[briderdt]

I remember some quote in Hough’s book about the Hurt report. It stated that some 60%+ of the people who’d had crashes in the study had been taught to ride by a friend or family member. Leave it to the professionals. Please.

As for the rest — no, you’re not too short or weak. I remember seeing in one of the Ride Like a Pro videos, they showed a pretty small woman picking up a loaded Goldwing. Kinda takes away all the excuses for the guys… And as for which bike, just read up on the articles on this site.

[briderdt]

“It seems that everyone agrees that these are both great starter bikes that you won’t be board with them after a couple months.”

Who is “everyone”? Sure, I started out on a SV650s, and so far I’ve only set it down once (no damage). But if I were to do it over again, I’d probably start with something smaller. Of course, after 8 months of riding, I’m already dreaming of a Buell 1125R…

But really, you’re right in that you won’t be bored with them after a couple months. I’ve yet to explore anything close to the limits of this bike. I started out having been a bicycle rider and racer for some 15 years, so I had an advantage of already having “road radar” built in. I can’t imagine trying to develop that as well as trying to tame my bike at the same time. YMMV.

If you do get a SV650 (either the S or the naked), I’d suggest getting some rearset riser plates (check SVRacingParts on eBay) and mounting them upside down to give yourself a little more leg room. I’m 5’9″ and small change, and it made a big difference for me (but then again, I’m 45 with sports-abused knees).

[briderdt]

Getting the chain tension right, as well as making the semi-famous TPS adjustment, really smoothed out the throttle response on my bike.

I’m about ready now to swap the stock Dunlop D220 tires for some new sneakers (Shinko). At 6200 miles, there’s a lot of tread left, but after 4 years, I’m thinking they should be replaced anyway. Yours could well be at the end of their useful life anyway (I’ve heard of people getting as little as 6K miles out of the D220s). Tire pressure should be 33 in front, and 36 rear.

[briderdt]

Gloves. Gauntlet style.

As for covers, just a generic, no-name thing is best. Boots will be determined by comfort, mostly.

[briderdt]

Even in my car, I’ve never seen the horn as a good evasive manuever. I’d rather use the time and energy to actually save my skin.

[briderdt]

… is just going to watch it (with me aboard) disappear into the distance.

[briderdt]

…I crack the visor open a little at stops. In the winter I’ve also had to crack it open when moving as well.

[briderdt]

Clear title?
Leins?
Repairs?

Things is ads jump out at me as being a way to “hide” crash damage… “New fairings” and “New paint” being the most prevalent. It’s amazing to me how many of the bikes I see on CL will say that it was dropped in the driveway, and you’ll see these long scratches in the plastic. Uh huh, right… Of course, there are cases where the bike was only dropped the once (mine is a case in point, though it resulted in no damage at all — an easy set-down). But the other thing is that a “low-speed drop” was almost always done by the previous owner, so they can’t tell you anything about it. Again, right…

[briderdt]

I was out riding every day this weekend, with my shortest ride on Saturday. But Sunday’s ride was 100 miles in the late afternoon/evening. Temps in the low 70’s, and almost all of the riders I saw were wearing nothing more than T-shirts and jeans (all wore helmets — the only legal requirement). At least yesterday’s 100 miler saw more serious riders in gear (and near a military base).

[briderdt]

…you may be required to provide “full” coverage. I’ve got full on mine, with a $500 deductible, and it only added $85 a month (for my bike and my wife’s).

[briderdt]

Of the 3, the GS500 is going to me the most beginner friendly. You might wait until after the class to decide.

[briderdt]

…you might as well include the Hyosung 650’s as well. Similar V-twin 650’s.

[briderdt]

Bigger contact patch? I’m going to have to say no on that one. In fact, your contact patch increases as you lean over. And it’s not about stability, it’s about being able to carry more speed through a corner by effectively increasing the lean angle of the bike/rider combination (by lowering the center of mass relative to the corner center) beyond what you could otherwise do because you’d be dragging hard parts. Not something for public roads. Others (who are most likely well beyond the speed limit) may disagree.

[briderdt]

I don’t even know if it’s supposed to lock out to the right side using the key lock, so that may or may not be a maintenance issue with the one you’re looking at…

[briderdt]

You’ll most likely need to go with bar-end mirrors ($15 on eBay), and rig up some brackets for the headlight and turn signals. Check on the ninja250.org site for some ideas.

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