Used MOTORCYCLE for a newbie.....which one?

[wcc]

Originally posted by Craig911
Bill's yellow Ducati.......ooooh man I like it.....

No pressure Craig, but if you are interested in it I'd work with you on it and shipping and so forth to make it a smooth transaction.

[nostatic]

wow...if this were one week ago I would have bought your bike. I've lusted after yellow 748s for some time now.

Craig, I thought you said you had no riding experience? A 748 as a first bike?

Buy lots of gear and lots of insurance...

[BlueSkyJaunte]

Bill you're making a poor man (me) cry.

That 748 is a beaut.

[JeremyD]

Yeah 748 for a first bike ? - I've seen a picture of your young daughter Craig - I'd think about that one for a little while.

[Craig 930 RS]

I hear ya. I like the bike, but man.......I don't wanna be dumb.

[nostatic]

that is a beautiful bike...one of my dream bikes. And I was close to pulling the trigger on a second more sporting bike before the accident, so I wasn't kidding when I said I would have bought it. That price for a clean 748 with both tails is great.

But Craig...that ain't no beginner bike. Less so because of power delivery, and more because if you drop it you're looking at serious money to fix the plastic. Well, and the power delivery and riding position.

[fastpat]

I hope you're considering or have taken the Motorcycle Safety Foundation beginning rider course. It's nearly free, will lower your insurance premium by a good bit, and will genuinely make you a safer rider for at least the first, most dangerous, year.
http://www.msf-usa.org/index_new.cfm?spl=2&action=display&pagename=RiderCourse%20Info

[wcc]

Thanks everyone for the nice comments about my Duc. It is gorgeous and I'm having a hard time parting with it and all those acc. But I'd like to get a new Duc S4R. So I gotta let something go.

Just to let everyone know, that this 748 was my first street bike. But I've had lots of experience with dirt bikes, 3 & 4 wheelers, etc. I even had an enduro for a while. I took the safety class, spent lots of time to KNOW the bike on back roads, off hours (early morning, Sunday eve, etc) of the day (less traffic)for quite a while. This was to get the feel for it. Then when I was comfy with it then I started venturing into a little more traffic until I was comfortable to ride it whenever and wherever.
I guess what I'm trying to say is just about any bike could be your first bike if you plan on a learning curve.

[nostatic]

Bill, I'm not trying to blow your sale. It's just that as I recall Craig has very little 2 wheel experience. I ended up being ok with my first "returning" bike being a very fast 600cc I4. But I have thousands of hours riding/racing bicycles, being on dirt bikes as a young kid, etc. While a bicycle isn't a motorcycle, the physics on 2-wheels is pretty universal. And if your'e used to countersteering a road bicycle in a mountain turn at 40mph, odds are you'll get up to speed pretty quickly on the motorized version.

Your 748 is a beaut though. That would be a very fun weekend bike for SoCal...and I agree about bright colors. My triumph was orange and the Duc red. But yellow is my fav

[wcc]

Nostatic - Don't worry about blowing the sale cause I'll even say it. If you have zero or little experience on motorcycles then THIS BIKE IS NOT FOR YOU Craig911.

I don't want you buying beyond your skills cause I don't want you hurt or worse killed.

[JeremyD]

Sorry Bill - I didn't mean to throw a wrench in there either - your 748 is beautiful.

[wcc]

Nah, don't worry about it you guys. Only Craig911 really knows his experience and skills. I don't know his experiences or skills, but I thought he was more familiar with motorcycles in general than what it sounds like he his. I didn't know, so no hard feelings you guys.

My bike isn't going to be a good fit for him, so be it. Lets see if we can find a bike that is a good fit for him.

So back to the topic.........

[Craig 930 RS]

Howza bout an updated list of recommended bikes for me?
Thanks!

[5axis]

one more time
SV650
http://www.svrider.com/

[David]

Originally posted by 5axis
one more time
SV650
http://www.svrider.com/

Yep, everytime my wife lets me ride her's I'm simply amazed. Reminds me of my old FZR400 race bike.

[Rot 911]

And once again I will say: SV650!!!!!!!!!

Oh and Bill's statements about saying his bike is not a good fit for Craig just shows that Bill is a true motorcycle enthusiast! For me, I love my VFR, but I would never, ever recommend a VFR to a beginning rider.

[wludavid]

Originally posted by nostatic
NPants: Leather is preferable, but if you are wearing jeans then a good over pant with tough mesh and padding should be good enough. But don't just do jeans. And I don't believe in the "Draggin Jeans" or other reinforced ones. You need toughness all over because you never know what part of your body my slide/hit. About $150 for textile, $250 for leather.

Can you recommend some brands of overpants that you like?

[Rot 911]

First Gear make some first class overpants with good armor at a decent price. You can go to www.Newenough.com and check out pants, jackets, boots, etc. from First Gear, Vanson, Alpine, Joe Rocket. They have great prices and often have some smoking deals on last years models.

[VaSteve]

Originally posted by Kurt V
And once again I will say: SV650!!!!!!!!!

The list seems to start and stop there. I like BMW bikes. I think they're cool. What about the F650? Any thoughts on that?

[VaSteve]

Originally posted by nostatic
And if your'e used to countersteering a road bicycle in a mountain turn at 40mph, odds are you'll get up to speed pretty quickly on the motorized version.

Todd, could you pedal while countersteering, turning like that? I tried the other day on my cannondale but it was very awkward for me. Granted I wasn't going 40 either... No need to pedal then.