Your First Street Bike: What to choose?

What’s a good first street bike for city and occasional cruising?

I had a dirt bike growing up and I am 22 years old and am thinking about getting my first street bike. I would use it mostly for work, as I travel the city daily, but I would love to take a long ride with my dad (who has a Honda Shadow VTX) every now and then. Would you recommend a ‘Bullet Bike’ or a cruiser style motorcycle for me?
Thank you for your time! – Jordan

Dear Jordan,

It’s great that you are experienced with dirt bike riding, you’ve probably taken all the falls you need to know that you don’t want to fall on the street, and are a careful rider Here are a few suggestions to get you started on a bike that is #1, nimble enough to ride around the city and #2, powerful and comfortable enough to take on long cruises with your dad.

You’re right to keep it around 600 cc’s. There’s no reason to go heavier in the city and that size is just fine for freeway cruising.

There are actually more choices than just a classic or a cruiser: 
    1) A classic styled bike like the Enfield or the Triumph
    2) A 650’ish cruiser like your dad’s Honda
    3) A sport touring bike
    4) A dual-sport

If you like the size and classic styling of the Bullet, check out the Triumph Bonneville — it’s faster, more comfortable, and much more reliable. It’s the perfect size for the city, and does just fine on the freeway. You’ll probably like the community around the Triumph, too. Check out the Ace Cafe "Mods-n-Rockers," for example.

You might want to follow in your father’s footsteps though and get a
Honda Shadow or similar Japanese bike. There are a LOT of choices in this category, and lots of bargain used bikes. I had a Yamaha 650 Maxim for years, and used it like you will — for both city and cruising. Or check out the Kawi Vulcan 500, or the Moto Guzzi
Nevada 650, which is a cruiser styled Italian that I really like.

That said, I also like the Moto Guzzi Breva IE 750, which is a
sport-touring bike that’s got a lot of city street smarts. I didn’t think I’d like a "sport-touring" bike but I rode in for a month in Europe and fell in love. It took me
through Milano with the greatest of ease, over curbs and all, and it kept up with all the speeding Fiats on the
autostradas. I’m thinking that this may be my next bike for use in the San Francisco Bay Area and on long trips through North America.

The Suzuki 650 VStrom also comes to mind. It’s been called the best all-around bike ever made, and it’s got a huge fan base, which says a lot. I see plenty of them in San Francisco and also loaded up for long-distance touring. 

Also here in San Francisco I see an awful lot of Kawasaki KLR 650 dual sports. They’re definitely fearless curb jumpers and pothole hoppers, and they zip around the latte-sipping SUV commuters before they can change lanes without signaling. Plenty of people cruise freeways on them, and the 2008 model is said to be a better freeway ride than previous versions. As a former dirt-bike rider, you might really like the KLR, and you can grab a good used one for a few grand.

Which brings me to my best advice, which is to delay investment in a newer model bike just now. Start with a used bike — spend a few bucks and a some time to experience street riding, and figure out what you like and don’t like about whatever your "starter" bike turns out to be. Then sell it, and spend the bigger bucks on your dream machine.

Jason, I hope that helps start you in the right direction. Let me know what you end up with.

Carla