New member to my family

[Dogo]

No not a baby !

Today I put a deposit on my first motorbike.
I've always wanted a cruiser , and when I cancelled my october holiday to russia/mongolia/china I had this lump of money that I saved up so ... :D

Its just a small one - because of learner restrictions ( max 250cc ).
I'll upgrade in a couple of years maybe

I got an good price for it - brand new ( with 2yr unlimited km warranty ) I got it cheaper than the average 2 year old second hand price

Anyway its a Suzuki Intruder 250 (http://www.suzukimotorcycles.com.au/modeldetail.php?intBikeID=108). It was this or a Yamaha V-Star 250 but the price difference was huge for very very similar bikes. There are 250cc cruisers that are a bit quicker but not as nice in terms of comfort or cosmetics.

http://www.suzukimotorcycles.com.au/images/upload/working/80060006_INTRUDER250LC_SS1.jpg

I haven't got my learners yet - getting them soon. Before delivery I hope !

[Smikey]

Very nice!
I did my motorbike learner training test because I knew it was the closest i could get to riding a motorbike, so live the dream for people like me! but mostly for yourself =)
Ride safe and treat everybody else like idiots! Lookin forward to some arrival pictures! I love the delivery trucks motorbikes come on, like out of irobot.

[marcs_sp20]

Very noice!!!

[Rupewrecht]

Ooh shiny!

This is going to affect your lifestyle heavily though Dave...you're going to have to wear shoes :p

[Dogo]

hehe Frida took a photo on her phone of me sitting on the bike in the shop.

I was in thongs. Thats almost not shoes !

[FEM]

Ooh shiny!

This is going to affect your lifestyle heavily though Dave...you're going to have to wear shoes :p

bahahhaha, ur like me.. i go almost everywhere with out shoes!

[Aaron]

Welcome to the "family" Dogo ;)

Just remember to keep yourself safe with the right gear - and most importantly enjoy the experience ;)

A.

[Cincinnatus]

Welcome to the "family" Dogo ;)

Just remember to keep yourself safe with the right gear - and most importantly enjoy the experience ;)

A.

WHat he said.

Never ever ride in thongs:eek: :eek: :eek: :eek:
If you want to know y, join some rider forums and look for horror stories, i promise you wont have far to go. Otherwise, enjoy and hope to c u on the streets! Most fun you can have with all your clothes on, better sometimes too :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D

Sydney has a 2 month waiting list to do learners rider training so i hope mel is better. Going for my Ps on friday so gonna need all the luck i can get to pass. he he

[RedLineResident]

Sweet man. Good luck and like everyone else advises, look after yourself and always be safe. The consequences of stacking it on a bike as opposed to having a fender bender in a car can't be compared, so safety first.

[Dogo]

Never ever ride in thongs:eek: :eek: :eek: :eek:
If you want to know y, join some rider forums and look for horror stories, i promise you wont have far to go.

I definitely wouldn't ride in thongs. Was just bike shopping in them.

I've joined up on netrider.com.au and now shopping for riding gear.

so much to choose from !

[Aaron]

http://www.twowheels.com.au/forums/
http://www.mcnews.com.au/forum/

Two worthwhile forums, the latter is definately a close community like AGT....

A.

[KittyKatSmack]

So have you learnt "the nod" yet?

LOL

I've been riding for over 10 years, been in 2 spills, and still can't wipe that grin off my face ;)
If you have any questions about stuff (tm) then give us a holler.

I hope you just LOVE your bike, she's gorgeous/sexy and all that chrome *bling* :D:D:D:D:D:D

Any ideas on names?
Aaron's little Honda is a 250 (L thing again) so it's small, and it's black (matt black) and we modded it already with a staintune pipe so it's got attitude
therefore, it's name is:
Arnold
whatchyoutalkinaboutWillis not astalavistababy
LOL

[Dogo]

So have you learnt "the nod" yet?

Let me get on the bike first ! I have been noticing bikes a lot more on the road though.

License is booked for next Thurs & Fri , bike was originally going to be delivered the following tuesday but Im going to see if I can get it on Saturday so that its right after the license and I have the wkend to play around.


