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Maybe It's The Middle Age Syndrome....

Oh man.. FINALLY.. one subject I can give what I feel is good advice... I've been a rider off and on most my life.. right now is on again...

I will say, the person that gave you the advice to go take the MSF has given you the best advice yet... PLEASE DO!!! Then decide if you want to buy a bike.

I got off bikes for about 10 years, and I will never forget the day I rode my new bike home, which I still ride.. 4 years later, about 35k on it.. That was probably the scariest and strangest ride I ever took.. and it was in the rain after all those years... not a bright thing to do... you forget a lot.. yes, you may be able to keep it upright, but it's amazing what you forget after pointing a cage in the direction you want to go....

I could carry this response on for a while, but I won't. Be sure in your heart this is what you want. Don't go buy an expensive bike off the bat. You may get on it, and realize your balls shrunk if you are already worried about getting hurt. I still have that fear, but it doesn't stop me.. It's reality, and a bigger reality than we tend to want to believe. Just something to think about... Your **** is hangin in the wind, and dangling on a mistake, whether yours or someone else's... but then again, isn't life a complete unknown?

If you really like the HD's,,..for getting back into it.. take a look at a Yamaha Road Star... It's what I have now, and one hell of a great air cooled twin... very reliable. I'll get you a picture tomorrow.. OK.. maybe a couple.. Anyway.. they can be had for a very decent price, and they are big... bigger than HD's.... I would suggest you do something like this for a while, and make sure you really do want to, and can ride again... they hold their value pretty good, and even if you only ride it for a year, you won't be losing much if anything at all, if you decide you want to spend more and keep going...

I don't know how much and how well you used to ride, but if you weren't serious and had a lot of miles, I would suggest you go for something smaller than the roadie.. take a look at something in the 650 to 750 range.. Yamaha made some of the best air cooled v-twins from the other side of the world...
 
Simi makes many a good point.

I'll add, however, as my skill level grew, so did my collection of protective gear.

I would ride in the rain and if it snowed, out would come the tiny 1974 Honda CL125 Scrambler wit hstreet-legal DOT-approved knobbies, and still managed to put 10k a year for many a year without ever falling.

Riding gives you a new awareness to your surroundings and to your body, as your life depends on it.

As for safety?

From skid lid to open face to full-face, from jeans to re-inforced logger jeans to leathers to padded Cortech pants, from t-shirts to always a beefy leather jacket, from sneakers to boots to riding footwear, the better the body armor, the better off you are.

I won't knock those who prefer to ride with headphones and/or fairings equipped with stereos, but to me, my ears became as important as my eyes, and never did I ride with tunes, as much as missed 'em.

Listening for traffic cues, nature cues, and ailments of the bike became priority. Listening to the world around me became a secondary, yet pleasurable symphony to my daily rides.

The older the bike, the more maintenance you must be willing to invest in it. No shortcuts. Though any bike you own requires far more awareness of the machine than your typical "soccer mom" van or "cage" commuter.

I made due with, and was quite pleased with, vintage 350 cc hondas in my neighborhood and 99% of my recreational, local and long-distance riding.

Commuting? A 500 to 650cc unit did me well. But then again, I was a bony fella at 128lbs.

A XR-750cc Harley twin, Honda Superhawk 650, and Ducati Monster would provide plenty of grunt for most folk. Bigger means you're of the larger variety of human, or pefer 2-up cruising, are a speed demon, or like lots of comfort for long distance, which, as much as the 600-650 units offer, can seem taxed two-up or for long distances where comfort is a priority over handling or trail excursions or jaunts in tighter quarters.
 
