Planning on getting a motorcycle. Advice needed.

[sibermage]

Hi,

I'm looking at purchasing a motorcycle. Something that is 600cc. (crotch rocket)

I have never ridden a motorcycle before but plan on taking the motorcycle safety/learning course at the local college. I believe this is a 3-day course and out of this, you can get your M2.

Question I have is, should I take the course first and then look for a bike, or should I get the bike and try driving it, then take the course?

Also, which insurance company offers good rates for motorcycle insurance?

Thanks.

[v1perfan]

Hi,

I'm looking at purchasing a motorcycle. Something that is 600cc. (crotch rocket)

I have never ridden a motorcycle before but plan on taking the motorcycle safety/learning course at the local college. I believe this is a 3-day course and out of this, you can get your M2.

Question I have is, should I take the course first and then look for a bike, or should I get the bike and try driving it, then take the course?

Also, which insurance company offers good rates for motorcycle insurance?

Thanks.

Take the course. You will learn a lot of valuable information from it. That way, you'll be able to make a more informed decision as to whether or not you really want to ride (I knew someone who spent 10 grand on a motorcycle, clothing, etc., took the motorcycle course and found out they really didn't like to ride a motorcycle).

Insurance-wise, the price you pay depends on your age. I can tell you right away if you're less than 25 and looking for a sport bike then YOU WILL PAY. When I had my crotch rocket for sale a young guy (21) got quotes of $8,000.00. Pretty much if the bike is blacklisted (and most, if not all, sport bikes are) the insurance company will assign some ridiculous value to deter you from signing up with them. Furthermore, if you do not have any driver training then it will not help your rates.

Even if you're over 25 the insurance companies' rates will not be in your favour because of lack of experience and bike selection.

Your best bet is to get a few years under your belt with a semi-sport motorcycle (ie: Suzuki Bandit, Yamaha F21, etc.) before going to a sport bike. A lot of people will get addicted to the sheer acceleration, speed and power of a sport bike, and it could lead to big trouble.

Insurance companies will look at your experience, your insurance history, your background and your proposed motorcycle and assign a value. I don't know your history or background, but you don't have any road experience and want to get a sport bike, so it's two strikes already.

If you're lucky, you might be able to get away with a Yamaha RZ-350 at a reasonable price insurance-wise. It's only 350CC, but it's a two-stroke, so it goes like stink. That would at least get you a sport bike without killing you in insurance.

If you're in the GTA, two places I have dealt with are Primmum Insurance and the Co-operators.

Good luck!

Brian.

[Fragle]

Check out www.gtamotorcycle.com any question you might possibly have is all there.

I would definately recommend taking the course first before scouting out bikes.

[Rogue_77]

If you've never ridden before, take the course first. They'll show you how to ride.

Also, how old are you? If your under 30, a crotch rocket might not be the ideal first bike as insurance, especially in the cc range your looking for, will be quite high.

[Mariano_Deals]

Well first off I would say for sure you take that course and if you still want to ride then go ahead and look for a bike. If you haven't ever riden a bike before then start off with something smaller than a 600cc maybe like a 250 or 400 cc.

And as for motorcycle insurance depending what bike you get and how old you and if you M2, you are looking at 75-100 a month just a rough guess!!

[sibermage]

I'm 26. Thanks for the advice. I was sorta leaning towards signing up for the course first but just needed the extra push.

Thanks for the help. :razz:

[FastFokker]

First bike, don't buy a crotch rocket.. get a sport tourer/cruiser which looks good but is fair on insurance. I believe there's something like a 75% surcharge on "sport bikes".. that hurts.

In either event, buy used and buy a bike you could accept riding after it's dumped and scratched up... as you very likely will dump it first season. Buying a bike with fancy fairings is going to cost A LOT to fix if you dump it.. not sure what your finances are like, but I don't want that situation again (been there).

Like others said, gtamotorcycle has good info.

[bug]

A crotch rocket is a poor choice for an inexperienced rider. Start with a slower touring bike and learn the neccessary skills before moving up to a rice rocket.
I started off on a 250cc dirt bike , then moved up to a 440cc cruiser, and finally a 650cc sport bike.
I remember all the horror stories people would tell me when I first started riding.
Some of them were horrific and sadly all were true.
If you want to drive fast, please do it on a race track where you will not endanger the lives of other motorists.

[Piro21]

Some good tips to live by as a first time rider:

Don't buy a motorcycle as your only mode of transportation.
Don't buy a motorcycle without some form of training (take the course first)
Don't buy a faired motorcycle as a starter bike.
Don't spend more than $3k on your first bike.
Don't buy a new GSXR just because you "raced dirtbikes" 10 years ago.
Don't buy a motorcycle if you can't afford proper gear.

