sarnali2

I'd get the 650 if you're going to be riding to NY. It's probably a little better suited for a trip like that and the day in day out riding afterwards. Just take it easy and try to get to know the bike before you get into heavy traffic, practice panic stopping with front brake only and front and rear together. Empty parking lots are good for this. Pick a pre determined point like a painted line or somthing and practice stopping and swerving around it, swerve left a few times then right a few times...increase your speed etc. The point is to get familier with how the bike is going to act if you have to drop the anchor and get your reaction times up. The more confident and comfortable you are on the bike the safer you'll be and better able to handle an emergency.

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"Carpe` Throttelum -Loud Suits Save Lives"

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longride

SV650 will be just fine. It's a great bike that will fill your needs for a long time.

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Max12345

I would probably just go around 75 or 80 on the highway. (this is answering Airhawks question)

Elegans

Hi. I'm a newbie to the motorcycle world and I could use some suggestions for a good bike for me. I'm currently a college student and I've ridden a Aprilia RS50 around campus for the last few years. I really enjoy it, but I'm graduating and it's time to move up. I will be moveing to the SF Bay area to continue my education and I want to get a motorcycle to use as my main means of transportation (daily commute, grocery shopping, etc.). I'm thinking something around 500ccs, but I wouldn't want to go much bigger. I'd like something light and fun (with maybe just a little kick), but reliability comes first. I defiantly prefer the sport bike look and feel over cruisers. If I could take it on occasional long trips up into the mountains camping that would be a bonus (so, I pretty much want it to do everything). Oh yeah, and I'm fresh out of college so it has to be reasonably affordable (I'll almost certainly buy used). Does such a bike exist? Thanks in advance for the help.

sfcdjevans

Try new rider in the Search feature. There is some interesting stuff in there. I'm a fan of the 500 cc Kawasaki Ninja for starting out. There are lots of good ideas under the search results you'll get, some of it pretty funny too!

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3425 miles from Reading, UK
Why their heads on a pike of course. If I thought it would do any good.

longride

"(so, I pretty much want it to do everything). "

Every bike out there will do everything. It is how well they do those things that matter.

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Elegans

I just want to point out that I'm not exactly a new rider. I know that the Aprilia RS50 is absolutely tiny, but it still has a normal gear selector and set-up (and most of the same types of safety issues) as bigger bikes and I've been riding mine nearly every day for about 3 years.
Edited to add: Sorry, I might have a bit of an inferiority complex about the RS50. Even though I've only received compliments on it it still sounds like a weed whacker and I know it.

What I'm really interested in is what people think would make reliable daily commuter that I could also have a little fun with on weekends.

sachiwilson

No need to have an inferiority complex. We're just trying to put all the related new bike questions in here. You'll find a lot of comments in this thread about possible choices in answer to your question, too, so it fits here for that reason as well.

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Frappé LaRue
*Safety Queen*
Are you a Rounder?

Sarnali: "what could be more useless than arguing with a deaf female lawyer????"

The_AirHawk

No apologies necessary for the 'Prilly-fiddy. It is what it is, and what it is is Cool. I've a friend that had one with a big-bore kit - some 70-80cc, the thing could manage almost 70mph. Freakin' sweet!

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Parfois, on fait pas semblant
Sometimes, it's not pretend
Oderint Dum Metuant
Let them hate so long as they fear
политики предпочитают безоружных крестьян
Politicians Prefer Unarmed Peasants
Nothing to see here, Citizen. Move along now...

gwellington

So I figured it's my turn to give the tongue lashing a go. I'm a new rider (a la posting in this thread) and taking the MSF class next month. I'm a 5'11" 240lb guy. (Yes, I'm a large Asian. Side note: One of the main reasons for a sport bike. Large Asian in a skull cap on a cruiser?)

Anyways, I've been poking around for a first bike. I've talked to some of my friends (some knowledgeable, others not so much...) and they've suggested the EX500s, GS500, Ninja 500s and other sub-600cc bikes, but I can't seem to find any of them used at a price that doesn't warrant picking up a new one. I live in the NYC area and the average recent non-scratched GS500 is going for about 3-3.5k. Ideally, I'd like the SV650S (Going for 4.5k in good condition, if you can ever find one) which I can "grown into" and not want to sell it after riding it for 4 months.

Long story, short: I've been looking for a decent used bike for the last month or so and things are coming up short. So I've kind of just said eff it and putting serious thought into picking up an overstocked SV650S from a dealer. (~6,000 around here). Of course, I'd leave out the lower fairings to save myself and my wallet the heartache of buying new fairings after a week. (Mainly a stepping stone for an eventual sport touring.)

Just looking for someone to verbally slap me out of the idea or push me over the edge. Either way...