Knowing me, the first mod is working out how to fit a stereo on it ! j/k

[Smikey]

I think air conditioning would be more useful since summer is coming

[Dogo]

hehe I removed mine from my car


choosing riding gear is damn hard :(

[newman]

i used to ride around on a yamaha v-star xvs-250. very similar bikes.
took me 1 month to grow out of it and go bigger. it was really handy around town though! enjoy. it'll be perfect for a begineer rider like yourself!

just remember
Head Check and
Cars cause 80% of motorcycle accidents, the other 20% are caused by speed :)
Setup, squeeze, ease (when braking), you'll learn to use the front brake more than the back (just not while cornering at low speed hehe)

[KittyKatSmack]

hehe I removed mine from my car

Um sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo what are you doing with the aircon unit?
Seriously!!!
I need one, ok, I don't need one, but I want one.

Riding gear:
Firstly, safety before looks - and that coming from me!

Helmets: People either love or hate full faced helmets but after 2 spills on my bike, I can state that I love my full faced helmets.
I have owned an AGV and currently have a nice Shoei.
The Shoei rocks with noise and comfort over the AGV but that said, the AGV was a good lid.
I kept it for ages after the big spill, even though I couldn't use it. It sat on a bench near the bike to remind me of what 'can' happen even if you do everything you're taught to do.

Jackets: There are a HUGE range of jackets, the most important question is leather or synthetic. Leather does protect very well and moves/breathes etc but I have always preferred synthetic. Whatever you get, ensure you have ventilation, a winter liner that you can remove in summer and ARMOUR!
Armour all the way baby!!!

Pants: I learnt the hard way about wearing regular jeans and it cost me a nasty trip to the hospital where they had to use a scrubbing brush to get all the gravel out that was embedded in my flesh/knee.
Check out Draggin Jeans, Hornee Jeans and any local supplier that reinforces the pants with Kevlar. Aaron and I have Draggin's and you can still get armour to velcro onto the kevlar on the knees.
Don't skimp on the pants!!!

Gloves: Recently, we purchased some new gloves for Aaron that are the most expensive I've ever paid. That said, they are winter weight gloves and Aaron will tell you they made a HUGE difference.
I prefer lightweight gloves but then again, with my health limitations, I rarely ride anymore :(
I have some spider gloves that are reinforced with carbon fibre and kevlar on the knuckles that work a treat.

Boots: Yes, you will have to have boots/shoes but you knew that ;)
I have owned spider boots and currently have a pair of gaernes.
I love the gaernes, they are so comfortable - it's like I'm not wearing shoes at all. Make sure your boots are weather proof, and breathable. There are a lot of shoe-looking reinforced options but I think you can't go wrong with boots. Just my personal opinion of course.

Aaron's gear is mostly Dri-Rider stuff and he swears by it.
I've bought myself 2 Ixon jackets - one heavy winter one and one lightweight summer one. Ixon is a reasonably new brand but they make good stuff and I've not heard a bad thing about them.

I guess my advice is:
Try on a lot of gear before you decide.
If you try on 14 pairs of boots and go back and buy the first pair you tried on, fair enough but don't buy the first or second thing you try on.
When you try the gear on, ask if you can sit on a bike in it. If not, squat, bend, reach and move in the gear as if you were on the bike.
Leather will be more forgiving and move with you but then again, it can also stretch and is hard work to keep weatherproof.

I'm pretty much responsible for Aaron's purchase of his bike and gear so the one thing I told him over and over again was safety first and appearance second.
Both my spills were a result of car drivers and I could probably have avoided the first one if I'd had more experience. I did learn a lot from both events.
I made silly mistakes that could have been much worse but I was lucky.

There are also some advanced rider training courses you can do, I can't recommend them enough!!! Also, join a local riding group and go on cruises. I find nearly all motorcyclists are friendly and helpful, and willing to go out of their way for fellow riders.