Also, a 600cc crotch rocket is a lot more powerful than you'd imagine, start off with something that has a smaller engine, or a lower power/weight ratio like one of the cruisers recommended by the posters above.
This site is pretty informative : http://www.beginnerbikers.org/


When you get your license you should remember that death loves motorcyclists, and that it can come for you if you slip up for even a quarter of a second. Your equipment should be the best you can afford, but even then you're still riding naked compared to the oblivious guy in the car next to you, and if he slips up you're still just as dead. You'll hear it from friends, family, other riders, and the media, and it's all true. The people you may encounter that say they've done something without training or thinking and came out allright can say that because they're alive. For every one of them there are at least two others who weren't so lucky.

[bug]

When you drive a bike, you have to be be a lot more attention to what other motorists are doing around you. You have to drive defensively because most motorists don't see you. When I think of all the close calls I've had, I can count myself lucky for never being in a wreck. The worst was the time I was passing a semi, and he suddenly came into my lane. I had to get out of the way real quick or be run over. I guess I was in his blind spot and he just didn't see me.
At the time my bike was my main source of transportation, and I drove it daily from Mid March to Late November...in thunderstorms, fog and in -15c cold. Only the hardcore bikers drove in those conditions.
Your gear is the most important thing. Get a good full face helmet, leather jacket and a good pair of gloves. One thing I would never do was ride wearing shorts and a T-shirt

[FastFokker]

LoL.. exactly, when you're riding a bike, just pretend like everyone is out to get you.. it's only way to stay alert and be defensive. Of course sometimes the best defense is a good offense.

[dark169]

Get training.
Get Gear
Get what ever bike you want. Dont get new for the simple fact you will scratch it up and thats bad for the wallet. But if you want a 600 sport bike look at something in the late 90's. Be smart about it and respect the bike.

[arahaman]

I took the course at Sheridan last summer and it was really good as I didnt have any experience with motorcycles before i got there. The instructors are extremely helpful and just want to make sure you dont start developing any bad habits. They start you off slow by teaching you how to support the bike with your body (while standing beside it), walking your bike, general movement with the bike (with someone pushing from behind)....you dont really learn how to ride with the engine powering you until maybe halfway into the first day (its a 3 day program....one day during the week in class just giving out general information...the next two days saturday and sunday you are outside ALL DAY RIDING) When i went you got to choose between a dirt bike i believe they were 100-150cc and they had some cruisers 150cc max displacement as well. They had us switch between the types of bikes one day so we could see the difference in handling/braking/comfort.


Like a lot of people already stated, i wouldnt recommend getting a 600cc bike at first....even the little dirtbikes almost had me the first day when i forgot to let out the clutch and decided to let it out while the engine was revvin pretty damn high.....lets just say that was a pretty scary wheelie i pulled lol.... they sell real nice 250cc bikes as starter bikes (im planning on grabbing a 250cc myself next summer as a starter bike....

As for getting the bike...trying it out....then taking the course.....I wouldnt do it.


Good Luck

[grant]

crotch rockets are great for people who want to keep it in their living room or garage to impress the girls.

[dark169]

crotch rockets are great for people who want to keep it in their living room or garage to impress the girls.

or for people who want things like quality, power, performance and handleing :lol:

[grant]

or for people who want things like quality, power, performance and handleing :lol:

Anything japanese has quality, it has nothing to do with the style of bike.

Power & Handling of race replicas are wasted on street riders; the only benefit they get from it is bragging rights. Unless they have a death wish and ride in the maniacal manner necessary to reach the bike's capabilities.

I see the obituaries of people like that a few times a year.

[sonyminidiscman]

bragging rights are the reason y most guys buy a car...

[FastFokker]

bragging rights are the reason y most guys buy a car...I doubt it.. I think most people buy a car out of necessity, it's a matter of which car they purchase as to the bragging rights.

[Crotchety Old Man]

Get a really sweet life insurance policy for your loved ones after you're gone.

[eelfliw]

Take the course first.

Even if you learn nothing from the course, at least learn how to use the clutch & throttle to get going.

Those $14K crotch rockets can be very very expensive to repair even if it just falls over on the kickstand.

I know guys that bought a R6 as a starter bike. Can't wait to take the course (fully booked until fall) so he goes to the dealer to pick up the bike with a M1 license thinking he can ride it home. R6 has relatively no torque @ 1500RPM so you have to rev it and slip the clutch to get going. Of course, noob dude doesn't even know how to use a clutch (drove there in a Mercedes). Dealer hands the bike over to him, he hops on, revs the engine and pops the clutch. Bike jerks and he falls over. He now has a crushed finger and $3000 damage to the bike with only 1.1KM on the odometer. Of that, he only really rode 2 meters.

