I am increasingly frustrated when reading discussions on forums in response to what's a good starter bike. Such as the one I saw the other day on where someone asked if a KLR 650 was a good choice for a beginner bike. In discussions like these I am amazed to read the responses of otherwise seemingly smart, experienced folks who chime in with advice on or the merits of the KLR and offer up other options, such as the V-Strom and the new, smaller BMW F650GS. I find myself increasingly USING ALL CAPS to respond that NOTHING over a 250cc bike, and preferably something smaller, is a beginner bike. Period.
Sure, there are plenty of very very lucky people out there who have successfully not hurt themselves on a 600cc+ bike while they're learning, but most people I know who have started with a bike of that size have bonked both it and themselves. A few of them look back and shake their head in amazement that they lived through such an ignorant phase. So hush you lucky, lucky people who have started there with no consequences and go buy a lottery ticket.
For one thing, it's just not fun. You can manhandle a small bike around when you make the inevitable mistakes, and get a feel for front and rear brake action, and sit and stand flat-footed. With a bigger bike you're just going to be more timid because you're putting yourself in more danger if you make a mistake. A friend of mine was just telling me he kept stomping on the rear brake of the 600cc sport bike he learned on while trying not to hit the fence at the end of the parking lot — he wasn't thinking about the front brake yet. Plus, the G-force was pulling him backwards causing him to open up the throttle even more. One of my brothers had the same experience when he hopped on my 650 Yamaha Maxim and roared down my parent's gravel driveway.
And guys – if you're trying to get a woman to ride, please don't suggest she start on the kind of bike you're riding so that she can "keep up." Just look at the number of forum and eBay posts selling used women's motorcycle gear to get an idea of how many women give it up after a short time. Me, I am in possession of a beautiful leather Hein Gericke jacket. It cost me 50 bucks, from a woman whose husband had her starting off on a Sportster. Dude, you should have bought her a Rebel.
Below are some links to places that provide really good suggestions for real beginner bikes. Then – when, not if – but after you've dropped it and fallen down and have learned to ride, move on up to a 400 or 500 or even a 650, carefully. It's not fun to learn to ride on a bike that's too big for you or that you're afraid to hurt, so you're not going to learn well on it. Then move on up to the specialty bike you want — adventure bike, cruiser, sport, whatever.
And, by the way, a 650 motorcycle might be an intermediate option in a manufacturer's line in a company that makes everything from 65cc dirt bikes to 2000cc cruisers, but that does not mean that it's only appropriate for intermediate riders. So one does not have to move up to a 1000, 1200, a 1400, a 1600, or a 2000cc motorcycle once one has crossed into the "advanced" stage of experience. With today's technology many 250cc bikes are freeway-ready machines, and people regularly take 650cc motorcycles on long, round-the-world trips. Heck, people take 250cc motorcycles on cross-continental journeys.
Here's some good advice from Chuck Hawks' Good First Motorcycles web page:
A beginning pilot would not expect to learn to fly
in an F-16 fighter or a wide body jetliner, so why do beginning
motorcyclists expect to learn to ride on a 600cc sport bike or a
heavyweight cruiser? Ideally, I would like to see beginning riders buy
a standard 125cc motorcycle for their first street bike. There is a
reason that so many Motorcycle Safety Foundation courses maintain their
aging fleets of 125cc Hondas for their entry level classes.
Here are just a few links to where you can find good advice on beginner bikes:
- Chuck Hawks' Good First Motorcycles
- Basem Wasef's of About.com First Motorcycles List
- Super Sarah Shilke's List of Bikes for Shorter Bikers
- Old Guy's Guide to Beginner Motorcycles
A lot of beginner bikes hold their value well, so you can resell it when you want to move up. Though I can't tell you how many people lament not holding on to their Rebel as a second bike.
Of course, don't forget the Motorcycle Safety Foundation course, and fun stuff like Motocross for Motorcycle Riders courses.
Learn safe and ride safe so that your and motorcycle misadventures have a better chance for safe and happy endings.
I’ll respectfully disagree with the advice given here. It might be true for someone who has no training to speak of, but then again I don’t believe those types should be on the road at all. My MSF class started us out with 500cc bikes which were far from overpowered and felt like pocket bikes to all of the students before the class was even done. I came straight out of MSF to an 865cc Triumph Bonneville and felt right at home. Before MSF I wouldn’t have dreamed of riding such a bike.
If I had spent the money on a 250cc Ninja I think I would have suffered buyer’s remorse in a matter of weeks.