I would rather stick with something more dependable and with better handling.
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The above quote rules out ANY Kaw H2. I've been in the business for a decade or two-buy a new(ish) bike. If for no other reason than the brakes on new bikes are excellent. A new bike may stop from 60mph 5 feet shorter than a 10 year old bike. No big deal unless the bus is 6 feet away.
Yes , H-Ds are horrifically overpriced-and that's the end of the industry I'm in. Best advice , buy a used dirt bike and go have your first couple wrecks off-road. If you still want to ride on the street , ease into it. It's in my best professional interest to encourage new riders (more money for me!) but you getting killed makes my industry look bad and depresses the **** out of me personally. :nono:
 
After 36 years of riding with the 4-wheeled crazies....LUCK....comes into play.
You can (and should) take the riding course.
But no amount of training can insure you of being accident free.
I've had three spectacular Evil-Knevel wrecks in my life-time.
Including one that left a 1993 Honda Shadow 600 in 12 foot flames!
I walked away from all three accidents...............
Luck?
Absolutely!!!!!!!!!!
But I'll take It!!
It's ALWAYS a risk getting on a motorcycle!!
But it's a risk I'm willing to take....because I LOVE to ride!!
Have fun....and be safe.

Steve
 
Back on 2 wheels

Down here where I live, the MSF rider course supplies the motorcycles. That would be another great thing about taking the course first. If by the time you finish the course, you've "shook the bug", you're out very little $$$.

Another good point I've seen mentioned is to find a good used late-model Japanese Harley clone. It seems to me that there are quite a few out there that look like a good bargain used. As said before, that should get you back in the saddle for not a lot of money.

I've been riding the same H-D for almost 31 years without injury, and part of that is good luck. But the the other part is strict adherence to my own rules:

1. One-beer rule. If you go somewhere, you can have only 1 beer.
2. Never ride in bad weather. Ever.
3. Don't ride others motorcycles.
4. Don't show your ass.
5. Don't speed.
6. Avoid situations that are ripe for disaster.
7. Don't ride inexperienced passengers.
8. Don't ride tired.

I know, sounds very boring - but I'm still here! :thmbsp:

Your area would be a great place to ride, I lived in Phoenix for about 3 months in 1983.

Good luck - keep us advised as to what you do!
 
Thanks guys, for all of your input. I will be debating this for awhile and will give it a lot of thought. With great weather coming soon it is very tempting but I will not rush into a decision unless I lose all sort of sensibility. So why do I even consider it? Well therein lies the problem. I still remember the fun I had riding when I was much younger but it was not without some scary moments. But I have had scary moments in my vehicles as well. Difference is I know I would fare better in my Avalanche than on any two-wheeler. I will look into the MSF rider course. I have friends who love to ride and often wonder when I am going to join them on their jaunts. Well, I don't like to do anything unless I have the confidence in myself to do it. Just wished this "desire" would go away. When it does it always seems to come back. Damn!
 
Funny, today my wife and I went to an Apple store that just opened up a while ago and in talking with one of the Apple salesman I met a friend of his at the store who sells motorcycles (Yamaha and Suzuki) for a living and he gave me the name and website of a local motorcycle training course that provides motorcycles and upon completion of the training is also authorized in providing you with a motorcycle license through the DMV. $285 covers the class and motorcycle endorsement on your DL. Here is their link.

http://www.motorcycletraining.com/
 
thedelihaus said:
Dangerous, and growing, not by the bikes which are getting faster, but at the same time safer and more reliable, but by who's allowed behind the wheels of cars nowadays, along with what's allowed behind the wheels of card nowadays...
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Oh yes. I am convinced that no matter which state you live in, or possibly which country you live in, the majority of the people on the road are terrible drivers!

When you get honked at for GOING THE SPEED LIMIT there's a major ****ing problem! When you have to do 5 or 10 over the speed limit just to keep up with traffic, that's bad.

The people that honk at you for going too slow for their tastes also happen to be the same ones who stop at green lights and slow to a crawl when there's an accident, cos you know, they gotta snap pics with their camera phone...

Snow still scares most of them into driving decently, except for the SUV owner who believes that owning one of those gas guzzling behemoths automatically makes them immune to the laws of physics...
 
pioneervato said:
Thanks guys, for all of your input. I will be debating this for awhile and will give it a lot of thought. With great weather coming soon it is very tempting but I will not rush into a decision unless I lose all sort of sensibility. So why do I even consider it? Well therein lies the problem. I still remember the fun I had riding when I was much younger but it was not without some scary moments. But I have had scary moments in my vehicles as well. Difference is I know I would fare better in my Avalanche than on any two-wheeler. I will look into the MSF rider course. I have friends who love to ride and often wonder when I am going to join them on their jaunts. Well, I don't like to do anything unless I have the confidence in myself to do it. Just wished this "desire" would go away. When it does it always seems to come back. Damn!
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Sounds like you're making a good decision about doing lessons first, I'd recommend trying to get as much butt-time on bikes as you can before you spend your money. The usual recommendation is to buy an inexpensive but reliable used bike to ride around for your first couple thousand miles so you don't drop a new expensive bike. The newer Honda Nighthawks (discontinued a few years ago, I think) are a pretty good choice for a new rider. Good safety gear will make you happier, more comfortable and mean you're having more fun as well.

