What size (cc) bike did you start out on?
 

So for the most part, we all preach "start small!" to new riders, and yet, many of us didn't do this ourselves.

So what size was your first STREET bike (knowing many people started out on dirtbikes)?
Was it an I4 or a Twin?
Did you have previous experience (i.e. with dirtbikes)?
If you started on something "bigger," do you think it hurt your development as a rider or do you wish you'd started smaller?

650 Evil Twin, I was fine with it.

i seriously started my street riding on a yamaha YSR50 (doesn't get much smaller than that). i'd be way too embarrassed for that today, but back when i was 17 i thought i was the shit, just because i had a bike. that was followed by 2-250s before the 636. all that and i was still scared as hell the day i took the 636 home.


(i also had the chrome special edition honda Z50 as a kid and a KDX 80 as well, so i have a dirtbike background)

984 v-twin.....

i probably could have started off with a 600 or 750, the Buell's low-end torque is what surprised me...Specially after coming off the MSF course where you ride an underpowered-souless-250.....

i had my buell for a little over 24 hours when i decided to get it out on the expressway here in Miami. Not a great idea, but i survived the expressway and managed to crash coming out of my office parking lot. I broke my ankle and had to shelve the bike for almost 3 months. I had a lot of time to think about my mistakes and also do some quality reading on riding.

Total Control and Proficient Motorcycling were 2 really good books with a lot of useful information that i have been able to apply to both the street and track.

I haven't yet read Total Control, but definitely agree on Proficient Motorcycling.

Started on a Honda Super 90 in 1965 at age 13. That was too big according to the law at that time. You were limited to 5bhp until you were 16, and the 90 had 9bhp!!! What a beast!

05 honda F4i

500 Ninja FTW!... unless you count the 50cc Yamaha Zinger when I was 4 or the 75cc XR and XL Honda's I had from 8-13...

78 Yamaha xs1100
now ride 06 SV650

Boulevard 800
Ninja zx10r
GSXR 750 currently

750cc I4, Probably could of handled a liter bike to start. I rode for years on dirt bikes before switching to street.

I started out on a 1988 Ninja 600R...it wasn't quite like todays 600's. :lol:

I wrecked it in 4 days. :zowned:

This is a tricky question for me to answer. First of all, the bike that I started on was not the bike that I owned as a beginner. I started on a Honda Hurricane. A dumbass Army buddy of mine who didn't know squat about motorcycles (neither did I) decided to go get a Hurricane because it was the coolest thing out there. We went and picked it up in his pickup truck, neither of us know how to ride a motorbike. We read the manual about the clutch and throttle and brake, etc. He climbed on, no helmet, T-shirt, jeans and tennis shoes (I was similarly attired) and roared down the parking lot with the bike careening out of control, skidded down the right side with the lucky bastard rolling in the grass. The whole right fairing was screwed up. THEN it was my turn to get on. I follow suit and fell on the left side. So the brand new bike was fucked.

Anyway, I bought a Kawi EX500 (aka Ninja 500 nowadays). Not because I learned my lesson but because that's all I could afford. MSF? No way, man. I was too macho for that shit. All I need was cruising around town for a bit with the boys on Saturday night, trying to act cool for the chicks. Bareheaded, James Dean-style black dress leather jackets, black Army dress gloves, some sort of cheap half boots and Levi's. The first time I ever rode in a twisty was to ride to Nashville on the backroad, I crashed at an easy 30-MPH turn. An easy low side into the side of the road that was covered with leaves. Walked away without a scratch with minor scraping on the bike's fairing. Didn't understand why and how I crashed either. Later on I realized that I didn't know shit from shinola because I never bothered to learn how to ride the correct way. I thought that leaning was how you turn the bike into the corner.

MSF, MSF, MSF, MSF, MSF. Enough said.

Started off on the slightly tamer 600cc bike that is in my avatar.

started on a ninja 250, no previous experience besides the MSF.

This was my first....bought as a basket case and put it together....ran poorly, siezed all the time, but got me started on motorcycles.
http://bikez.com/motorcycles/yamaha_yas_1_1970.php 15 HP!!!!!!!!!!!!

