Sprockets: My first bike

Well now I've gone an joined the world of the 2 wheeled. I thought that my impending 30th birthday was a good enough excuse, and with the enthuastic support of my wonderful girlfriend, who will also learn to ride on this, I just bought a bike.

Earlier this Summer I posted a thread on what to pick for a first bike, and the overwhelming response was to start with a Ninja 250. I've been casually looking for a while, but really started to look seriously last week. Lots of these have been ridden hard, put away wet, and have gone down as often as a girl with self esteem issues at a frat party. I found an ad on the local CL for a guy who was moving overseas to teach ESL, and he needed to move it.

When we went to look it it, it was exactly as advertised, and the guy was nice to deal with. The bike is a 2003 model, basically stock, with 8k miles. It is really clean, has never put put down on the road, but has been knocked over in the garage a few times, so it has a crack or 3 on the plastics and some minor scratches on the bar ends and exhausts. This is fine with me because when I knock it over, I won't feel badly. Mechanically it seemed fine, sounded smooth, revved freely, started easily from bone cold, and seems like it has been taken care of. You could practically eat off of the engine, and inside the oil filler cap was clean as new. It rode, braked, and shifted fine, and is really clean overall, showing signs of having been cared for.

So, cash talked, and for $1300, this came home with us.

It is now resting comfortably in my garage, waiting for me to get my MSF course done and the weather to clear up.

My girlfriend also wants to learn to ride, and this will be perfect for us both to learn on. When I'm tired of it, it will be easy to move along to another new rider, or she may want to keep it as her own if she likes it.

I'm pretty excited, now I just need to wait for spring....

Great bike. Circa 1989, my first new anything was a Ninja 250. Trust me, its the same bike. A great thing about that bike is it also vetts a lot of potential riding buddies. Any crew that bags on you for starting with that bike should be avoided, these are a "mine is bigger than yours" crowd.

Whether or not the girl rides it, after you move on, the Ninjette makes an awesome track bike. A set of take offs might last you 3 or for events.

I recall getting upwards of 40 MPG back in the day on mine. When I finally get settled into a retirement home here in a few years, I am gonna add one of those to my stable, just for nostaglia.

FYI, those rear turn signals are as fragile as the ego of aformentioned frat party girl. You can upgrade them to a set of smaller LEDs, or integrate them with the rear taillight.

Great call on the MSF course, get some good gear and ride safe.

Best thing you can do to a Ninja 250: replace the stock mirrors. They're useless for a view of anything but your elbows, and they're the strongest part of the upper fairing, so when the bike goes down, they hit first and crack the hell out of the plastic. If your upper fairing is currently intact, ditch 'em fast.

Buy a set of eBay cheapo bar end mirrors and get used to those. Yeah, they're on the small side and not directly in your line of vision, but they're convex, so you can see all you need to see. No need to be reading license plates behind you, so long as you can see the car.

And, they won't break your fairing. Unless you're doing something very wrong.

I turn 30 tomorrow. Chances that my wife will let me have a motorcycle are somewhere south of zero.

About the closest I'm coming is looking for a wrecked ZX10R to be an organ donor.

Thanks for the great tips.

Any suggestions for gear? I have my full face helmet from running track days in the car, but I need a jacket, gloves, boots, etc.

www.newenough.com.

Go there and go shopping.

You're off to a great start with your bike selection and on attending a MSF course. Mental is correct in that some will look down on this bike because of its size, but you are way ahead of the curve by starting with this one. Great choice.

Selecting the right gear is a science in itself. I would visit a few well-stocked motorcycle dealerships to see what is available. There are so many styles and types that it comes down to personal comfort, visibility (in my opinion) and cost. I have over 50,000 miles on a Tour Master 3/4 jacket and pants and ride in all types of weather. The jacket is a frayed and needs to be replaced but I have had it for so long it's part of the family. Some do not like a 3/4 style so try on different jackets (and pants) to see what you like and what you think will work best.

Discussing gloves is like discussing riding gear--there are so many choices and you will need more than one pair because of the different weather/temperature conditions you will be riding (and caught) in. Gloves are available with no padding, soft padding, hard armor, waterproof, etc. Again, try them out at a dealership.

Most important of all is to wear the gear all the time. Ride safe and far.

Your car helmet, though better than nothing, is rated by different standards than a motorcycle helmet. Namely, it's a lot harder (and therefore transmits a lot more energy), since it's intended to hold up to being banged around repeatedly inside a tin can, not to withstand one big impact. Get yourself a dedicated motorcycle helmet - your noodle will thank you.

My shop sells Sparx helmets - and they're available at just about any big shop that carries the Tucker Rocky catalog - which are a fabulous bargain. (It's a new brand started by the same guys behind KBC, which made similar strides in high-quality-low-cost helmets a few years ago.) They're shockingly well made for a hundred-something-dollar helmet. They're DOT and ECE certified, but not Snell, which I consider to be a very good thing. Check this article (it's a long one, grab a drink) for the reasoning behind that logic: http://www.motorcyclistonline.com/gearbox/motorcycle_helmet_review/index.html

Sonic wrote: Thanks for the great tips. Any suggestions for gear? I have my full face helmet from running track days in the car, but I need a jacket, gloves, boots, etc.

No, no no no no. Do not wear a car helmet. Don't wear an old motorcycl helmet either. They do have a life expectancy, and anything that has been dropped over three feet is suspect

ignorant wrote: I turn 30 tomorrow. Chances that my wife will let me have a motorcycle are somewhere south of zero.

And didn't your loins just bare some fruit?

Just wait a few years. Your wife will probably offer to buy a bike for you.

ignorant wrote: I turn 30 tomorrow. Chances that my wife will let me have a motorcycle are somewhere south of zero.

LET you have a bike??

I had a ninja 250 as my first real motorcycle also and wouldn't mind getting another.

http://www.newenough.com/ is good place to shop for all the appropriate gear.

I loved riding the 250... and don't let the HP snobs tell you you need a bigger bike. My Triumph is 955cc and the BittyNinja is every bit as much fun on everything but the highway

I have this evil plan to turn a Ninja 250 into a dual sport

I'm a fan personally of Revit riding gear and Scorpion helmets... the EXO-700 is a great value.