YOUNG RIDER HERE IN NEED OF HELP! :)

[jraice]

Your actions will speak louder than our words ever will

Thats what I am hoping!

But yeah, I feel like everyone is pushing "250" on this kid when he is talking about a rebel, not a 250R. That is understandable, I wouldn't want to spend much time learning to ride on a rebel (albeit, I did learn on a much smaller 50cc MB5 then moved to the R6, but that was after a lot of seat time on the small bike).

OP clearly has some money, although I highly doubt he realizes the expenses that come along with it (tires, insurance and gear), and also seems to want a flashy sporty looking bike, hence why I think the new generation Ninja 250 would be a solid choice, or at least something with a more manageable power band and more upright bars.

+1 to the Gary J comments. Also if the OP ever gets to the track he can see Bartlow passing big bikes all day long on a 250... hell even I was passing R1's on one when I went out for a 250 day in Sonoma.

 

[Bravnik]

I'm scared of any 15 year old behind the wheel of a car much less on an R6. I question the parents in this case that will let a child buy or purchase an R6 for him/her. At 15 the parents have to be the voice of reason and when that fails....well. Lets just hope the end result is not fatal.

I hope this is a troll post but if not, I wish you all the luck in the world. If you do get an R6 I hope it is not the first big mistake you make in your life and you pay for it with the ultimate price. GL kid. You will need it.

 

[jraice]

I hope this is a troll post but if not, I wish you all the luck in the world. If you do get an R6 I hope it is not the first big mistake you make in your life and you pay for it with the ultimate price. GL kid. You will need it.

I used Facebook to message him about hooking up for some riding, and his default picture was him (with nothing but a helmet...) straddling a new R6, so I don't think its a troll. I'd be curious to hear what the OP's test ride involved. I recall my first time riding a 600. It was a GSX-R600 in a parking lot/neighborhood. Previously I had only ridden my 50cc two stroke and been dirt biking on 125's.

The bike felt very controllable and powerful, but I never got it over 7,000rpm. I wonder if the OP realizes just how much power (and how hard it comes on) is hiding in those RPM's. Even if he is smart enough to short shift and keep it manageable, its much less fun riding that way then tearing through the gears on a smaller bike, such as my Buell.

Its more fun to ride a slow bike fast than a fast bike slow.

 

[Diezel]

Slow the fuck down, and enjoy life. Don't focus on getting a new bike ASAP. Keep your rear end in school, and buy whatever the hell bike your "disposable income" will allow when you have enough of it.... AFTER you land a good job and finish your education.

I still stand by my earlier comment. OP: You're too damn young to be blowing money on bikes.

Bikes are space time manifestations that have a tiny black hole at the center, which only sucks money. They are investments in the sense that a $1000 hooker and five grams of coke are an investment.

Glad to see I'm not the only clear thinking old fart.

 

[BMK]

Not opposed at all. I'd sign a petition to help instate tiered licensing in a heartbeat

Agreed. It cracks me up that:

1. You can legally ride around in Bay Area traffic on a two-wheeled missile just a couple years after surviving the hormonal haze of puberty.

2. At 18, the government will happily provide you with an assault rifle and ask you to kill people with it. And, I'm told they will casually recommend that you avoid being killed yourself, so that you can be available to kill other people if necessary. (Big respect and gratitude to our veterans, by the way. )

3. At the age of 21, you will finally be allowed to have a sip of the shitty, watered-down beer they peddle at Giants games.


Who are these people that are writing our laws?

 

[Bravnik]

I used Facebook to message him about hooking up for some riding, and his default picture was him (with nothing but a helmet...) straddling a new R6, so I don't think its a troll.

Oh well. Then I wish him luck and have to seriously question the mush between his parents ears.

Who knows. Maybe he is a little shit and they have a huge insurance policy on him with double accident coverage

 

[Flying Pig]

Where's the 'you'll put your eye out kid' option on the poll M8?

But seriously, I understand wanting something a bit better (read cooler) than the Rebel 250. (I think most of you BARFers missed that part of the 250 discussion) Consider instead a newer Ninja 250, Honda VT250, or (I know you won't like the styling but I'll toss it out anyway) an enduro bike in the 250~350 range.
In the case of most smaller 'beginner' bikes, assuming you keep it in good shape, you should be able to sell it next year for about what you paid for it. You can't do that with most other types of bikes, as there's always a newer, faster model replacing it. It's like having a bank you can ride!

I suggested a brand new CBR250R since they are brand spanking new, well within OP's budget, and easier to ride than a Kawi 250 around town from what I can gather. But he didn't respond to it

 

[JPK]

I suggested a brand new CBR250R since they are brand spanking new, well within OP's budget, and easier to ride than a Kawi 250 around town from what I can gather. But he didn't respond to it

It's all apparently academic at this point, as his profile here now also shows his bike as a 2006 R6. Oh well, I remember being young and stupid too.

 

[Flying Pig]

+1 to the Gary J comments. Also if the OP ever gets to the track he can see Bartlow passing big bikes all day long on a 250... hell even I was passing R1's on one when I went out for a 250 day in Sonoma.

I have footage of me being passed by 3 250's at Thunderhill last year. Brian, Mark, and some other racer/fast-guy. Got passed by all 3 250's between turn 3 and 4. They had all crested the hill before I even started to work my way up 5a

It was a very humbling experience

 

[The]

You should get a sprotbile.

 

[stan23]

How many of you were 15 and drooled over the latest supersport bike? I know I did. Shoot, I had kids at my school rocking brand new F3's, that I wish I had the coin and parental approval to buy.