This was my second: ran like a scalded cat!!!
http://bikez.com/motorcycles/suzuki_gt_250_1973.php 31 HP!!!!!!!!!!!

Buell Blast. 500cc single cylinder. Hope to move up to a early 2000s 600 or 750 next year. I will get more in depth with this when I don't have to go to class in 5 min.

Ok so I am back. I am really glad that I started on my 500. It is really forgiving and really builds your confidence. In the twisties, it handles really well and you can lean it over like its nothing.

SV650S
Great bike, love it.

I started on a 1990 ninja 750, but it was so heavy and the carbs were so messed up that it was worse than a 250. It took me about a month to get the carbs running right, and after that I do believe all that power hindered me for awile.

Then new 1996 YZF600. Got 1100 miles out of my learning curve (first 2 wheeler ever!) before I did $3800 in damages. I was unhurt, fixed the bike, Insurance was totalled.

I say newbies start out on cheap bikes regardless of cc!

Brand new '04 R6.

spent a day on a borrowed TTR125
Did my MSF on a Rebel 250 - 2 days
rode about 10 miles on a FZR600 on the street and then got it race ready
my street bike was then a VFR800i and I started racing the FZR

But I'm older then the average "beginner" and probably not quite as smart (My MSF instructor told me I was crazy for wanting my race license so quick and told me it wasn't possible. I hate when people tell me something isn't possible)

SV650---
Vtwin baby!

350, 30+ year old cc's.

Spent a few weeks on a borrowed GSXR 600. At the time, someone I knew had 4 bikes and wanted me to get into riding so bad, he let me borrow a practically new bike (800 miles). After a few weeks I decided it wasn't the best idea to learn on a borrowed $9K bike, so I returned it. Thinking back it wasn't a good idea to start on a SS PERIOD. Took the MSF Class. Few months later I picked up a used 91 Honda F2. Rode that for a bit and ended up selling it...got an offer I couldn't refuse. Couple of months later I bought a brand new 05 GSXR 600.

Attached a pic of the F2 and the GSXR when I first got it. Damn I miss the way it looked with the stock plastics.

Before you all ask about the girl with the tig bits. She came for a car photoshoot, photog saw the bike and asked to snap some pics. I said sure! :drool:

First bike I ever rode was a 01 Honda F4i 600
The bike I really started on was my 92 Yamaha FZR 600

:beers:

and look at you now! you own some of the cooolest bikes ever!

love that honda! very clean looking!

My first was 850 cc's. 1980 Suzuki GS850. Probably had less power/weight ratio than the 08 Kawi 250, definitely nowhere near a modern 600.

still on my first bike (750cc)
i think i should have started smaller. :idk:

i was originally looking for a sv650, but i bought my current bike
only 'cause it was a great deal at the time.

1,000,000 CC's.




750 actually.

when i had my 01 blast, i would throw that thing around like it was nothing in comparison to my 9.....it was definitely fun

2007 Ninja 650R. 7,000 miles in my first season without a single drop. Gear advocate from the beginning and proud of it. I just feel naked moving faster than walking pace without my helmet, jacket, and gloves.

1. 600cc 60hp Yamaha SecaII(Technically 599cc)
2. Air Cooled Inline 4
3. I rode my friends SV650s once
4. I probably would have died if I started on something bigger because I don't have much sense at all

i started out on my dads 83 honda 500 shadow. rode it about a month and got me a 82 yamaha maxim 550. i rode the hell out of that thing....

Other.

400cc of raw power - Honda CB-1

my first "street bike" was a yamaha xt600.. it was what got me interested in giving up riding dirt bikes and riding street bikes only.. that and the lack of good places anymore to ride dirt bikes around here..

my ZZR600... wasn't the first bike I rode... but it's my first bike and I've learned more on it than I did on the 650 I borrowed from a friend for a couple months

That clearly doesn't apply to me. 1984 Honda VF500F, and because it was a tank it took my newb beatings really well. Those are V-twins and I had no previous experience at all. I'm extremely glad I didn't start out on something larger and actually wish I'd started out on a 250.

