[madjak30]

He has a 250cc Yamaha dirt bike that he has a set of tires that he installed studs on…he takes it out on the lake with the guys on the quads and does loops around them…great on the ice, but on dry roads…he says not so good…kind of like riding on the painted part of the pavement in the rain…his analogy…

Here in Sylvan Lake, you are allowed to ride your off hiway vehicles to the lake and home…so that is what he does, mostly…I’m sure he makes a few detours to round up the “guys”…I don’t have winter toys, at least not motorized ones…cross country skis only…and for now, it will stay that way (still trying to upgrade the bike…)

Later.

[madjak30]

I think I will stay off the road once the snow flies…if the roads are dry and it is near freezing, I may go for a boot…but I don’t want to be riding in snowmobile gear…

We’ve had flurries, but the ground is still too warm for it to stick…so we may still get another month or so before the winter arrives…

Here’s keeping the fingers crossed…

Later.

[madjak30]

I am new to street bikes this year as well, so take my advice with a grain of salt…anyway, I treat rain the same way I treat riding on packed gravel or dirt…just be a little more smooth with the inputs…really that’s about it…just try not to have abrupt inputs…no late braking and smoother on the throttle, as for cornering I am still a little timid when wet, but I think that is an experience thing.

Anyway, glad to hear you weren’t really hurt…getting away with a bruise is pretty good…

I guess this thread has wandered a little, but really it is the same…just get back on and keep trying…

Practice, practice, practice…and if you are still not sure…practice some more.

Later.

[madjak30]

But the other two will be similar…the Star 1100 is an older design that will have similar power to the Vulcan 900, but the VTX1800 can be quite snatchy (real word?)…anyway, it can be quite touchy when transitioning from off throttle to on…the VTX1300 is a more friendly bike, and seeing that you were on a Ninja 650R you should have decent throttle control and have a good handle on the clutch…I test rode a cruiser this year and was surprised at how different you ride the bike…the sport bike seems to be always wanting you to push it and go faster, the cruiser makes you want to sit back and relax…enjoy the ride more than the adrenaline rush of the sport bike…

Just use caution since you will be learning a new type of bike, but I would think it would be more dangerous the otherway around…from cruiser to sport…the throttle respose and the braking on a sport bike are more immediate than the cruiser…you’ll figure it out…talk to your dealer and see if you can take a bike out for a test ride…or if you just want to ride a cruiser to see if you like it, check out the Harley dealers…lots of them rent the bikes out by the day…then you could see what the difference is in the riding style.

Later.

[madjak30]

They have to order the cable in from Toronto, so I have to wait a week…funny how it takes a week from Toronto, but I can have stuff shipped from Arizona in two days at work???…anyway, I also bought a cable lube tool and some cable lube…I plan on lubing all cables on the bike…I don’t know if they have ever been lubed (I know I never did)…also need to adjust the chain before I ride again…over the winter I will be getting a new rear tire and doing an overhaul on the bike…not diggin’ in to the engine, but clean and lubricate everything so that it is fresh in the spring…

I think I will do another season on the GS500 since I can’t decide what type of bike I want (also because I need a new truck…only so much money), so I will hone my skills for another season…then decide if I want a cruiser or an adventure/touring bike…

Later.

[madjak30]

I thought this was a good one and I should share it…tie a string to the end of the cable before you pull it out…pull the string in when pulling out the old one, then tie the new one to the string (okay, tie the string to the new one) and pull in back in with the string…should save you some tight spot issues if you have any…I’ll let you know how it goes…

As for the snowtrax conversion, I think that is better suited to a dirtbike than a 420lbs streetbike…I think maybe crosscountry skiing might be the better choice for me…I need some exercise in a bad way, and I think my dog would really enjoy it (once I figure out how attach the skiis to his feet…)…can’t hurt the kids any either.

Oh, and the forcast has changed…flurries tonight…oh well, more time to tinker with the bike…

Later.

[madjak30]

Yeah, I went for a ride today to my buddies place about 100kms (60ish miles) and the only part that got cold were my fingers…definitely have to invest in better gloves if I am going to ride in the fall…

I went to leave his place, but before I could get out of town the clutch cable broke at the lever…that sucked, so my bike is sitting at his place and I had to get him to give me a ride home…I’ll take my truck down tomorrow and retreive the bike…changing the cable shouldn’t be too hard…I hope.

Later.

[madjak30]

The Suzuki/Honda dealer in town here lets you take bikes for a test ride, provided they have a demo model…I’ve test rode a couple of bikes, but there are a couple that I want to test, but they don’t have a demo…I just had to sign a waiver “you break it, you buy it” basically…just don’t break it…lol

I just had to set it up with the salesman ahead of time and show up with my riding gear (obviously you need to have your bike license)…

Talk to your salesman and see if your dealer has some demo’s…otherwise you will probably have to wait for the manufacturers to put on the demo days in early spring…

Later.