I was riding home one evening and I saw a big ole cruiser on the side of the road pointing the other way. I was on my itty bitty zzr250 (my first bike) and I stopped. The rough looking harley rider didn't have a mobile phone, so I loaned him mine to call his mates. His words were along the lines of "a chick on a road bike stopped" which was funny to me, so I hung about and chatted while he waited for his mates to bring the ute and pick him up.
He usually had no time for sport bike owners and told of how surprised he was that I stopped. I told him that to me, 2 or 4 wheels, I'll always stop to help a person.
Funnily enough, after that, the big ole cruisers around Newie suddenly were giving me the nod or a wave on the roads. It didn't normally happen but suddenly the "chick on the little purple sport bike was ok" LOL!

A lot of the big tough bikie types are great people, generous of spirit and I have real respect for riders from all walks of life, who ride all categories of bike, because it's like you're a part of a bigger family. OK so you don't always get along with everyone but hey, that happens here on AGT too ;)

If you ever want to talk about stuff, gear, riding experiences etc. I'm always happy to oblige.

Congratulations Dave, you are going to love it *massive grins*

[Dogo]

I want DragginJeans and a synth jacket. Don't want leather.

The ones I tried on last night were DriRider and Ixon and they did seem like nice ones.

I tried on a bunch of helmets but its hard to know whats too tight and whats too loose. Plus wearing glasses sucks. I might go get some contacts to make sure I can retain my peripheral vision.

Haven't tried on gloves or boots yet.

More shopping tomorrow !

[Cincinnatus]

Dude, Kitty seems to have given all the pertinent advise. So i'll just say don't skimp, helmet protects your most important asset, so make bloody sure its a full face helmet and none of these crazy lids you see idiots wearing.

I passed my Ps' today!!! :) :) :) Boy am i stoked!

[KittyKatSmack]

Congrats Cinncinatus :D

As for the full face v's non full face, it's hard to be unbiased because everyone has a preference one way or the other. There are some riders out there that actually believe that full faced helmets kill you - go figure.

Aaron wears glasses inside his helmet so maybe get him to give some advice there. The only glasses I wear inside the helmet is sunglasses, and even then a tinted visor is so worth the extra $30 or so! If you are going to go tinted visor, make sure you have a quick release system for easy change over, some of them are a real PITA!!

I'm just so excited for you, and not a little bit jealous coz I can't really ride anymore without pain from my neck/back problems.... but I'm grinning fit to split too LOL!!

[Aaron]

Yeah the glasses thing - You don't wear poindexter style glasses - and you've seen mine... They fit good in the Shoei XR1000, the thing I've learnt about helmets is that there will be a brand/model that fits just right WITH glasses, and shop around trying everything on until you find it. Once you know what fits good you can then hunt it down for the price you are prepared to pay. My Helmet for example was bought from Helmet warehouse in Sydney, they are basically the biggest/cheapest helmet seller in Australia and do phone orders so you can always check pricing.

But on the "living with the glasses and helmet thing:

As you start riding (and you'll be taught part of this on the L course) you develop patterns or rituals for doing various things. Just about every rider will have their own specific ritual for getting on and off the bike..

Mine's like this:

Walk up to bike, check tyres and fuel cock (there's still wankers out there that flip them to Off or Reserve for a laugh - both can be very inconvenient/dangerous.

Stick in key, IGN to ON but not start.

Remove gloves/neck buff from Helmet, place on seat. Place helmet on seat.

Do up jacket/neck buff and then add backpack etc.

remove glasses from head and sit them on gloves

Put helmet on head and do up proper tight.

Refit glasses.

Start bike (in cold - winter - weather I do this before the Helmet)
As bike idles with choke on put on gloves and get on-board.

Ride off.

In theory the bike should only be started when you're fully geared up and on-board, but in practice this means you end up sitting on a cold/wet bike for the 30 seconds or so it can take to get a nice smooth idle in winter.

I don't find the glasses restrict vision at all, as you _should_ be looking by moving your head also. They will be drilling you on this during the course, just like doing the P test in the car, make sure you show you are looking where you should be...And it's barely 10seconds extra to manage getting them on and off. I pretty much always have a lightly tinted visor on the helmet (even at night) to compensate for not carrying prescription sunnies all the time as well as regular lenses. If I was doing more than commuting around dusk I'd be running the clear visor....

Thinking back to boots, I tried on about 10 pairs, and ended up in the 2nd cheapest pair as they were the best fit....