[Slimfast]

i was thinking about getting a bike but everyone keeps telling me that it's a death wish. Can anyone educate me a little better?

[FastFokker]

i was thinking about getting a bike but everyone keeps telling me that it's a death wish. Can anyone educate me a little better?Educate you about what?

Risks are high, but if you acknowledge the risks and take the proper precautions on the risks, you can minimize the risk significantly. The worst thing a rider affecting a rider is ignorance/cockiness.. they're the ones who wind up dead or with broken bodies and bikes.

Otherwise, accidents happen.. just as accidents happen with all modes of transportation.

[nopn]

does motorcycle have manual transmission?
if yes, where is the clutch ?

[FastFokker]

does motorcycle have manual transmission?
if yes, where is the clutch ?Yeah most have manual transmissions.. clutch handle is located on the handlerbars, on the left side.. the right side handle is the front brake (left and right while sitting on the bike).

Though that setup is most common, it's not the same on all bikes.

[bug]

Left hand - clutch
Right hand - front brakes
Left foot - shifter
Right foot - rear brakes

When I took my motorcycle course in '81, they had us drive up and down a wooden teeter totter device, jump over tires, etc.
The driving part of the test took place in the parking lot behind the license bureau. There was no actual street driving whatsoever.
As for motorcycles being death traps...that all depends on the driver.

[jimsmith]

make sure you sign an organ donor card ;)

[Piro21]

i was thinking about getting a bike but everyone keeps telling me that it's a death wish. Can anyone educate me a little better?


A bike is not a car. In a car you have insane levels of protection all around you. You can have low-speed collisions and not have a scratch on you, and because of this, a lot of new riders still have that subconscious feeling of protection and freedom to make minor mistakes at no real risk to themselves.

On a bike if you make a mistake and get thrown or if some car driver with an inflated sense of security slips up around you you stand a very high chance of dying or being seriously injured. You're afforded none of the protection of an enclosed cell and your very soft human body is exposed to tarmac and obstacles whipping by at speeds high enough to kill you instantly and (in the case of the highway) literally rip you apart if you were to hit something or fall. Equipment offers as much protection as it can, but in essence you're still naked on an overpowered bicycle.

Buy the best equipment you can, but don't ever RELY on it to protect you. Awareness, skill, and common sense are the only things that you should count on to protect you, and even those fail when you're thrown something unexpected.

[grant]

Riding a motorcycle is riskier than driving a car.

Driving a car is riskier than walking down the street.

Walking down the street is riskier than hiding at home under the covers.

[Crotchety Old Man]

Riding a motorcycle is riskier than driving a car.

Driving a car is riskier than walking down the street.

Walking down the street is riskier than hiding at home under the covers.
Most accidents occur at home (http://www.ouchystickers.com/facts2.htm).

[dark169]

Buy the best equipment you can, but don't ever RELY on it to protect you. Awareness, skill, and common sense are the only things that you should count on to protect you, and even those fail when you're thrown something unexpected.

Great post.

What ever kind of bike you ride, wear GEAR. Jeans dont count. get proper motorcycle gear. get a sturdy heavy leather jacket (if not full leathers) you gear is all thats left when after all your smarts, experiance, luck and abilty runs out.

Get training, and use your brain. They let any yahoo drive a car, but with a motorcycle if you dont use your brain you quickly learn or stop riding the bike thanks to a trip to the ER. And always ride to your abilties, if you ride with some buddies who are better then you dont be afraid to take it at your own pace, I've seen alot of people get into trouble attmepting to keep up with much better riders.

An instructor once told me: You start riding a bike with a bucket full of luck and an empty experaince bucket, the key is to fill the experiance bucket without draining the luck one.

Grab what you plan on wearing now run down your street as fast as you can and then dive face first like you would sliding into first. See how well tose jeans from the gap hold up. Now do that at 150. Trust me proper motocycle gear works. I crashed at highway speeds and although my bike was a right off I got up with nothing, helmet did its job, jacket and pants dis their job. If the same thing happend while wearing what you see somepeopel wear they'd be in the ER for the next week waiting for the skin graphs to heal up. (my helmet was done as it hit the pavement saving my noodle, my JR pants / jacket /gloves survived fine)

[st7860]

moral of the story is

a) if you're a good driver with a good record go to Ontario because good drivers get better discounts.

b) if you're a new driver with no/bad record, go to BC, because insurance costs the same regardless of age.

[RZV500R]

Buy what you want and just be careful with it. It doesn't make sense to buy a cheaper, non sportier bike with the assumption of crashing it.

That said.....rev it to 10 grand and dump the clutch! :-0

RZV500R