Like ebbs, I started out on my ZX6R. when i got it I was BLOWN away with the power and speed. I though there was no way I could handle anything more.... Then I put all my goodies on it, lol now I want a 1000. Things change quickly.

see although I feel that it's more than I need right now... I don't and haven't ever felt like it was TOO much for me to handle...

I still recommend that people start small because it's been my experience that I learn much quicker than the majority...

oooooooo... aren't we special :lol:

yes you are... fucker... hurry up or you'll miss the short bus


what I meant was I can't judge everyone's mentality... so better safe than sorry... I'd rather tell them to get a 250 and they be disappointed in it... than recommend a 600+ and they get hurt or worse...

I started out easy, my friend adviced me to start small so I bought a slightly used 2001 ninja 250. Road it for a year before moving up to a 05 GSXR 600.

I had never ridden anything on two wheels when I got that bike. Well, thats a lie. I rode a friends bike once when I was 15, before I even knew how to work a clutch with my hand. Rode it like 10 feet into the side of an RV, picked it up and moved it back to where it was, friend never knew any better :D

I learned how to work cluthces by hand later on, rode a lot of quads. Kicked the shit out of an 87 LT500R for about 4 years, that thing was a freakin beast. That fucker was on its last leg so i traded it to some douchebag for the 80 GS850, it had a big ol' windjammer fairing on it and shit, gay ass bars, ripped all that shit off and ordered some drag bars first thing. Spent like 7-8 years riding that before I finally could afford the SH in 04.

The guy that got the quad... I told him he had to fix the rear axle bearings before he even thought about riding it... that and it had a wasted clutch. Dumb ass fixed the clutch, didn't do shit with the rear axle bearings (they were loose as fuck, made the chain throw REAL easy, had already snapped the guard around the front sprocket, so I knew it was one more throw away from serious damage)... anyway, he fixed the clutch, fired it up, did 2 laps around his yard, threw the chain and it totally cracked the engine case, quad was done for. He got 10 minutes of riding enjoyment, I got 8 years. I think I made off better in that trade :D

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...ckle/Bike2.jpg

My current ride, 06 R6. I'm doing just fine.

my first bike was a kawasaki LTD 550

my current bike
06 CBR 600RR

My first bike was a 65' Yamaha 60cc. It was street legal but I wasn't by a few years. Rode it on the street when I could getaway with it, but mostly in the woods.

My first real street bike was a 250 Yamaha DS7 that I bought new in 72'. It was as much (maybe more) as I needed at the time and my only transportation for the next 11 months. I don't know how many times I crashed that poor thing, but I'm sure I would run out of fingers and toes before the last one was counted.

i, like fnfalman started out on a honda hurricane. no msf (yet) however i did read my way through nj's (excellent) state manual 2 or 3 times and it really saved my bacon in the two bad slappers i had. rode the 'cane from october to febuary and then bumped up to the 954. i never intended to jump that fast but i found a perfect example at a decent price and had to jump at it. went down on her ONCE and it had nothing to do with the power of the bike, too much rear brake started an oscillation and i didnt have the space to recover.

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b3...ousdave006.jpg

man i miss that bitch

So what size was your first STREET bike (knowing many people started out on dirtbikes)? 500cc (Buell Blast)
Was it an I4 or a Twin? Neither... single... thumper ftmfw! :rockwoot:
Did you have previous experience (i.e. with dirtbikes)? Nope.. MSF only.
If you started on something "bigger," do you think it hurt your development as a rider or do you wish you'd started smaller? Not really applicable.. but I did move up to a 600 within after only 4 months on a Blast. I'd like to think I'm a quick study, but really I'm just impatient. :lol: But it was a '93 F2, so it's not like it was just dripping with power or anything.. so I don't regret riding it at all, and it definitely didn't hurt my riding skill, I think. :idk: Crashing it, on the other hand, did. At least as far as self-confidence is concerned. :whistle:

the fucked up thing is that its easier to recover your confidence after each consecutive crash. i'm workin on my fifth get off right now, fingers crossed.

Makes sense.. though I'd really rather not crash again. :lol: *knocking on wood*

i've said that 4 times :wink:

i've learned most everything i know about bikes by fucking them up first though. so i cant say it was all a loss.

