 (no yo wazzup i wantz a busa), I say go for it. I got my bike at 17. It took me a year to rebuild it, so I started at 18. Riding at 18 is amaizing. Dont let the old bozos keep you from enjoing the best time of you life.
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Thanks! :)

I want to get a bike and get it on the road while I am still young enough to not have to worry about living + food costs, I have seen so many people tell me they want a bike but once they go to post secondary education they are no longer able to afford it, therefore they give up the dream. If I can get one while still in high school than by the time university swings around I will have 2-3 years under my belt and it won't be such a horrifying insurance cost.
 
I ended up learning to ride before I learned how to drive. I've met 16 year olds that can drive responsibly, and 40 year olds that were not yet mature enough for the sportbikes they had.

Just addressing some of your points, things to keep in mind:
-Gear does not make riding safe. It mitigates risk to some extent, but as transportation driving will ALWAYS be safer than riding.
-Insurance, as you noted, will be expensive. You should get a quote ASAP, and the number you get may guide your riding plans. Also, insurance does not drop much with experience anymore - the primary factor is age, and the major milestone is currently sitting at 30.
-After you get an insurance quote, it might be a good idea to draw up a budget for the 2 years you plan to have your first bike. Bike, gear, gas, maintanence, insurance, licensing, etc.
 
A teen who can write and has a decent head on his shoulders... faith restored in humantiy... slightly.
Ha, I'd say get the bike, just be responsible about safety (yourself and others on the roads... even the ********). You'll be okay.
 
TwistedKestrel said:
I ended up learning to ride before I learned how to drive. I've met 16 year olds that can drive responsibly, and 40 year olds that were not yet mature enough for the sportbikes they had.

Just addressing some of your points, things to keep in mind:
-Gear does not make riding safe. It mitigates risk to some extent, but as transportation driving will ALWAYS be safer than riding.
-Insurance, as you noted, will be expensive. You should get a quote ASAP, and the number you get may guide your riding plans. Also, insurance does not drop much with experience anymore - the primary factor is age, and the major milestone is currently sitting at 30.
-After you get an insurance quote, it might be a good idea to draw up a budget for the 2 years you plan to have your first bike. Bike, gear, gas, maintanence, insurance, licensing, etc.
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My GSX-R750 quote at 24 was 3500-8000. I'm paying 1700 now. This is this year (fairly recent). I know there is another drop at 30. Pretty sure license held time still matters.

My gf's quote drop was also dramatic, $4000 to $800
 
NinjaNams said:
Thanks! :)

I want to get a bike and get it on the road while I am still young enough to not have to worry about living + food costs, I have seen so many people tell me they want a bike but once they go to post secondary education they are no longer able to afford it, therefore they give up the dream. If I can get one while still in high school than by the time university swings around I will have 2-3 years under my belt and it won't be such a horrifying insurance cost.
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Getting both licenses (G and M) is smart. The cost isn't too crazy and you build experience, then you can insure what you want or what you're willing to pay for.

When I was your age I wanted to do this but when my parents heard "motorcycle license" they pretty much crapped themselves and gave me a week long lecture about how owning a bike is instant death.

brotip: the 1st time you go out on the street, do it in a car. traffic rules and intuition are almost the same, the risks are much lower tho.
 
OP - I assume you ride a bicycle. Then a good start right now is ride with helmet and gloves and ride as a vehicle in the traffic flow around town.
Stop at reds and stop signs, signal your turns etc so lane positioning for things like left hand turns becomes second nature.
You'll have the same issues with a scoot or a small motorcycle in that you will need to claim your space in traffic.

Car requires an entirely different spacial sense than a two wheel vehicle and lane positioning is critical on two wheels and not present in cars.
Different skill sets in my view.
And you are riding perfectly legally and claiming your space perfectly legally - just do it where traffic is calm and light and within your ability to keep up.

Practice smooth rolling to a stop at stop signs and putting a foot down.

Staying in the correct lane turning both right and left and don't hug the curb turning right - take the space that is yours legally.
 
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First, let me say that I'm impressed with how articulate you are AND how respectful you are of your parents' opinion. Coupled with what appears to be an excellent work ethic and a solid grasp of how life works (education, etc.), you'll go far. Obviously, everyone here is a fan of motorcycles, so it's hard for us to come up with any negatives, beyond financial constraints. Motorcycles can be an excellent choice for primary transportation but in Canada it means you will get hot, cold, wet (and your stuff will get wet, too), be riding in the dark during spring and fall and in winter you'll be on the bus with the other schlubs. You will learn to identify bugs by taste (or by splatter pattern if you wear a fullface), you will develop an unreasonable hate for plain white vans, taxis, teenage girls with cell phones and anyone who rides a different style of bike from you (hating on scooters is okay because, well, they're scooters). You will have moments of unadulterated joy, followed almost immediately by moments of sheer terror. You will learn more about physics, friction and gravity than you thought possible outside of a classroom. And it will all be worth it. However, as a parent, I have to say that our job is to raise you safely and securely, guide you through all the pitfalls and see you well on to your way into adulthood. Motorcycles interfere with that goal. No parent ever wants to get that knock at the door. It's not something a parent can ever recover from. So please consider their feelings and fears as much as you consider your own dreams and desires.
 
I'd get a small cc bike. If parents disagrees move out.
 
Hmmmph some scooter haters are fair weather riders apparently. :D

Ride your ride as close to 12 months a year as you can. It's fun and you learn lots.
 
I'd like to thank all of you sincerely for the advice you are giving me, it is really helping me decide what I want to do as well as make a plan. I am going to start calling for insurance quotes tomorrow (I'll try state farm and TD to see what they think of the situation + what they would price me at). I have ridden BMX (track and street) for just over 2 years now and I am very comfortable on bikes. I really like the idea of getting familiar with traffic and so I may just give it a shot on a Saturday/Sunday morning when traffic in minimal! After really thinking about it I realized that getting a G and an M license would be better/safer for me and others on the road and so that is what I am planning on doing. I definitely do respect my parents opinion because whether I like it or not, 90 percent of the time they are right when they tell me something and they have a lot more knowledge/experience with life than I. Motorcycling for me isn't about being the coolest kid in school or ripping in 6th gear down the highway, I want one because I love nothing more than the sense of freedom and the idea that when I am on the bike it is just me and a machine, every decision I make has an effect. I have been researching this hobby/sport for much longer than I can say my parents would like, but I know that deep down they want me to do what I love and this is just that. It will take a lot of persuasion and in the end I know they will never fully like the idea of me riding the streets on 2 wheels, but it is something that I am going to do and hopefully they will support the idea.
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