With what bike did you start with?

Question

For the experienced and for the new one's did you all really start with a tiny bike or a bigger bike

is it really all that bad to learn with a slightly bigger bike

Answer 1

my first bike was a bultaco 175. It was a blast. But seriously. You may want to start out on a smaller one but guaranteed you will eventually get a bigger bike. Then again it all depends on wanting a road or dirt bike. I raced for over 20 years and would still race if I had a bike knowing I would probably break bones again. A street bike is a different story altogether. If you want to travel a lot, then a cruiser would be nice. Yamaha actually makes a 650 star motorcycle that looks and sounds like a big machine and can handle a lot of miles. Crotch rockets are very fast and I can tell you from experience you will get on it and try to do exit ramps like a gp racer and you will wipe it sooner or later and once again from experience. The road doesn,t give and road rash really doesn,t feel to good. Starting with a big bike may scare you if you have to deal with all the weight and horsepower just starting out. Get a midsize and ride it till you feel comfy, then step up.

Answer 2

1976 Yamaha 350RD ---> 1980 Yamaha 850 Midnight Special ---> 1985 KZ1000 ---> 1989 HD Electra Glide Classic and 2003 HD VROD (member of the selfish b*****d club...two HDs at the same time), currently on a 2008 Street Glide.

Always good to start out w/ something in the 500cc category, to build your experience and confidence. Take a Motorcycle Safety Course, you'll never regret it, plus you'll learn something, no matter how long you've been riding.

Answer 3

I started with a big bike

Answer 4

Started with a 1968 BSA 441 Shooting Star back in 1972. I have ridden just about every bike out there since then and have owned a couple of nice ones too. I am back to riding a BSA 441. Picked it up a few years ago.

Answer 5

depends how strong you are and if you not throttle happy..

i just bought a 2008 harley night rod special (1250 cc) a week ago i never ridden a motorcycle before nor have i ridden standard...

i've been taking her cruising around the neighborhood after reading alot and watching youtube videos to understand the shifting part

i avoid testing her potential right now

if you are patient go ahead the bike you want

Answer 6

I am a big guy (200-240 pounds depending on the month) in my second year of riding, and now on my fifth motorcycle. The first bike fresh out of the MSF course was an 80s Suzuki with a 450cc engine - I have essentially the same engine now on my '98 GS500E. I've also owned two 250cc bikes (a Rebel and a Ninja 250) and just bought another '80s 500 (an '85 Honda Shadow 500). Everyone tried to tell me that, as a bigger guy, I wouldn't be happy on a 250 or 500. They were wrong.

A new rider with any semblance of sanity is going to be scared street riding for the first 200 miles on even a 125. While I certainly would aim higher than that, there's plenty of trouble to be had on ANY bike for your first 10-20k miles. Why make the learning curve any harder on yourself, or increase your risk even further?

Newer cruisers tend to be unnecessarily bulky-- a V-Star 650 weighs 100-200 pounds more than the 80s standard or cruiser equivalent, and can be expected to perform about on par with an older 350-500 UJM like my old Suzukis and Hondas. This is plenty of power for any beginner for the first year or two. Upgrade any sooner than that and you are most likely fooling and/or cheating yourself.

And if you are looking at sport bikes, I really think you'd be crazy to go any bigger than 500ccs for your first ride. The learning curve is simply too severe with the larger bikes-- too little weight and too much power for a beginner to be trusted with for quite a while.

Keep in mind that bigger displacement means not only more power and more potential but a) greater heft (harder to learn to manuever, pull out of parking spaces, etc.) and b) usually much greater expense. You are GOING to put it down at least once in your first year... it's not a possibility, it's practically a certainty, I and many others can tell you from experience. Would you rather have that happen to a brand new $10k liter bike or a $2000 used Ninja 250? And I can guarantee with as much power as that liter bike has, a newb will be at much greater risk of doing dumb little things to put it down in the first place...

Answer 7

I started on a Honda SS50 moped styled to look like a motorbike, part of the generation of British riders who have happy memories of FS1Es, SS50s, Kreidlers etc. I am glad that I started out on smaller bikes, the need to carry speed everywhere really helps you appreciate the skills needed on corners. Yes, like everyone else I knew at the time, I came off more than once, nearly all due to my stupidity/innocence but never managed to seriously injure myself – I put that down entirely to not having a more powerful machine. The next step, again following the steps of hundreds of others, was a RD250LC – one accident ruled not to be my fault, fortunate not to be seriously injured. Since then an assortment of bikes – some a lot better than others, few more accidents, broken wrist (twice), scrapes and bruises – nothing too painful/permanent – my record is improving as I get more experience (still learning).

I accept that other riders might be capable of starting on a bigger machine, I doubt I would have been one and I am an average learner. I also appreciate the feeling of overtaking a bigger “better” bike because I am a better rider.

Answer 8

I started out the same as rotorhead.

With a Honda 350CB.  

It is just a great starter bike very light and easy to maneuver.

Answer 9

I learned on a drag strip on a Alcohol 250 Yamaha

Answer 10

I debating the same thing.  I've asked everyone that I work with that rides a bike and they all say basically the same thing.  There are basically two kinds of bike riders.  The kind that does NOT ride as much as they thought they would, and the type that rides more than they thought they would.  If you're the type that's not going to ride very much then whatever you buy is probably going to end up on Craigslist in a year or two so it won't really matter.  If you end up riding more than you thought you would you'll be happier with a bigger bike.  So in the first scenario it really doesn't matter.  In the second the bigger bike is better. The winner would have to be get a bigger bike, be careful, don't be stupid, and enjoy it.

Sure, it's easy to say just trade up if you outgrow one, but bikes like everything depreciate in value and so trading up could get costly.  

It's been recommended to me (because of my size and weight)(6'1'' and 210) that I should get an 1100 and be happy with it.  I don't guess most people would consider 1100 a big bike, but I don't see the need in going crazy with a 1800.

Answer 11

Started with a '78 Honda CB750K.

Smaller bikes might be OK for some, but I think this was a perfect bike for me to learn on. Not full size, but big enough to command my respect. Still wouldn't mind having one now.

I completely disagree with all of the "start on a 250" talk I read here. Don't really think they are easier to ride either.

Answer 12

Many moons ago I started with a Honda 350. I quickly outgrew it but due to a military move, just ended up selling it. A couple of years later, I bought a Suzuki 650 Savage. Cool bike. Sold it again when I had to make a move and needed the cash more than the bike. Just recently bought a Suzuki C50 Blvd. Didn't know if I wanted one that big but now that I have it, am glad I did. If I was just starting out, the C50 would be way too big. If I had this bike 20 years ago, I would have killed myself on it.

Answer 13

95 road king, then 99 fatboy

Answer 14

'68 Triumph 650 TR6

Answer 15

1994 Vulcan 500. It was comfortable, I felt I could throw the weight around and it was confidence building. Looking back I could have started on a bigger bike that I felt comfortable straddling.