[madjak30]

I think the point that Trials was trying to get across was that if dirt riding is available to you, that is the best place to be learning the clutch/throttle/brake relationships…dirt is more forgiving, and you are usually on a smaller bike…but if it is not available to you, start on a smaller/lighter bike…I don’t think he was trying to be all high and mighty…

Eon even made an analogy that given the chance, I think most people would have taken when they were a young teen…learn to drive in a cart, then progress to a track to learn the skills of high speed…well, I would have jumped at than opportunity…but like eon said, most don’t have that option which is where driving school should be the next logical step…most of us learned from dear old dad, and trial and error…I’m pretty sure that I would have been a more aware/better driver had I taken driver training…

I think for the most part all of us in here are saying the same thing (with slight variation)…get the training, start with the smallest bike practicable and don’t rush the learning…stay in your comfort zone and practice…

Just remember that we are all trying to contribute constructively here…sometimes we get a little excited and passionate with our advise, but it is coming from a good place…all of our situations are different, but we are all trying to give the best advice…which will come from all different directions…this way we can get advice for all the newbies that also come from different back grounds and surroundings…

Let’s just play nice…everyones advice will have someone that can relate to it…

Later.

[madjak30]

I noticed that you like the bike for it’s comfort and size…well the GSX650F has an almost identicle riding position to the GS500F, except it has an extra 40Hp…still pretty good on fuel and fuel injected…they have also been around for a couple of years, so you could pick one up used…save a few bucks…

I would ride you bike down to the Suzuki dealer and go in…sit on one right after getting off your bike, and it will be very familiar…even the seat looks the same. The four cylinder bikes are much smoother, and this one actually has torque to putt around town…and better gearing…

Check this out…

[madjak30]

Kawasaki Canada states the curb mass of the 400R is 203kg…used a converter this time…447lbs wet weight…Suzuki Canada lists the curb weight of the GS500F as 439lbs…so only 8 pounds more and less power by a couple…should still fit in the “great beginner bike” category…the 250R is listed at 170kg curb mass…375lbs wet weight…that is a bigger amount, but it is down 25% in Hp to the 400 and only 16% weight gain…

Later.

[madjak30]

If you have to pay $5000 in maintenance, you have a lemon…big time…in the 8000kms that I put on the bike this summer, there was an oil change (3L 10w40 oil, filter, and o-ring…all together…about $22), the bike needs a new rear tire $95-$215 depending on brand and where you buy plus install (the tire was half or more worn when I bought it), the broken turn signal lens $18…and don’t forget the fuel, I averaged 4.8L/100kms, so that is 384L @ $0.919/L…$352.90 to go 8000kms…pretty cheap transportation (and don’t forget fun!!)…oh yeah, you will also need a can of chain lube to lube the chain every 1000kms or so…approx $8…it would probably be a good idea to get some cable lube and a tool for injecting it…I haven’t bought that yet…so not sure on the price, but I think you can get the tool online for $20ish and the lube is probably close to the same price as the chain lube…

All of the maintenance listed above was parts only, I provided the labour…the price will go way up if you take it to a shop @ $80-$100 per hour, it will add up fast…also, these are Canadian prices…we seem to pay more for everything…good thing we are all rich…lol

This was all on my naked GS500e, if it was a GS500f…I could have been replacing more parts than the signal lens…so be careful of which bike you choose as your first ride…also check into how much insurance will cost you a year…I’ve been driving for 24yrs and have a clean driving record, so my insurance is cheap…if you are under 25 and have some issues on you driving record, well you may be in for a bit of a surprise…in Canada there is a company called Jevco that specializes in bike insurance, I would get your broker to check around for you.

Hope this helps.

Later.

[madjak30]

I’ve done it twice now…both times it was my own fault…once on dirt becuase I thought I could throw my street bike around like a dirt bike and pull a 180…umm, no…

The next ( and hopefully the last) time I dropped my bike was in my driveway…I had it on the center stand and was going to move it to the garage, so I grabbed the handle bar and the passenger grab rail…pushed it forward to get it off the center stand, and it was at that moment that I realized that maybe I should be on the low side of the driveway…the bike tipped away from me, and over it went…broke my signal lens, that sucked…

Both times I dropped it, I remember thinking the bike was a lot heavier than I was expecting…pretty sure there was some grunting involved…and I like to think of myself as a big strong guy…???

I don’t know if this really helps, but don’t feel bad about dropping your bike…most people do it once…but apparently I’m special…I’ve done it twice…lol

It’s like wiping out on your bicycle when you were a kid, just pick it up and try again…if you give up, you’ll never learn how…

Later.

[madjak30]

You guys are all harping on the same weight of the 650R and less power…it weighs 440lbs, has 43Hp and is fuel injected…what does a GS500F weigh…um..430lbs and has 45Hp, but is carb’d and is kinda cold blooded…everyone likes the fuel economy of the GS500 and the Ninja 500R…I would think the 400R would be better being smaller displacement and fuel injected, not to mention the lower emissions associated with that…if that bike was available when I was looking, I probably would have gotten it instead…for the fuel injection alone…

I would have been nice to be lighter, but lighter is more expensive…who would buy a 400 if it cost more than the 650?

Get over it…

[madjak30]

The GS500 was the bike for me in my situation. If you are riding primarily in the city on surface streets, a 250cc bike will be more than enough…they are quite a blast to ride up to 85kph for bigger guys! But I live in a bedroom community that is 25kms down the hiway to get to work, so the smaller bikes would be not as comfortable on the hiway with the morning commuters.

Again, it was the right bike for me in my situation. My weight, my riding needs and my experience/comfort level (dirt bikes when I was a kid)…just so we don’t get caught up in the “500cc isn’t a starting point” debate.

Later.

[Author]

Posts