My point is, he's lucky to be where he's at - and not EVERYONE will wreck. Shoot.. once quick crack at the throttle and he may actually learn to respect the bike.

 

[jraice]

I have footage of me being passed by 3 250's at Thunderhill last year. Brian, Mark, and some other racer/fast-guy. Got passed by all 3 250's between turn 3 and 4. They had all crested the hill before I even started to work my way up 5a

It was a very humbling experience

My fastest lap ever at Thill (2:12.00) was done will riding behind Brian and following his lines. I was able to get a personal best, while throttling down nearly a full second early for some of the corners to avoid passing Brian pre-entry. When I road one at Infineon I thought to myself, this is what a MotoGP bike feels like when its running on one cylinder. Its a hoot to ride, would love to try one on the street sometime.

 

[jraice]

How many of you were 15 and drooled over the latest supersport bike? I know I did. Shoot, I had kids at my school rocking brand new F3's, that I wish I had the coin and parental approval to buy.

My point is, he's lucky to be where he's at - and not EVERYONE will wreck. Shoot.. once quick crack at the throttle and he may actually learn to respect the bike.

+1 I had an R6 when I was 16 but I had a lot of seat time (~4000 miles, which is a good deal of mountain riding when you top out at 52mph downhill with a tail wind) on a much smaller bike.

I never really opened up the R6 though, and bought the Buell because it had a more street friendly power band that I could more easily access. My learning curve steepened exponentially after hopping on the easier to handle Buell, although now I wish I had the R6 for track riding. But that goes along with the point many expressed in this thread. Its your first bike not your last, just because you may out grow it doesn't mean you should step up before you're ready. If he is successful in the non-moto world it could be one of the dozens of bikes he will own in his riding career. Be patient.

 

[n8]

I'd really like to know how much a 15 yo rider has to pay for full coverage insurance on an R6. Somehow I'm thinking it's not even available.

I used Facebook to message him about hooking up for some riding, and his default picture was him (with nothing but a helmet...) straddling a new R6, so I don't think its a troll. I'd be curious to hear what the OP's test ride involved. I recall my first time riding a 600. It was a GSX-R600 in a parking lot/neighborhood. Previously I had only ridden my 50cc two stroke and been dirt biking on 125's.

The bike felt very controllable and powerful, but I never got it over 7,000rpm. I wonder if the OP realizes just how much power (and how hard it comes on) is hiding in those RPM's. Even if he is smart enough to short shift and keep it manageable, its much less fun riding that way then tearing through the gears on a smaller bike, such as my Buell.

Its more fun to ride a slow bike fast than a fast bike slow.

do 600's behave sanely up til 7k, then once u go to like 10+ it goes apeshit?

ive never ridden a 600 b4, or anything else besides my 250. i feel a tiny jolt of power from like....7-13k, but i'm not wow'd off of my seat

nonetheless, satisfied enough

 

[jraice]

do 600's behave sanely up til 7k, then once u go to like 10+ it goes apeshit?

ive never ridden a 600 b4, or anything else besides my 250. i feel a tiny jolt of power from like....7-13k, but i'm not wow'd off of my seat

nonetheless, satisfied enough

Pretty much. Look at it this way. You can't really imagine riding aggressively through the hills on your 250 while staying under 7,000rpm, correct? Now realize that at 7,000rpm, this R6 below has 10hp on your maximum power. In that 7,000-10,000rpm range the R6 comes alive, with a healthy torque boost. After 10,000rpm these things really come into their element. I used to ride mine around with the shift light set to 10,000rpm and still wonder how I had teleported from one block to the next at warp 9.

From 5,000rpm-redline the R6 has a 15-20 foot pound torque range, which climbs pretty aggressively around 9,000rpm, while the SV is closer to a 5 foot pound increase.

http://image.sportrider.com/f/10012338/146_0804_04_z+2008_yamaha_YZF-R6+dyno_graph.jpg

http://image.sportrider.com/f/9054529/146_0308_z+sv650_dyno+hp_torque_copy.jpg

 

[Stormdragon]

I suggested a brand new CBR250R since they are brand spanking new, well within OP's budget, and easier to ride than a Kawi 250 around town from what I can gather. But he didn't respond to it

I noticed that, and kudos to ya for doing so!

I was just thinking along the lines of used, over new, since the depreciation has already been taken care of. And we all know what happens to 7 out of 8 bikes while the new rider is backing up/coming to a stop/taking a turn next to the house they've taken 100 times before.
I know I was royally PO'ed at myself when I managed to dent up that shiny chrome points cover on my CB350F. On the second day of ownership.

(At least, I didn't have to repair any fairings!)

 

[wellbredred]

but you wont listen. you want a pretty, sexy bike so you can maximize your pun-tang. which i can totally understand, you being 15.

Shit why not recommend a V-rod? Those things might snag you some pun-tang from 15 to 50yo. I hear the wimmenzs like sitting on washing machines

 

[Brown81]

I wouldn't recommend R6's or 15 year olds.

 

[wellbredred]

I wouldn't recommend R6's or 15 year olds.

Is that a freudian slip, "or 15 year olds"?

 

[Yakoo752]

get what you want. you do not need validation from anyone in here.

My first bike was an RC51 that I loved!!! I totaled it in a spectacular fashion 2 years later I was all of 19. It was good fun!

Only thing I can think of in your shoes... what is insurance gonna cost you on that thing? That and that alone would be my determining factor of what bike I buy/ride.