if your 6'3'' 210 pounds you better get some CC's. Its all about throttle control.
You need to figure out what type of bike first, since sport bikes are out then decide on cruiser or motard.
MSF is smart, glad you are going that route. They will make learning to ride easier and you will be better prepared when you do hit the road.
Gear is good as well. I always have gear on no matter the time of year. The only thing I dont wear religiously is boots because I ride into work and wear tennis shoes at work. Other than that I use a Aria Helmet, Alpine Star gloves (gauntlet and shorties for summer) and I have 2 jackets (Shift insulated for winter and Joe ROcket ventilated for summer).
Figure $300 or so for helmet, $75-100 for nice pair of gloves. $300 or so for a nice jacket, double it if you want one for winter and summer and $200 or so for some nice riding boots.
Sounds like you are on a good path, you should be fine.
MSF is smart, glad you are going that route. They will make learning to ride easier and you will be better prepared when you do hit the road.
Gear is good as well. I always have gear on no matter the time of year. The only thing I dont wear religiously is boots because I ride into work and wear tennis shoes at work. Other than that I use a Aria Helmet, Alpine Star gloves (gauntlet and shorties for summer) and I have 2 jackets (Shift insulated for winter and Joe ROcket ventilated for summer).
Figure $300 or so for helmet, $75-100 for nice pair of gloves. $300 or so for a nice jacket, double it if you want one for winter and summer and $200 or so for some nice riding boots.
Sounds like you are on a good path, you should be fine.
With your size I would want at least a 600cc class bike, let your discipline control the power if its too much, you can even slacken the throttle cable to keep it going slower if you wanted. Sometimes its better to have a bigger more powerful bike to get out of the way of the idiots on the road and then have the reserve for when you are ready for it.
You do have your "M" motorcycle endorsement on your license, right?
You do have your "M" motorcycle endorsement on your license, right?
I couldn't disagree more..
Currently in the garage I have a KTM 990 Adventure and a WR250R.. Guess which saw the most miles both on and offroad last year.
Guess which one is about to be sold
The WR250R's put out a whopping 23ish HP, but will run my big ass (250+) down the highway ALL DAY at 75+ MPH. Like BP referred to earlier, I rode it last May from Tulsa to New Mexico all the way on dirt, completely loaded to camp for a 5 night trip, hauling extra fuel etc. in a 1500 mile round trip I never wished I had more displacement.
We also took off one morning and road a day across AR via all the twisty roads to start our return route via the AR section of the TAT, I've done the same on my 990.. the overall trip was more fun on the little bike.
Sure having crazy amounts of power at the twist of the wrist is great, but at some point in your riding life it stops meaning as much to you.
The older I get, the less displacement I need..
Oh yeah Claric... be careful about selling that STi you might just end up regretting it.... I did :-(
Learning to ride well is inhibited by power, learn on a small slow bike you'll learn things like maintaining speed through corners which requires proper riding technique, you won't be hampered by worrying about the dire consequences of ham fisting a throttle at the wrong time on a more forgiving platform.
Most of the fastest riders on the world started out on small displacement bikes and learned how to really ride. As much as I root for Nicky Hayden his one MotoGP championship was a fluke, he's a point and shoot rider that never had to really learn how to drive the bike and it shows now that the displacement and power output of the GP bikes has been reduced.
Take it for what it's worth.
Most of the fastest riders on the world started out on small displacement bikes and learned how to really ride. As much as I root for Nicky Hayden his one MotoGP championship was a fluke, he's a point and shoot rider that never had to really learn how to drive the bike and it shows now that the displacement and power output of the GP bikes has been reduced.
Take it for what it's worth.
I couldn't disagree more..
Currently in the garage I have a KTM 990 Adventure and a WR250R.. Guess which saw the most miles both on and offroad last year.
Guess which one is about to be sold
The WR250R's put out a whopping 23ish HP, but will run my big ass (250+) down the highway ALL DAY at 75+ MPH. Like BP referred to earlier, I rode it last May from Tulsa to New Mexico all the way on dirt, completely loaded to camp for a 5 night trip, hauling extra fuel etc. in a 1500 mile round trip I never wished I had more displacement.
We also took off one morning and road a day across AR via all the twisty roads to start our return route via the AR section of the TAT, I've done the same on my 990.. the overall trip was more fun on the little bike.
Sure having crazy amounts of power at the twist of the wrist is great, but at some point in your riding life it stops meaning as much to you.
The older I get, the less displacement I need..
Oh yeah Claric... be careful about selling that STi you might just end up regretting it.... I did :-(
Pics of the 990 Please................I may just be young and dumb but I love the HP
Couldn't agree more with Garand and bettingpython.
Besides the fact that you are a new rider, didn't you say you might want to take it on the trails? A forgiving throttle is a lot easier (especially in the woods) then a super crisp, snappy one. I had a KLX300R, and a KLX650R at the same time. I was not a good enough rider to take the big one in the woods (old Draper trails, not the weenie ones they have now). It was great in the open, but too touchy in the tight trails with big roots on a drop, in a curve. I could ride the 300 anywhere. It was very grunty, but forgiving.
When you find that you are riding the little one WFO all the time, then you might be ready to move up.
When I worked at HDW, at least once every month or two, a new bike customer would dump it in the parking lot, or street, or a car. Almost all of them had ridden a dirt bike once or twice, ten or more years ago. Big egos = big medical bills. Baby steps.
Sweet WR, Garand.
Besides the fact that you are a new rider, didn't you say you might want to take it on the trails? A forgiving throttle is a lot easier (especially in the woods) then a super crisp, snappy one. I had a KLX300R, and a KLX650R at the same time. I was not a good enough rider to take the big one in the woods (old Draper trails, not the weenie ones they have now). It was great in the open, but too touchy in the tight trails with big roots on a drop, in a curve. I could ride the 300 anywhere. It was very grunty, but forgiving.
When you find that you are riding the little one WFO all the time, then you might be ready to move up.
When I worked at HDW, at least once every month or two, a new bike customer would dump it in the parking lot, or street, or a car. Almost all of them had ridden a dirt bike once or twice, ten or more years ago. Big egos = big medical bills. Baby steps.
Sweet WR, Garand.
This ^^^. You might consider a Suzuki sv650. It's a perfect starter bike.
I couldn't disagree more..
Currently in the garage I have a KTM 990 Adventure and a WR250R.. Guess which saw the most miles both on and offroad last year.
Guess which one is about to be sold
The WR250R's put out a whopping 23ish HP, but will run my big ass (250+) down the highway ALL DAY at 75+ MPH. Like BP referred to earlier, I rode it last May from Tulsa to New Mexico all the way on dirt, completely loaded to camp for a 5 night trip, hauling extra fuel etc. in a 1500 mile round trip I never wished I had more displacement.
We also took off one morning and road a day across AR via all the twisty roads to start our return route via the AR section of the TAT, I've done the same on my 990.. the overall trip was more fun on the little bike.
Sure having crazy amounts of power at the twist of the wrist is great, but at some point in your riding life it stops meaning as much to you.
The older I get, the less displacement I need..
Oh yeah Claric... be careful about selling that STi you might just end up regretting it.... I did :-(
First, I think that sounds like an awesome trip!
Second, I have to agree with your advice. A friend of mine who's ridden motorcycles for 50+ years swears that his Hyosung GV250 is all the bike he needs in town. He says it has all the power and acceleration he needs. Plus, he loves the mpg it gets and how easy it is to manuever around. Sure, if he's going to go on a long trip on the highway he gets on one of his bigger bikes but most of the time he's riding the GV250.
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