The trouble is, the kind of starter bike that is perfect for a 5’1″ 100 lb woman is not going to be the same as a 6’2″ 325lb man. Those that made it through MSF with relative ease are going to be more comfortable on bigger bikes sooner than someone who went through MSF with great anxiety and just squeaked by the practical exam at the end. There is no “one size fits all” starter bike that really makes sense.
I started riding later in life – late forties. I did my motorcycle course on a 125cc two wheeler, but purchased a sidecar equipped Ural. I know this is a completely different option and not for everyone, but something to be considered for older, inexperienced riders. Of course taking into account that you must be aware that they ride very differently than a two wheeler. I always intended on eventually getting back on a two wheeler, but to be honest my Ural has been too much fun!
The bike has a 742cc engine, which of course with the weight of the sidecar makes for a bike that seems like it has much less power. Nonetheless, I spent a lot of time puttering around the backroads at 30mph before doing any serious highway riding or attempting to take a passenger anywhere. A lot of this comes down to common sense and knowing your limits as well as those of the bike. Knowing the power of the bike with the sidecar, I wouldn’t have wanted to drive it as a two wheeler until I had a lot of experience!
If anyone is interested, there is a humourous story about my Ural adventures at: http://loveubecause.com/2009/04/13/loveubecause-you-are-my-motorbike/
Enjoy!
A
Magnus, did you buy a lottery ticket?
You are either talented or lucky or both. Let’s not expect the same luck out of everyone else.
The only MSF course that uses 500cc bikes is Rider’s Edge, which has the highest student fatality rate in the nation.
Andrew, love the post! You’re right, sidecar bikes are a different animal. The low-powered 750cc Ural is great to practice on because you don’t have to think about balance and putting your feet down. Recommended though is a sidecar safety course, because they’re pretty easy to flip on right turns. Did you “fly the chair” yet?
I agree Carla. We just had a 16 yr old killed on a R1 with an expired learners permit, passing a car that made a left turn into him. The State Patrol said he was riding very fast. I think people forget that a fast bike can get you out of some situations, and into them as well. A liter bike passing can do 0-60 in 3 seconds or less. The car driver would not have time to react. Even big guys can ride 250cc without problems, it is the first bike, don’t make it the last.
My son and I became interested in bikes a couple of years ago, and bought a series of them that, looking back, did sort of ramp up in size little by little, starting with a mo-ped, then a Honda CB125. After the Ninja 250, by son bought a Triumph Bonneville, which sped him up somewhat, but I bought a Royal Enfield, which slowed me down. My point was that the Bonneville would have been a terrible starting bike, but now my son (and I) know enough to treat it with the respect it deserves while having a little fun.
Carla, I totally concur – some time back I wrote an article for my blog called “Start Slow or Go Ultimate,” which addressed this same question. Magnus is right about one thing – what’s right for a short woman is probably NOT what’s right for a big man. I encourage ALL women to “start small” and work their way up to bigger bikes. It’s what worked for me, and what worked best for 99 percent of the women I know who have come into this activity.
I’m a 300 pound 6’2″ guy and would never recommend starting anybody off with a 500cc bike, my first one, 40 years ago, was a 90cc Honda, then a 160, then a 350 and the 350 seemed like a rocket to me back then at about a hundred pounds lighter.
You have to grow up with a bike before you can go to a bigger bike.
doug what you said made me laugh. so i have to grow up for a bike, but what happens in case of bicycle.
You’re right, as usual, Carla.
My 1st bike was a used 250cc BSA scrambler, purchased while in the Army, and I had to have a friend ride it back to the barracks. I took it ‘down range’ at Ft. Benning and flopped it plenty until I felt confident enough to go out on the highway. It’s better to make your mistakes on a small motorcycle.
The “guy” logic you addressed also applies to guns. Men tend to buy way too much gun for their ladies, although it is less than they would buy for themselves, so in their minds it is just right for a woman.
Many manufacturers simply call their smallest models “entry level” because they want that market, but aren’t willing to produce a true entry level bike, because they don’t think it will sell.
I haven’t heard you expound much on scooters. Any opinions? The women riders I saw in Rome looked awesome!
Stacy, I am neither lucky nor talented. I’m just a schmuck that took his required spill in MSF (in “the box”) and has been doing fine since then. The Bonnie is a mild mannered bike, predictable, stable, well balanced. There’s no reason a person right out of MSF couldn’t get on that bike and be comfortable & safe.
Yes, I took the Riders Edge class. Nobody died. And please be honest instead of sensationalizing like “highest student fatality”. You make it sound like that happens often. While the statement may be factually true, it is misleading on a grand scale. I call shenanigans.