So what size was your first STREET bike (knowing many people started out on dirtbikes)? 700cc (86' Interceptor)

Was it an I4 or a Twin? Neither... v-four

Did you have previous experience (i.e. with dirtbikes)? Rode friends smaller bikes growing up, and took the MSF before I started riding.

If you started on something "bigger," do you think it hurt your development as a rider or do you wish you'd started smaller? Although a 700cc the bike produces about 80hp on a good day. So although the bike get's up and goes, it really isn't comparable at all to today's bikes. The biggest challenge with the bike is the weight.

I had about 5 years serious dirt riding before I purchased my first streetbike, a 1977 Kawasaki KZ750 in 1981. Had 1200 miles on it when I got it and 35K when I sold it two years later.

shit def sucks, but im finding that the calmer you stay the better chance you have of not crashing when you fuck up. ask sixxxer, i shoulda been hospitalised at least after the md run.

one other thing, the question about regreting starting bigger: the 'cane being twenty plus years when i got her was kinda shakey, great to learn the basics on but i never really felt that i could trust it if i pushed her any. the blade being lighter and far smoother was much more confidence inspiring :dthumb:

First street bike I owned myself completely was a 600cc I4. However, I rode my brother's Yamaha 150 allot when I was a teenager.

My first bike was a 1989 GSXR 1100, at the age of 18 my mom was not too happy. I survived though. :dthumb:

The Uly is my first street bike. All my street miles are on its odometer.

Flawed poll options: 600's

600's should be broken into several categeories. At the very least 600ss and 600.

The 'correct' beginner's bike is one that should match your own ability to know your limits, accept them, and stay within them. That said, 'modern' supersports bikes are too sophisticated - they mask basic handling errors, and are too subtle with feedback that you won't recognize as a warning until its too late. If I had started on my old Falco, I know I would have wound up in the hospital on more than one occasion... :idk:

my first few rides were on a POS nameless bike that was less than 100cc. After that, I rode on a 250 for a while and then did the majority of my learning on an old Honda Shadow (smallest one they made :lol:)

:iagree: me too.:rockwoot:

I started on the street with a Honda V65 Magna, 1100 V-4 :idk: yeah, I shoulda started smaller but I thought I knew how to ride.

In my defense, I started on a Honda Trail 50 when I was 5th or 6th grade, YZ 85, and 125 into my early teens, and was smart enough to not get a street bike while in my 20's. I knew better.

I was 32 when I bought the V65 and yeah, I was mature, but I still had a few close calls on it the first couple months. It was my favorite bike in the 80's when they came out and I found a sweet used one in 98 so I jumped at it. It was a handful at times and after 10 yrs on the street i would never recommend that anyone make a leap like that after not riding anything for so many years. i was smart enough to realize early on i needed to be real careful on that bike and luck played a small part too.

I ride a VTX 1800 now and it's for sale so I can get an FZ1 next :D

I would kill for a ysr

First ride was a Honda trail 90 then a ttr 125(goat first bike)
________
BMW R75 HISTORY
________
WEED

50cc, 80cc, 125cc, 270cc, 280cc, 650cc. Been riding for almost 30 years and still haven't made it past 650cc's.

I put a lot of miles on a Kawi 500R before I upgraded to the 600SS. Best decision I ever made.

V-Star 1100 Silverado. Great bike. Low center. Balanced. Why oh why did I ever sell that bike... :(

250 Honda Rebel. Only other experience was taking the MSF course. I am on the fence as to whether or not I wish I'd started on something bigger. I mean, I WANTED something bigger 2 weeks after buying the thing. Should I have? Probably not... As it was I kept it a year or so then bought the VFR. Worked out ok I suppose!

650 single (Suzuki Savage). Not much more git-up-and-go than a Honda Rebel. :) Rode that for 6000 miles or so before upgrading.

Suzuki Marauder 800, then a Honda Shadow 750, then a VTX 1300, and now an RC51. Relatively near future: something big, either Italian or a Japanese exceptional performer.

1988 Yamaha FZ600.

Started in the dirt @ 14..First street bike @ 17 was this yamaha 550


http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b3...0/scan0008.jpg

I started on a VTR 250