Just about all bike gear bought from Bike shops (ie "real brands") is quality, and you get more benefit from proper fitment than brand alone. a $1000 poorly fitting helmet will not offer the same protection as a $300 well fitting one. Boots, gloves and jackets are the same.

Dri-Rider stuff is generally more conservative styled (in Australia btw), but it's well made and really does exactly what you buy it for. Avoid fashion items as fashions change and unless you wear it out or crash it up most of this stuff will be with you longer than the first bike (so I'm told)..... That said most of my gear is black and red so it rule sout me getting a blue, green or purple bike in the future ;)

Draggins are weird, great stuff when you stack, but just about every pair is cut different, you will need to try them on, don't belive the sizing, I have a pair in 38", 40" and 42" and they all fit differently but much the same if you know what I mean. Certainly there's not 4" difference in the waistline.

Gloves as kitty mentioned can make or break a winter ride. My initial leather set were great but it sucked on frosty mornings, I could barely operated the brake or clutch at the end of 20km ride to work at 90km/h... The fancy Joe Rocket gloves we bought are triple layer outer very fine leather, then two themal and waterproof barrier layers, very snug....

Oh be prepared to burn money at a huge rate acquiring gear, I would think my gear cost something like:
- Helmet $580
- Draggins $200/pair x3
- Jackets (Summer and Winter) at ~$350-400 each
- Boots $180 pair
- Gloves summer $60 / Winter $100
- Emergency overpants (rain proof) $40
- Tinted Visor $50+

I'm lucky - it all fits well and I like it all, but at the same time I probably regret not buying the pants ($200) that matched my DriRider jacket to make a complete all-weather riding set up. Draggins don't keep you all that warm in winter.

Also looking at getting (or trying on) those new more "shoe-like" RJays boots for social riding or rather looking more "normal" off bike in town.

Oh and while I can appreciate the "more power/capacity" comments in the ACT at least a 250 is pretty much the cheapest thing to own in rego and insurance, and fuel costs are well below that of a car. I'm $45 a week better off riding to work, with a bigger bike that would drop off to maybe $25/wk, and suddenly you could start pretending that the economic benfit of the bike is outweighed by risk, and inconvenice of having to wear boots when you prefer barefeet ;)

Thing is - if you are comfortable on the bike, then you're in your own world and even a 250 is quite quick with my 100kg on it...

A.

[Kazz]

YAYYYYYYYY, riding bikes is so much fun :D. I used to do road racing on a little 151 cc honder it was great fun, crazy little thing tho just like most of my bikes ( i have 5 collected them throughout my years), because my dad had his own business we found a few things and just put the bike together and raced it. I will get back into it one day its just finding the time and money to do it all :P.
I have my Suzonda (Suzi RGV frame and fearing and honder 250 (bored out to 350 shhh) trail bike engine) yet to get it on the road and im always talking about it but ive got to a point where i need help with wiring and just the finishing touches that makes it road worthy but its all just too hard :P.
anyways congrats on the new buy, im sure that you will enjoy it, just dnt be silly on the thing or ull end up second best.

[newman]

When you do buy a helemt, you have to ask yourself "is this my 'regular' hair length? i found i get a hair cut and the helmet fits totally different. You want the helmet to be tight, but not so tight that its crushing your head obviously. The more you wear the helemt, the padding will adjust to your head accordingly.

I wear glasses while riding. I have a hjc helmet and i've never had any probems, surely it was a bit weird initially but you get used to it pretty quickly.

as for the helmet itself. Can you value your head? then you should consider this value when buying a helemt. cheap helmet = not much brain to protect ;)

full face vs open face. me personally i'd only ever have full face, but as the other have said - everyone is different. You can buy full face helmets that you can lift the visor and the chin piece up as well so maybe look at those. not my cup of tea personally.

You'll find that you wont buy just 1 set of gear. you'll end up having several depending on how much you ride. for example. I've got a leather jacket that i like to wear just around town and when the weather is quite warm. but i also have a dri-ryder jacket with a removeable inner layer which i wear when its bloody cold.

anyways, enjoy spending your money :P don't buy EVERYTHING to start with. buy the basics and buy accordingly as you require different stuff. you need expirenece first before you can really determine what you want/need. Also, if you decide that riding isn't for you then you wont have so much trouble trying to sell your gear.

