Just Joined

The cbr600 is most definately not a beginner's bike. Stick to your guns for the ninja250.

As far as gear, leather, leather, and more leather from neck to toe. Perforated leather for hot weather riding with moisture wicking undersuit (high tech running clothes). As far as helmets go, get something that fits your noggin. Try on a variety of helmets. If you feel pain, hotspots, or dizzy after wearing a helmet for a period of time, don't hesitate to return it and try on other helmets.

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If there's anything more important than my ego
around, I want it caught and shot now...

I am going to look into Perforated leather because i do live here in miami FL and well ITS HOT! For helmet wise is there anything really you can recomend that is not to pocket heavy..for now?

There is a company that makes a knockoff HJC helmet; they have three letters for a name too and for the life of me I can't remember what they are!
I'll get back to you on that but they are cheaper than an HJC.
I have an armored mesh jacket with a zip out liner that I love for hot weather riding. It's Joe Rocket.

Try Hawk helmets, you can get those real cheap and they are DOT.

"I am the best there is at what I do, and what I do ain't nice."-Wolverine

Icon Alliance SSR if it fits your head is a nice cheap helmet. NewEnough.com has them for a very fair price.
The Gmax crusader is also really good for the money if it fits your head.
Key is to make sure hte helmet fits you (visit lots of motorcycle shops trying on every helmet you can).

A salesman putting a 20 year old on a CBR600? Wow... He must be doubly stupid. He isn't expecting your return business (unless he's a paramedic by night) AND he might as well be expecting you to forfit your bike loan because your insurance would probably be what the bike costs...

The ninja is a truely great bike.

Be Safe, and have fun!

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"The two seconds between 'Oh S**!' and the crash isn't a lot of practice time."

I guess joining this Thread was a good i dea its kinda like a mini- family here huh? .. yeah i told the sales man but he insisted that i was going to grow out of it in a month. I just want something to get me started ya know? kinda like waking up on sunday morning and taking it for a ride down the beach and stuff. I have lost a couple of friends on 600's because it was the first time ever own and rode a bike.

So yeah i apperciate the help guys i will post up pictures as soon as i get mine!

b.t.w. is that helmet brand called AFX? because the dealer told me not to go less then an Icon Helmet

Thanks

D-Havoc

The dealer is just trying to make money and what he/she says should be taken with a grain of salt. A DOT helmet is going to offer adequate protection. The Shoei helmets may be better but I can't justify $500 on a helmet. I got an HJC for $90 and it is both DOT and Snell. That Hawk company has cheap helmets but I can not vouch for their quality.

"I am the best there is at what I do, and what I do ain't nice."-Wolverine

Dealer's will always up sell. If you say you want a bike to start on, they'll show you the 600cc inline beginner death machine. If you're a big guy like me, they'll try to sell you a liter bike or a 900 lb 1300cc cruiser. It happened to me a few weeks ago. Keep your eye on that 250R.

Just a hint.....dealers train their salesmen to push the products that they make a higher profit margin on. For example, a Volkswagen dealer has to sell 4 new entry level cars like City Jettas in Canada to get the same profit as one new Rabbit. They'll show you the Rabbit first. I bet that dealer has a nice markup on ICON helmets! Stick to your guns and shop around, there's plenty of DOT/Snell approved helmets to choose from.

Ask the dealer if he can wheelie and stoppie the cbr, then you'll take it..anyways if you are not finding some ninjas well this must be for some reason. go explore and find as many gears as you can and try them on and see. go ebay to find some good stuffs and try searching for a company named mxsouthstreet something like that. dnt listen to ppl/dealers saying this or that..follow your instincts.luckluck and ride safe

BoOZe
Solomolo Rider ;D

Thanks alot for the head's-Up guys i really appreciate it. What i will do is just start buying my gear little by little until the bike comes back in stock. So i was wondering how was everyone's First ride experience? anything i should know... the do's , the dont's?

Find a quiet place to practice starting and stopping. Don't just head out onto the street and expect everything to be OK.

Relax Relax Relax!!!!! I was almost one of many victims of the death grip syndrome first start. You get on there... you get excited and you realize your not sure the sensitivity of the throttle.... you roll it a tad too much, maybe even have to make a dreaded left turn right off the bat , and then next thing you know your sitting there with the clutch held both brakes on and a near wide open throttle grumbling to yourself. Breathe, and relax. Stay away from inanimate objects....lol. Just a tip from what my first outing was like. Of course I decided to tackle my bike in my yard ( I live in the country) The way I saw it (and I have come to think I made the right decision) , If I learned to take corners in wet uneven ground, that is my yard, on street tires and a cruiser.... the road was gonna be simpler.
But above all ..... relax!!!

If you are still looking for a helmet, check out this site. It gives helmets crash ratings and is funded by the UK government. There is not a huge selection on there yet as it only started this year but it is good to know that more expensive helmets does not necessarily mean safer helmets.

Hey all its me again,

Well I called a couple dealers down here in Miami. Turns out that the new 09' should be hitting the streets sometime next month. They say thay might be raising the MSRP about $500 turning it into a $3999...and a big rumor is going around saying that they are dropping the signature green color..makes me curious if they do what would they replace it with??

Well just wanted to fill you guys in

Take care

D-Havoc

If there's a waiting list for 08' Ninjas do those people get transferred in line for an 09'? I will be interested in buying a new 08 Ninja 250 in the next few months, but how likely is that if the '09s are out. The $500 increase sucks!

I don't think there will be any new '08 Ninjas. They are all pretty much gone. If your dealer gets something it will likely be a 2009. I think the list will transfer as you are looking for a Ninja 250r and not specifically an '08 ninja.

"I am the best there is at what I do, and what I do ain't nice."-Wolverine

2008 250r orders that have not already been filled have been cancelled. The 2009s should be out relatively soon though (probably mid/end of September is when shipping will begin). Somebody posted a link to a document from a Kawasaki rep. o another site (I will try and find the link).

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The birds are calling my name, thought Caw.

MSRP on the '09 is $3999. Spoke to one dealer in Chicago that is expecting another shipment of '08's but his OTD price of $4799 is too rich for my blood.

Here is link to the pic of the document stating that there will not be any more 2008's shipped.

http://www.2fiddy.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/kawasaki-ninja-2009-doc...

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The birds are calling my name, thought Caw.