justinb138

Same here, although above 100mph the wind can be a problem.

Cruiser - Most relaxed riding position of all the bikes, most have large v-twin engines. Lots of low end torque. Bikes: Harleys, Yamaha *Star, Honda Shadow, etc.. Sizes range from 250cc - 1800cc in metric bikes, not sure how big the Harleys get. Street - Mix between sport and cruiser. More of an upright riding stance. Some V-Twin bikes, some inline twins, some inline 4s . Most have decent low-end torque with a spirited upper-rpm range. Sizes range from 250cc-1200cc. GS500 and SV650 are good examples. Sport - A more street-friendly version of the supersport bikes. More agressive riding stance, which can be harder on the upper body, but still comfortable for everyday riding. More power in the higher rpms than bikes in the "street" class. Most are inline 4s in the 500 - 1000cc range. Bikes: SV650S, SV1000, Yamaha YZF600R. The 600cc bikes in this class can put out power in the 80-100hp range, with the larger 1000cc bikes making over 125-130. Less forgiving than the "street" bikes, but more so than the "supersport" bikes. Supersport - Most aggressive riding position of all the bikes, and can be very uncomfortable on longer rides. Some are pretty much race-ready from the dealer, and have amazing power in the high (10-14,000) rpm range. 600cc can make 100-115hp, and the 750's and 1000ccs put out around 120-160hp. This class is very unforgiving, and would be a bad choice for a rider w/no previous experience. Bikes - Honda CBR600F4i/RR, Kawasaki ZX- series, Yamaha R6/R1, Suziki GSRX series. Sport Touring - essentially a larger sport bike. These have a more relaxed riding position, and usually a large engine (900-1300cc range) for better performance on the highway. Street/Dirt (or Dual Sport) - pretty much a 4-stroke dirtbike with different tires, mirrors, lighs, turn signals, etc.. Good for riding off road, and ok for riding on the road.

What kind of bike are you looking for? Where are you going to be riding it (highway mostly, etc) ?

There, fixed it fer ya.

Ugh....Yet another story about people with waaay to much time on their hands.

I've got a shaft drive on my '81 GS650. I can't say that I like it any better than the chain drive on my newer bike, just a little less maintenence.

Holy Sh!T. What's it got under the hood?

That your car in that last pic?

I guess I AM gutsy, cause the way I land I should have ordered a green and brown rig The grass stains just add character.

I don't know anything about the reliability of them, I just won't spend $18k on a motorcycle.

IIRC, Sport Rider magazine did a review of 3 of those bikes a few years ago, I'll put the article on here if I can find it. I would advise against the 600/750 Katana. It's much closer to the supersport class than the other two, and may be a bit agressive for a newer rider (I think the resale value is pretty poor as well) Take a look at the Suzuki SV650 and Kawasaki EX500 as well, they're great bikes.

They're much cheaper. (about 70% less). In my MSF class, there was one 550 they were using, but it was pretty old, and the 250's were rather new.

which is exactly what happened 20 yrs ago! I nearly broke my back after a wreck on a KX100 a few years ago. I was screwing around and tried jumping a little hill at about 50mph and gave it a little too much gas. Ended up flipping it.

If you're looking for that style of bike, check out the Suzuki SV650 and Kawasaki EX500/Ninja 500 as well.

For the reason I stated above - twenty years since I been on a bike. I want something to learn on that I can handle and won't handle me. After I got all the skills back, THEN I'll start moving up the ladder if I want to. then get a dirt bike don't waste money on that thing i mean kids now days ride bigger bikes than that now grab your balls and go look at a bigger bike. you only live once Dirtbikes are a completely different story... A 250 street bike gets boring quickly. A 250 dirt bike will kill you before you have a chance to realize you screwed up.

Agreed. 500 on a cruiser isn't going to be too much for a new rider. If you have past experience, I think you'd quickly be bored with the 250. I bought an '81 Suzuki GS650 for $1000 for my first bike. I love old bikes, although when I got it up to about 10,000rpm it sounded like it was going to explode.

Is the Rebel the little 250 ?

I think some people have way too much time on their hands if they're worrying about stuff like that.

His bikes are beautiful, but I'm not sure I'd want to ride one. I've yet to see one with a decent rear suspension, and I think I'd be too worried that I'd scratch it. The sad thing is that the most successful motorcycle companies are successful only because they make more money on shirts and stickers than motorcycles.

Not that I've discovered.

What bike did you have before? When I was 19 I bought myself a Ninja 250, but within a few months I was riding my friends 600's and 750's. Then, to finally move up to something bigger that was my own, I sold my Ninja; then I started going back to school and just couldn't afford to get something else at the time. Been without my own bike (but have ridden since - F4i and R6) for a couple years, until today. Sweet. I've been thinking about getting one of the 250's just for the gas mileage alone. Be safe and have fun !

What bike did you have before?

Lately, I've been jumping a 280 @ about .89.

I get that alot up here too (I've got a 2 suzuki's, a 2001 800cc V-Twin and a 1981 GS650 that's older than I am. I love them both.