[Dogo]

Thanks for the congrats and thanks :)

Shopping this weekend, bought my helmet gloves and boots.

Helmet = KBC VR-2 ( Gunslinger, white/black )

was a comfy fit, Snell & DOT approved and reported as reasonably quiet.
http://www.motorcycle-superstore.com/ProductImages/300/83-8810VR2GunWhtBlk.jpg

Boots = DriRider
Gloves = Joe Rocket

I liked a Joe Rocket jacket they had - I think the model was Comet. But didnt buy because it seemed a bit warm for summer.
I was looking at the mesh jackets too, for summer. I still doubt their safety though

[Cosmo Dude]

Earlier this year on a cruise we did have a member on a cycle loose the front end. He was a little rattled but OK, his gear and his bike had some battle scars.
Safety gear is best not used but better for it to be there when you need it.





A head worth saving needs a helmet.

[Dogo]

(cleaned up the thread. Irrelevant personal attacks)

[CityEnd]

Earlier this year on a cruise we did have a member on a cycle loose the front end. He was a little rattled but OK, his gear and his bike had some battle scars.
Safety gear is best not used but better for it to be there when you need it.





A head worth saving needs a helmet.

ahhh the memories, yes that was me, and can you believe almost a yr has past.

I was wearing draggin and they faired pretty well, I still wear them now.

congrats on the new addition, love the sound of a v-twin! take care out there

[Dogo]

thanks - was hoping to see you on this thread Chris :)

With Draggin jeans - do you reccomend I buy some additional armour to go underneath ? Would hate to smash a kneecap.

Yesterday I paid out the rest of the bike. Buying with cash feels good :)
Tomorrow my leaners course starts and saturday the bike arrives.

In 2 weeks Netriders is having a mentoring day for new riders. They seem like a decent community, with a good presence in Melbourne.

[Dogo]

delivered and license passed !

soo perdy

:D :D :D

[Cosmo Dude]

You need to do something with that exhaust. It looks too quiet.

[Dogo]

and shiny !

It sounds nice. Louder and deeper than an equivalent size motorbike.

the exhaust has a smaller opening at the end of the big fat pipe.
Apparently if you drill out the baffles in the muffler it gets much louder.

This bike seems bigger than an average 250cc bike.
The medium size "suits 250cc" cover that I bought it is a tad too small.
Its definitely heavier than the ones I learnt on.

[CityEnd]

hey Dave,

how did it go with the netrider ride? I went to a learner ride once and they were great. Was taught and helped out heaps.

In term of extra protection, that should be up to you, it's not legally required, but then again you can never have enough protection. I like to use an IT analogy, the more time and money you invest in the presetup of a back up system, the less down time you will have when things go wrong, but sometimes it's over kill, you just have to find the right balance.

[KittyKatSmack]

Do we get to see your bike on Saturday 25th Oct when we're back in town?

I hope so!
:)

[Dogo]

the problem with brining the bike will be what to do with Frida.
I'm not allowed to carry a pillion for at least 12 months.
So either I take my car or get someone to pick her up at my place.

Chris the NetRider Mentoring day was very good.
They're a well organised bunch with very supportive members. It was impressive to see so many members volunteer their time on the day and beforehand in preparation.

We did

* Picking up a bike
* Maintenance and pre-ride checks
* Emergency braking
* Slow manouvering and balance
* Cornering - body position, leaning etc

They have social meets almost every day of the week in Vic it seems. I intend to go on their Thursday night 'mystery rides'.

I've got all the gear now. With some haggling I've managed to keep it just under $1k

Oh and its had its first mod ! The passenger seat has been removed.

[KittyKatSmack]

LOL@1st mod!!!!!

The NetRider stuff is fantastic.
A dedicated bunch of people with a lot of knowledge and the willingness to help others. You can't go wrong with folk like that.

Kudos to NetRider

I hope you enjoy the mystery rides Dave, should be fun *grins*