[acecycleins]

Suggestion

Dear Newbie,

Today's modern 600 supersport machine WILL KILL YOU faster that you imagine. Let me tell you my latest tragedy from your friendly neighborhood motorcycle insurance agent; On Tuesday of last week I got a call from Micheal- Micheal is Andrew's big brother. Micheal told me that Andrew had died because he lost control of his bike while "playing" in the back parking lot of a Publix Supermarket. Seems Andrew was traveling at high speed and had a wobble that cause him and his bike to FLY over the edge of a 110ft verticle drop off the Publix property. Sad- but true.
I put insurance on that bike on 10-13-07. YES, he was a novice rider and I suspect that it was a result of "trying" to learn wheelies that lead to the tank slapper.
SO- suggestions:
Buy Used- keep it under $3000 and stay away from anything that's made within the last 5 yrs.
Get Training- MSF or private- get it or you're just another dumb a$$ squid.
DON'T listen to your buddies for riding tips if they have less than 10yrs street riding- 'cause they're making mistakes by the hour- guaranteed.
What to buy- 1999-2002 Suzuki sv650, 1996-2004 Suzuki Katana or Bandit, Kawasaki EX250 or EX500 Ninja, Honda 599, all are sporty fun without sportbike pricing
What I would get: Suzuki DRZ400sm, DRZ400s, DR650, Kawasaki KLR 250 or 650, Yamaha XT model.

Don't try to go for "looks" for the first bike- you WILL drop it. Get something you can log miles on and get some seat time. Want to go fast- Spend $3000 on a track day bike and a trailer.

 

[acecycleins]

As important as LEATHER is the new textiles are great. It really depends on location and type of weather you encounter on a daily basis. I prefer Alpinestars equipment because I find the quality vs price to my liking. Joe Rocket and Shift equipment don't seem to have the same level of craftsmanship. Fieldsheer and Cortech make great gear in textiles and fine leathers, too. Like I said, it depends on conditions. Right now, in ATL its a chilly 50 degrees outside and the morning drive was on the low 30s. I would have ridden in textiles if the low was in the 40s but leathers are cozy warm below that and warm is good.
BTW- the advise you seek and receive from this site is sometimes slighly tongue and cheek but very valid. ANY bike can be your downfall. Area, traffic conditions and topography should be considerations in your bike choice. Just because a sportbike looks cool doesn't mean you should consider it if you live in heavily wood, animal dense, remote areas. Same thing holds for a dual purpose bike in say southern Arizona or metro Miami-Dade area. Riding in a National Forest is only so much fun on a sportbike when you have thousands of fire roads to explore. Or dodging semi-trucks on the interstate in southern FL is a crap shoot on a DRZ in the acceleration vs overall tonnage contest.

 

[acecycleins]

i just ment that i would like to be addressed using my real name instead of newbie (again not being an ass)
i still know im a noob so its all good

anyway i live in tampa fl so i have alot of everything: highways, city, interstate (which i will treat like when i got my first car, stay away for AWHILE lol), backroads, off road, and just about anything else

and for riding equipment i would rather race type gear over leather jacket, jeans, and chaps (is that to sterotypical?)

For "air-flow" stuff I'd go Alpinestars. Rain- Alpinestars, TourMaster and Fieldsheer. Depending on your size I'd say and excellent full suit would be a Teknic or Troy Lee Designs Supermoto outfit. Light weight enough for middle FL and rugged enough to take a spill. If you get to Jennings or what ever is close to Tampa for track day events and need "approved" leathers: Alpinestars, Teknic, Arlen Ness make great full-suits.
FYI- ICON, Joe Rocket, Cortech, Draggin Jeans and a couple more make armored denim (some with kevlar) that are every bit as rugged as leather.

 

[acecycleins]

I'm not saying JR sux. The guy is paying for a GTO. He's got resources. I'm saying dollar for dollar the quality of Alpinestars and Cortech seem to be better than the current crop of accessories that Rocket is shipping lately. I've owned many JR pieces and my feeling is that the other products have better construction. Anyway, price wise there is only about a 10-20% difference in their like items. The fact is that should not be too expensive when it comes to safety. Buy a cheaper bike if money's an issue.

 

[acecycleins]

Two piece. The one piece suit is great for track days and hard romps in the mountains (which you lack in Tampa). Two piece suits Zip so you'll get all the benefits of the one peice with the ability to leave pieces behind at times. Boots- Casual riding: Alpinestars Octane, Sidi Doha are great for anytime and can be worn casual; Rain: Alpinestars Recon, Sidi Typhoon; Casual and/or rain: Teknic Hurricane; Track: Teknic Chicane, Sidi Strada, Oxtar Performance 2, Alpinestars Supertech, AGV Sebring2. Helmets- Subjective; depends on how your bean is shaped. AGV helmets seem fine for me. I own 2 and a Nolan that I'm happy with. Icon and Scorpion helmets are all the rage because the prices are good and quality is pretty good for that matter. Shoei, Shark, Suomy seem to make helmets that work good for those with egg shaped heads. Arai is great for guys with big 'ol fat bean heads that can get the ears to fit right under normal circumstances.