I've always been a little interested in riding a motorcycle, but recently it's started getting bad. But I had a bunch of questions before getting into it, and wanted to hear from some of you before looking much more into it.



I'd start off with the Ninja 250 - I'm definitely a sport bike kinda guy, rather than a cruiser or tourer. I've tried to ride a cruiser before, and could barely keep the thing upright (newbie!!). However when I rode a dirtbike (more upright) I had no problem maneuvering. Obviously I could probably learn anything, but I'm most interested in a sportbike. I'm also after something that gets great mpg, hence the 250.



I've ridden a bicycle all my life, but have only driven motorbikes 2-3 times before. I'm not really concerned about learning how to ride them, but it'd probably take a good bit of practice.



My main questions and concerns are with my height. I'm 6'9" and have a 38" inseam. I've never sat on a sportbike before, and wonder how comfortable it would be, or if I could even fit. Obviously I'll go sit on one at some point, but haven't gotten to a dealer yet. Any thoughts or opinions on being really tall and trying to ride?

The other concern is finding tall enough riding gear, such as a jacket. I'm not confident a Large Tall is good enough, but have any of you had good experiences finding your gear?



I realize this is probably just a jumble of thoughts so I apologize in advance, but if any of you have some sage advice, here's the time and place to lay it out there!

 

your too big for that ninja 250 you need to get a 600 class bike. you will still be a bit tight because with your size you need a liter bike but for your skill you still need to be in a 600 class. maybe look toward a yzf600 or gs500f or ninja650. those are all great starter bikes that would best suit you begining and be something fun for the second season you own it. then sell it and get a bigger bike.



as for gear there are all kinds of sizes and types, but i would suggest finding the largest apparel store you can and going in and trying things on. its hard to buy helmet and gear online because they all fit diffrently.



and once you get on a bike thats the end, you will get the hunger for speed and never look back.





yzf600 (r6s is newer version)





gs500f





ninja650

 

Great info, thanks!

Well that's the other problem with getting a bigger bike. A Ninja 250 (MUST be the 2008 or newer style - they look incredible) I can probably get for

 

It's all maintenance - if they have records and the bike looks nice, just like a car



I'm 6' tall and had no difficulty on a little 50cc scooter with dirtbike geometry when I'd borrow a buddy's bike for a ride. Most definitely go for a test ride on a small bike before you discard the idea of a little bike for your tallass frame.

 

if it has good records maybe but for maitence i prefer a fuel injected bike because they store away just like a car. much easier to deal with IMHO but to each their own. 2003+ is when bikes were FI for the most part.



those ninja 250s do look sweet but you grow out of them to fast, they arent even good for a whole season of riding before you are trying to sell it and gett a bigger bike. better to just get larger bike and stay with it for year or two before upgrading to full size machine.



yzf600 is begginers bike and great for learning. also look into a buell blast as they are inexpensive and great way to start.

 

The R6 has a nice ride height for 6 ft plus people and so does the blast.

 

TERRIBLE advice. He doesn't NEED a liter bike to be comfortable. Some people are entirely content with a 250 their whole riding career. I wish I hadn't traded to my ZX-6R from my 250R. I use probably use 10% of my ZX-6R's potential on a regular basis.



Strike, go to a bike shop and sit on all sorts of bikes and find out what's comfortable for you. Don't buy more motorcycle than you know you can handle. It sounds like you have a great grasp of that already. Once you find a bike you like and are comfortable with, decide whether you want a used or new and get lookin'.



If you have a local CycleGear, go down there and try on helmets and gear and see what advice the employees have. Don't cheap out on gear, it can save your life. I gasped when I saw the $470 price tag for my helmet, but I feel much safer in it than a $60 special.



*EDIT* - I'll come back and add to this later when I'm not so distracted by Optimo's replies, I know I've forgotten half my good points...

 

^^and here comes the internet hate.



taller folks are going to be most comfortable on bikes with larger riding triangles. i'm 6'1 and feel cramped on a r6 or zx6r. and as for you using "10% of the abilities of the zx-6r" thats the kinda stuff you hear on the internet from the 600 forums and you hear the opposite on the 1000 forums. if i ruffled your feathers THAT much you need to get your blanky and head on home.



just ride your own ride and try to give this man some good advise.(instead of going OT and trying to attack the legitimacy of my advise) i only advised going to a larger bike once he had been on a few bikes and was ready for the difference in throttle. obviously he has a good head on his shoulders and isnt going to go out and get the biggest thing he can for his first bike. BUT once he has put in some seat time on the smaller bikes and get thes the control down he WILL be much more comfy on a large bike because of his 6'7" frame.

