[joepla03]

and absolutely love it. I am a new rider, 45 years old, 5′ 8″, 170lbs and it fits me fine. Prior to purchasing the ER6N, I researched and sat on the Kawi Ninja 250R, Suzuki Gladius, Triumph Street Triple and the Ducati Monster 696. I chose the ER6N, primarily on price (got it for $5300 OTD clearance price), online reviews (which rate it about even with the Gladius and Monster), and looks (the Monster has the edge in this area but was too expensive for me and IMHO the Gladius is hideous).

Regarding it’s suitability for the new rider, from my experience it has been fantastic. I am glad I listened to my gut, rather than my friends who kept selling the Ninja 250. After passing the MSF course in June, I immediately went out and purchased the bike. Since then, I have put 1500 miles on it in about 2 months of riding. I commute just about every day on it and this is in Northern Virginia into the heart of Washington, DC and have ridden it on the interstate, back roads, city streets, in rain storms and blistering summer days and it’s been a gem.

I can’t really compare it to a lot of bikes, because I haven’t ridden a lot of other bikes, other than short rides on my friend’s Monster 1100 and another buddy’s GSX-R 750. The big difference, other than seating position, is that the throttle response on those bikes are just too aggressive for me, while the ER6N’s power delivery is very even and modulated. Throttle control was/is the biggest learning curve for me and I’m glad I didn’t chose the other extreme i.e. supersport bike.

Handling is everything that the professional reviews state–very stable, predictable and confidence inspiring when leaned over in a turn. It has the torque and power when you need it. 0-60MPH in 4-5 seconds is true. I haven’t ridden it past 90MPH but it doesn’t struggle at all at that speed. No issues with the brakes so far, but I haven’t had any emergency stops either.

The few negatives are–significant windblast after 70MPH; hard seat after an hour or so of riding; tach/speedo is difficult to read.

Again, I’m glad I chose this bike rather than the smaller 250, since I know now that I would have been bored with the smaller Ninja in no time. The ER6N provides the happy medium between the smaller bikes and the big supersports. Bottom line-this is a great beginner bike and if you can get a deal on one, grab it!

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