[mpfef]

I made it to a dealer – and was able to sit on a Buell Blast – it felt pretty comfortable, but of course the guys at the dealer said it was a ‘girls bike’ and that I wouldn’t be happy with something that small and tried to steer me towards some 900cc bikes instead. Now, I’m only about 5′ 11″ and weigh about 170 lbs – I was wondering if anyone close to my size has any experience on a Blast – and what it’s like with respect to comfort.

I’m looking for something to commute on and just to have fun during good weather. I don’t need something for long interstate runs or anything like that, but I don’t want to be cramped up after 30 minutes on the bike either.

I’m also considering a Ninja 250, I started out looking mostly at cruisers, but the more bikes I sit on and look at the more I seem to be moving away from them.

–Matt

[hawkeye206649]

Wow I would stay away from that dealer if they are trying to convince you that you should start on a 900. I have an older Ninja 250R that I use for mainly commuting around town and I find it comfortable.

It has plenty of power to cruise around town with or to take rides on the freeway. I’m about 5′ 8″ and 270 pounds and It does a good job moving me around. If you think it will be too small you can take a look at a Ninja 500R or Suzuki GS500

[bigguybbr]

Yeah i would stay away from the Harley dealership for first bikes. The blast is a good beginner bike, but I feel there are a whole lot of better starter bikes, that are also a whole lot more fun. Also it’s reeeaaalllyyyy smalll. I can’t ride one for the life of me.

[mpfef]

The funny thing was – I talked to this older guy who was manning the desk, told him I’ve never ridden before, he gave me this long diatribe about not starting on anything over 500cc, then he handed me off to a salesman who showed me the Vulcan 500 for about 30 seconds, then immediately started showing me all these 900cc bikes. No mention of the Ninja 250 (they also carry Kawasaki), and after the response I got from the guy when I asked about the Blast – I decided it was time to head elsewhere.

I’m going to look for another Kawasaki dealer in the area and visit it next time I have time to go look around.

–Matt

[LanceD]

I went in to my local Harley dealer when I was looking, and had a similar experience (but worse). I went in asking about a Blast. He said they don’t even carry them. Rolled his eyes and said he could “make some calls to other dealers” (well hell, I could do that too…). So, just out of curiosity, I asked about the xb9sx and he said they didn’t carry those either because they were “just a smaller version of the xb12” which he thought would be a better fit for me… Then somehow, steered me out of the Buell side of the showroom entirely and tried to get me to drive out the door with a decked-out Nightster. So, in short, he could have sold me a $5k bike… tried to steer me to a $12k bike, and sold…. nothing. When will dealers learn that the hard-sell doesn’t work like it used to???

[Clay Dowling]

It works perfectly with people who are buying the bike for image reasons rather than riding reasons. They’re insecure about their personal image, and so they need a bike that makes them feel like a man. Then they buy all the leather and studs to improve their chances of landing one.

Definitely stay away from salesmen who use that approach if this bike is going to be anything but an ego booster. A good salesman is going to let the bike mostly sell itself. All they’re going to do is make sure you’re getting to really see the cool aspects of the bike. If they lead with a suggestion rather than a question, walk away.

I paid for my college as a soft-sell salesman for wooden toys. A customer came into my booth, I didn’t show them what I thought was the coolest toy. I asked them about the person who was getting the toy. Because the dragon pull toy/crayon holder is really awesome, but probably isn’t the right toy for the three year old.

[wbsprudels]

To answer your question, “anyone close to my size has any experience on a Blast – and what it’s like with respect to comfort,” I stand 6’1″ and 200 lbs. I have 3700 miles on my Blast and have no trouble with comfort–I have the standard seat, not the low seat. The bike is perfect for my 20-minute commute and extremely fun to ride around on during the weekends. I have ridden it on the interstates and highways, but its lack of weight makes it not fun to fight the winds at interstate speeds. It is extremely fun to ride on the twisty roads where I live.

[mpfef]

Thanks for the info about the size. It seemed pretty good just sitting on it, but that’s by no means a good indication of how it’ll be after an hour of riding.

I like it so much, I just may take my MSF course at a Harley dealer, through the ‘Rider’s Edge’ program so I get to ride one for a few days and see how it feels.

–Matt

[cgw]

I just went from casually looking to seriously looking (Craigs List mostly). All of a sudden it seems the bikes I am looking for are scarce. I may have to consider a Blast. My main problem is that the seat seems low. Plus that they are relatively common on Craigs list seems to not be a good sign.

[bigguybbr]

The blast is just an entry level bike, so as riders progress (or think they have), they move up to bigger and better and sell off their entry level bike.

[wbsprudels]

This is why you could have found my Blast on Craigslist. It was my entry bike and I had already bought a Suzuki Boulevard.

[A]

I’m 5′ 10″, about 160lb. with my riding gear on.

I owned a Buell Blast for little over 4 months, put approx. 2000 mi. on it.

The single cylinder is rather viby at highway speed, wind protection is rather poor.

Riding position could be a little cramped for someone with long legs, I have 34″ inseam, it starts to get uncomfortable about 45 minutes in.

The seat is narrow at the nose/front, and tilted slightly forward, so it is difficult to sit near teh rear portion of the seat where more/wider padding are located. I felt like I was sliding forward everytime I brake.

The Blast was inexpensive, used ones are pretty easy to find on Craigslist. I wouldn’t buy a brand new one from dealer for sure.

[Author]

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