 

I would suggest you pick up a USED and BEAT UP Ninja 250R or Ninja 500R. Other good candidates are Suzuki GS500E or GS500F.

The benefit of going to for a USED bike is that you can take it for a quick test ride. That will tell you if you feel it's too small, or underpowered. You don't mention your weight. If you're 300+ lbs and 6'9", then the ninja 250 will simply be way too small. The suspension simply won't handle that weight.

Other options are Suzuki SV650(naked) or SV650S (half fairing), Honda Hawk GT, or a 10+ year old 600 Super sport.



The reason you go for the OLDER bikes, twofold. #1. They have less power. You don't need 120 HP on a beginner bike like the latest 600 Supersports have. #2. They are CHEAP! If you get into it and you don't like it, you should be able to sell the bike for more or less what you paid for it.





yes, most of these bikes WILL feel small, and folks may even poke fun @ you for being a tall guy on a little bike. Get over it. You're riding, that's what's important. Eventually you'll get to the point where your "beginner" bike is holding you back. For some people it takes 6 months, for some people it takes 5 years. Don't go by what anyone else says. When YOU KNOW you're ready, you're ready. Notice I said KNOW. Not when you THINK you're ready. Not when you WANT to upgrade. When you KNOW in your head that you're getting all the performance you can out of the bike, and that's what's holding you back, then, and ONLY THEN should you consider upgrading.



Once you KNOW the Smaller bike is holding you back, and YOU feel confident, then I would upgrade to a USED 600 Super sport that's 3-5+ years old. The performance improvement of the bike will still amaze you. Give that bike another 6 months or so to explore the limits.



Then you can decide do you want to keep that bike or upgrade. You can decide do you want to jump to something like a VFR 800/1200, or FJR1300, or Busa? Or maybe just a liter super sport.



A couple of other bikes to consider. Yamaha FZ6, and later a FZ1,

Other bikes to consider...any of the "adventure" bikes Suzuki V-Strom 650 and 1000 or KTM Duke 650 then 990. The advantage of them is that they have taller suspension and more relaxed ergo's, so your 6'9" frame will fit them better. While they may not look "super sport" (other than the KTM DUKE) if you put good tires on them, they can keep up with any other bike in it's class when ridden by a competent rider.



Something else I want to bring up. Forget about displacement once you get over 600cc. Larger engines are really only faster in a straight line, or on a "fast" racetrack (Big Track @ willow springs). At the small track @ willow Springs (Streets of Willow Springs) the 600's are faster than the 1000's. Using a 10 year old GS500E, I was able to LAP guys on latest and greatest 900/1000cc super sports and I'm just a "decent rider. I've also witnessed small displacement bikes pull away from 600 and 1000 super sports in the canyons. It's way more about the rider than the bike. You'll get more kudo's respect for flogging a ninja 250 and being "fast" than riding the latest/greatest Ducati-GSXR-RR-R90,000,000 "fast".



The last thing I want to bring up is rider training. #1. Take the MSF Beginner course. #2. After 6-12 months take the MSF intermediate course. After that, start looking into Motorcycle Schools @ a track. Some are really expensive ($2000 a weekend) some are affordable ($250-500 a weekend). If any are close to you, and you can scrape together the cash, take them. Nothing will improve your riding faster than having an outside observer show you what you are doing wrong and how to correct it. Even if you never plan on 'racing' the track schools do hold value. LOADS of value. I don't race, and don't plan on racing, but I still do at least one open track weekend a year, and do one school weekend every 5 years. (I've been riding for 27 years). Track schools can help you break your bad habits you don't even know you have, and show you the "RIGHT" way to ride. The Track weekends allow you to get your speed on and practice your skills in a safe environment with an ambulance on site just in case.





For the Record I'm 6'1" and 230. I sold my 1000 (Honda VTR1000F Super Hawk) and bought a 650 (Suzuki SV650S) because I realized I don't USE the 1000cc power 99% of the time. The ONLY time I use the 650's power to it's fullest extent is on the Track. On the street I never ride over 50%. You need to leave that margin of error for other drivers/riders, cars/trucks, crap in the road, and just in general, the unexpected/un-anticipated. My lap times only went down by 1 to .75 of a second, and that's on a 055/0:2:00 long track (minutes not hours). I know the 650 can go faster, theres a guy who races SV650's @ the track I go to and he's 10 seconds a lap faster than I am(using a full race spec bike).

 

Excellent post Random.