uchi

i hit 29 in september, ive had my fix of wreckless driving, had a 350 wheel horsepower built turbo cavalier, a 5 liter mustang, i own 2 race quads that i flog regularly. i honestly got this bike without knowing much about it, i figured as long as i took it easy and worked myself into it slowly id be fine and so far i am but im a quick learner and got a hang of riding this pretty quick. guess confidence is key as long as it isnt mixed with stupidity.

one thing i know for sure is that there are alot of people out there who should ride. half my riding school class failed but they lacked confidence on the bike, couldnt get through pylons or make it through a basic corner without getting over the lines. hell the one guy on the cbr 125 was doing some slow speed stuff using the clutch and rear brake and had that little motor screaming and slipped the clutch just a little too much and launched the bike through the parking lot, lol.

as long as your smart about it youre fine. one thing id say is that a young rider in my opinon shouldnt get one of these if they lack control. having ridden my buddys 2010 daytona 675 with exhaust and tune and another buddies 09 500 gixxer i can tell you they dont have any of the instant power the vtr does. im 270 and i find if i snap the throttle she lifts on me isntantly and jsut rolling into it in first and sometimes second she stand up on her own. the other 2 bikes dont do that at all. although that being said it could be a good and bad thing, the brakes are a little soft on the vtr where as on the daytona they come on aggressively enough to scare you and toss you if you arent ready for them.

i agree with tweety, some parents with too much money will just keep buying their kids bikes until they eventually get maimed. hell man some people never go down, some people go down doing stupid **** and others go down at no fault of their own. its the unfortunate reality of riding something as un protected as a motorcycle. hell ive had 3 car accidents where i was hit by a car because they werent paying attention.

uchi

agreed, sorry to thread jack this thread, lol. alot of people get the cbr 125, which really is a fine city commuter but like e bikes and scooters has no place on the highway. a 250 atleast has the ability to run on a hiway and is still a great starter bike. hell my buddy with the daytona started on one, got down the street, found a ditch, failed the riding course once, passed it a second time and has greatly improved, guys even done a racing school all in the one year. had he started on the daytona or soemthing bigger he'd have likely killed himself.

dakmatik

I agree. A buddy of mine started on one. What a fun little machine, and scary twitchy after he upgraded the suspension with a SV650 shock, and progressive fork springs.

VTRsurfer

I'd been riding since the mid '60s when I bought my first bike in 1981, a '78 Honda CX500 (v twin). I'd ridden a Honda 750F and a Kawi Z1 900cc many times (friend's bikes). But the CX 500 was the perfect first bike for me. Rode it 53,000 miles in 5 years, then got a 700 Nighthawk, then a BMW R100RS (1000cc), then the SuperHawk. This one's a keeper.

Crashrat

The states don't get a lot of learner bikes. The market taught Honda in the late 1980s / early 90s that Americans wouldn't buy smaller bikes. When you visit dealerships, you've got to notice the glut in 600-class machines and metric cruisers and the near total absence of anything to begin on.

And maybe it's the chicken and the egg thing... But over here, kids don't ride. I saw a report by the AMA (I think) a while ago that looked pretty bleak. And we've got to take notice of this, too, since if no one rides, companies will stop building bikes. This is (in a way) the Buell / HD problem of shortsightedness.

So begin on whatever you can. Just stay alive and stick with it -- if not for yourself, then for the rest of us!

CANADAVTR

Crashrat, I share your sentiments! I'm from England (until 7 years ago when we moved to Canada). I rode my first bike in 69...a crappy Villers two stroke but thought I was da man! Until I came off big time - in a field. Next bike was a BSA Starfire (piece of crap) then a Honda 250...wow, I though I had arrived! My buddy had a Rickman Metisse Bonneville (equivalent bike nowadays would be an MV Augusta)...I thought that bike was the dog's bollocks!
Got back in on a little Yamaha trail bike and then moved to Canada - surprised that over in North America even the learners ride big cubes. I have no opinion on this, as my worst accident was on a 200 cc crappy old two stroke..

