How to start biking (with Motors)

Dissociater

Hey all, I'm looking into buying my first motorbike hopefully sooner rather than later. But I really have NO idea how to start and no friends who bike. I've wanted to for years. I know the first step will be to get my M1 (in Ontario), but I really don't know where to look for bikes, or what I should be looking for for a good starter bike. I'm looking to learn on something that will get me to and from work: a cruising bike, not a speed or super bike.

Also, for someone who is not a mechanic, how hard is it to take care of a bike by yourself?

Any advice is very welcome and appreciated!

Thanks everyone.

schuss

http://www.ridertraining.org/ ?
Bikes are not complicated. Take the course first to see if you actually like being on a motorcycle, then go and look for bikes.

a5ehren

I don't own one, but everything I've ever read about it says to start with a small (a 250cc Japanese bike seems to be the common recommendation), used bike because you are going to drop it at some point. Also, make sure to budget for a good helmet and a good padded jacket.

GoldChaos

I'm not sure what the Canadian equivalent is, but before I got my license I took a basic motorcycle operator course in New York. Not only did it save me the hassle of having to take a road test (it's part of the course) but it teaches you some good basic techniques and is a good way to start getting comfortable. I had a friend who took the course and found out that he was terrified of riding a motorcycle.....so that sort of helps too.

As far as maintenance is concerned, the basic stuff is pretty easy though that depends on how mechanical you are and what your background is. I can tell you that I'm not mechanically inclined at all but the basic maintenance I've been able to handle without destroying the bike (which is admittedly a pretty low standard).

I've heard other people give the same advice that a5hren mentioned regarding starter bike size. While I understand some of the reasoning behind it, I don't agree with it. My personal opinion, based on my own experience, is that if you're going to be starting on a cruiser (as compared to a sport bike) you probably want something at least in the 600cc range. You want the bike to at least have enough power to do what you want it to and to be able to perform outside of basic training in a parking lot. Just for reference, my first motorcycle (of any variety) was a 600cc (or maybe 650cc, my memory is failing me) Honda Shadow. I never felt like the bike was too big or powerful for me, but was a good place to start riding.

a5ehren

Well, most people I read about are asking about sportbikes, hence the 250cc recommendation. I don't know anything about cruisers.

Madpoet

250cc sport or 600 cruiser is a good start. A used Rebel is a great start, since you can probably buy one now, put a few hundred miles on it between now and may/june, and sell it for as much or more as you paid. Mine struggled to keep up with traffic going uphills on freeways, but other than that it's great. I don't know how it would be with a passenger, but not something you do right away anyways.

Djeet

Well even in sport bikes 600cc covers a fair range of power. A beginner would be begging to get hurt if they bought a 120 hp, 50 lb/ft, supersport like a CBR, ZX-6R, or YZF-R6: those are basically detuned racing bikes. But there are sport bikes in that displacement that are much more forgiving to a beginner rider (like an SV650). You'd be lucky to get 20 HP and 15 lb/ft out of a Rebel 250, and while yes, being so underpowered means you're less likely to get yourself into trouble, it also means you'll quickly outgrow it if you decide to ride regularly (you'll be going flat out to ride on the highway).

Whatever you do, buy used for your 1st bike.

Dissociater

I'm planning on used. Thanks for the input everyone. I'm going to look into it more. Especially since the cost of insurance was a HUGE deterrence. Just as a test I sought a quote from TD and they want almost twice the value of the bike, per year, in insurance payments. So I'll have to shop around a bit I guess.

Madpoet

Hehe... another plus for the Rebel. Mine was $75 a year to insure. You do totally outgrow them, especially if you do freeway driving as was said, but they're incredibly cost effective.

Dissociater

Well I've found a few used Rebels online, and they look like exactly what I want, so thanks for that. However, even if I can buy one for between 2-3k, a few online insurance quotes are quoting me at between 1000-2000$ per year, which is absurd to me.

GoldChaos

I'm guessing that the insurance requirements are different in your neck of the woods as compared to New York, because I don't pay anywhere near that for motorcycle insurance for the year.

Esh

GoldChaos wrote: »

I'm guessing that the insurance requirements are different in your neck of the woods as compared to New York, because I don't pay anywhere near that for motorcycle insurance for the year.

Yeah, I'm quoted at around $575 a year for pretty decent coverage.

schuss

Here's the thing - don't buy a bike until you take the training. Some people just don't like it. Also - don't get a 250, they can barely get out of their own way. If you want to keep it cheap, get a slightly older 550. Also - don't buy any bike you have to finance, as you just want to have liability on it, since collision costs $$$$. Also - bikes with lots of plastics (read: sportbikes) have higher insurance due to any crash needing body replacement.

lessthanpi

We had something pretty similar a while back:
http://forums.penny-arcade.com/discussion/comment/22560261/

Dissociater

OK, thanks for the advice, everyone. This might just have to be something I put a pin in for another year or two. Maybe a present to myself when I get an articling position or something. But right now the cost of insurance is prohibitively expensive, and my family needs a car first before I go spending a bunch of cash on a bike (no matter how much I dream about it)

MushroomStick

Dissociater wrote: »

OK, thanks for the advice, everyone. This might just have to be something I put a pin in for another year or two. Maybe a present to myself when I get an articling position or something. But right now the cost of insurance is prohibitively expensive, and my family needs a car first before I go spending a bunch of cash on a bike (no matter how much I dream about it)

In the US, so maybe in Canadia too, you get a pretty significant break on insurance upon passing a safety course.