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I want to get a motorcycle, but I've never ridden before. what do I do? |
The bikes are confusing. There's the Kawaski en500, the 600cc, the ninja 250, what does the numbers mean? Is it the power of the bike? how do I know if I'll have enough balance to support the bike? what is a dot approved helmet? can i take classes on how to take care of my engine? The numbers refer to the size of the engine in cubic centimeters, or CC's. Those 500+cc bikes are typically a little too powerful AND too heavy for a beginner, IMHO, unless you have a basic understanding of dynamics, etc. A Kawasaki Ninja 250 is a good bike for a beginner if you want a sport bike, otherwise the Honda Nighthawk 250 and Honda Rebel 250 are good for beginners, but your skill can quickly outgrow them once you start riding. A Kawasaki GS 500, although on the limit of what would be a good beginner bike, will probably last you longer inasmuch as it will still be a good bike even after your skills grow. A good place to start would be to look up MSF and see if they have any courses near you. They're easy to do, take one weekend, and give you a good understanding of how to ride, the basic laws governing motorcycle riding, and basic safety. Even beteran riders come back to these courses to keep themselves fresh on safety knowledge. A certificate of completion from them is equivalent to a learning permit for a motorcycle in most states. Be cautious though, and check the regulations for your state concerning that. I think that you should take the riding course and see how you feel. That is what I did, and now I own a Buell Blast. The numbers are how big the engine is. 250cc bikes are fun to learn on, I took the course at Uke's Harley Davidson in Kenosha WI, and they teach you on the Buell Blast, that is a 500cc bike. I have lots of fun riding, and I think you will too. The number refers to the size of the engine usually. The Ninja 250 has a 250cc engine, the Kawasaki EN500 has a 500cc engine, and so forth. Now for some bikes like the ZX-7 that doesn't apply. Get a bike that fits your body size. If you're a woman with a small or petite build then a Ninja 250 or 500 would be fine unless you absolutely must have a Superbike. The Honda Rebel is a good starter bike. A DOT approved helmet is a helmet that has passed a standardized set of government tests to ensure it can protect your head in the event of a crash. It will have a DOT decal affixed to the helmet somewhere. You can take a riding course from the Motorcycle Safety Foundation that can help you get started also. One other thing to remember that is sport bikes have lots of expensive plastics to replace if you drop the bike a lot. It's much less expensive to start with a cruiser or 'naked' style bike when learning in case you do drop the bike. Take a riding course. They offer them almost everywhere. They will teach you to ride & sometimes you can get your license immedietly The number on a bike will represent the bike's horsepower/size of the engine. DOT = Department of Transportation and it represents safety requirement level for the helmet. You can take classes to learn to ride and motor mantainence, contact your local high school, community college, town or city hall. Depending where you live, the city or town may have local classes and community colleges always have continuing education classes and are fairly cheap. If you want a bike that is only a step up from a bicycle, but enough power to get you and some books around campus or to the store, an old Honda CT90 is an awesome machine! This bike is small, but solid and has very simple mechanical setups. A great bike to own and you can sell it later as a collectible. But start with the MSF course... it is free and you don't have to learn by dumping your own bike. I took the MSF course after I had my M lisence for 10 years and still learned things that later saved my life. If you want to start out on somthing small, light, great on gas and retro styling that would hold it's value- check ebay for a Honda CT-90 or cub 90. The numbers represent what is called displacement, measured in cubic centimeters. For instance a 500 cc bike with two cylinders would have two 250 cc cylinders. Let's forget about gasoline for the sake of simplicity. If a piston in one cylinder on such a bike moves from the bottom of its stroke to the top, it will push out 250 cc of air. I have no idea what the en in en500 means, but I imagine it was dreamed up by the advertising department. I don't think it's anything technical. |
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