Since in Canada I've had a Kawasaki Sherpa, Kawasaki 750 (boring), Buell Lightning (still have it and love it) and now the VTR (flippin great bike)...I remember them bringing these out late 90's to slap Ducati and Carl Fogarty....)

I don't think it's the cubes or the power that kills, more the basic roadcraft and avoiding risk...

Just my two cents worh and MHO

John

Moto Man

Yeah I think it's good to start small on the street. My 1st street bike, a Honda SL100, was smaller than my 125 dirt bike at the time. But my parents where involved in the moto industry and knew better than to let me jump on a 600 right off the bat.

Crashrat

Here in the good old USA, the #1 motorcycle fatality is a first-time male Baby Boomer rider on a metric cruiser. I'm not sure if it's the weight / poor performance of these bikes, the age (or lack of experience) of the rider, or some combination of the two, but it's sobering to think about.

And the thing is, Sportsters make OK first bikes, but HD guys think they're for girls. It's a stupid attitude for adults to have, especially grown-ups who can delude themselves into thinking an AC twin from the 1950s is the best quality product out there because it's expensive.

I like the SV650 as a first bike. The Ninja 250 probably makes for a better rider -- just like two-strokes did in the 70s and 80s because they teach you how to ride a curve -- but the 650 is very easy. We have the little GS here and (I think) the Savage 650 (single), but there's not much else, and most of these designs are DECADES old.

I started my wife on a Hondamatic (auto version of the Hawk 400), then gave her the GB500 and Hawk GT. If she get's back into riding, it will probably be either on a Bonnie or a SV650. A Versys / Wee Strom / F650 would be good if she was a tad taller.

The VTR is an easy bike to ride well, but to me it feels like an advanced tool for the job for a newer rider. But there again, I've gone to smaller bikes a few times because they're just more fun on mtn roads so it's probably about the kinds of roads you ride, too.

BTW: Didn't mean to hijack the thread,CANADAVTR. Sorry 'bout that.

CANADAVTR

Heck, no worries Crashrat...good input by an experienced biker makes for great forums!

bluevtr

Yea, it's a shame the mentality we have in the US. I have two friends that started riding on 1100 cruisers, never on a bike before. Funny thing is they both want to trade up to something bigger now so they can do long distance rides. Like 1100 cc's isn't enough to travel with? Where does the madness end? My first real touring bike was a 800, the wife and I rode that thing from FL to NC several summers on vacation.
Now I admit I ride a 1800 Wing on tours now, but not because I need 1800, it's just the best LD bike around. 600 mile days are no problem now. But I'd probably be the one customer if we got the mid-size sport touring bikes here. I'd love to see the VFR800 motor in a Honda Pacific Coast style body.

CANADAVTR

Yep, that Honda idea would make a nice bike. In Europe they had the Pan European, nice tourer style, I think it had a 1100 V4 liquid cooled engine? (not sure - maybe someone can correct me on that one).

Always fancied one but never made the leap....

NVDutchie

Canada , Uchi
Hopefully we can get together in the Spring .. my buddies and I hook up every Sunday ,
at Tims in Burlington the we head out and take the back roads to Niagara ...
you guys are more than welcome to join !
putting the Twin away this weekend (tear sniff,sniff) ..

mikstr

The bike you are referring to was sold here as the ST1100 (has since become the ST1300).

uchi

sounds good man, heres my email addy, turbocav@hotmail.com add me to msn and we'll get to talking and setup some rides

Scooberhawk

I started on a Hawk GT. Great bike. Same power band as the superchicken, just a lot more tame. Handled like a dream. I ended up putting an F2 front end on it and a shock from a.. .. 900RR maybe? It was years ago. Anyway, that was a super starter bike in stock form. I had it for like 4 years. In the year leading up to when I got the SH, I started wishing I hadn't done any "upgrades" at all. The handlebars and 110 front tire made the bike sooo easy to flick around.

Anyway, just wanted to push the NT650 Hawk GT as a great starter bike.

gixxerjohn

i started on a gsxr 7/11 had a wonderful nick name back then..... the widow maker...

now not saying it was the right thing, but w/e lol

i have not had a chance to ride this bike yet, but i will sometime soon, i have been on many twins in the past, always found them to be very complaint.......