If you have friends pressuring you to ride, they'll likely want to ride with you as soon as you get your license. However, you should probably avoid riding with groups unless your friends are extremely responsible. Group rides seem to lead to some of the least safe riding I've ever witnessed. Especially as you're getting your bearings back and trying to correct bad habits you may still have from back when you used to ride, trying to keep up with more experienced friends who are showing off is very likely to lead to injury.

Keep in mind that you fit perfectly into the segment of the riding population that is dieing or being critically injured the most: Middle-aged bikers that haven't ridden for a long time are dropping like flies. Most of their accidents are single-vehicle crashes. Of course, by having the humility and brains to consider lessons you've shown yourself better than most. Keep making good decisions and riding will be all good times.

"Proficient Motorcycling" by David Hough is a great book to read if you want to improve your riding (and driving) skills. It's a dry read, but I find that if I scan a paragraph before heading out it puts me in the proper frame of mind and reminds me to maintain good habits.
 
Andyman said:
I've got the itch to get another Suzuki like the 1982 GS1100GKZ I sold about 6 years ago. It doesn't make any sense as I'd only ride it infrequently and have to store and maintain it, but I loved the lines on that bike. I could sit and look at it all day and smile.

Plus,there's nothing better than a warm, sunny day riding some two lane blacktop by the water. Riding in rain, snow, and cold seriously sucks, as does hundreds of miles of superslabs, but those nice rides pretty much make up for it.
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Bite the bullet and just go for the Hayabusa. :thmbsp: Don't forget the one piece leather jump suit and gloves... :D

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I've been riding for a few years now and enjoy it a lot. You need to be smart though and do take the training classes. After that it's a matter of being smart enough to let yourself be at the back of a pack and go as slow as you feel comfortable until you get a few miles in the saddle. When I'm riding the twisties I get a lot of the same feeling that I used to get going downhill skiing....a oneness, a rhythm...forgeting myself and just being.
 
pioneervato said:
Am I crazy to even consider one since I know that motorcycle injuries and deaths are at an all time high and climbing due to the increased popularity in owning them?
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I'm going to go against the grain here and say YES! Get a new Mustang GT convertible instead. :thmbsp:

I've owned about 30 motorcycles, street, dirt and otherwise. I think about buying a bike all the time as I look at the wall in my den with pictures of me racing my dirt bike. I see people doing their best Kenny Bernstein or Evel Knievel immitations on the street and remember back to my days of doing stupid things on two wheels. I love motorcycles but prefer to get my kicks on human powered cycles these days. I have four friends that lost their lives on motorcycles and two others are in wheel chairs. I don't want to be a wet blanket here but just wanted to give you another perspective. If you get a bike do take a class, always wear a helmet, and drive defensively. And most importantly have fun! :yes:
 
65 Mustang ? Nah, go for it...a '66 or '67 Lincoln...Rolling sculpture that you AND yr friends can enjoy...You can aim at stuff w/the gunsite hood ornament, too...
 
I have a HD softail sitting in my garage I never ride .... ever.... save the money and get over it. Also, people on cell phones will kill you....
 
sleddogman said:
Plus I'll bet most folks don't know that if you lock the throttle on that Beemer at just the right rpm, the bike will actually stand upright on it's own without a stand... :yes:
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Early Honda CX500s were known to do that, too (or the prototypes, maybe?). If you started the bike on the side stand with the choke set, that bike could gradually increase in RPM and stand itself upright, eventually/potentially flopping over onto the right side. I believe a change was made to the clutch/flyweel or some other counter balance to fix this, not sure...not fun.

je
 
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