First bike questions

[cletus]

Hi all hows it goin
Lookin at gettin my first road bike.....narrowed it down to a 250 Hornet, i think. only thing is im 6`1 and 135kgs. Would the hornet haul the lardyness ok? or should i be lookin at getting an exemption from the 250cc rule and getting something with a bit more torque. will be a weekend toy.....probably with a few open road trips. any advice welcomed, thanks

[ZeroIndex]

It'll be fine... oh, and welcome to the site...

[Scooby Mike]

Hi there, I'm 6 foot 2 and recently bought a 250 Hornet as my first bike and I don't have a problem with space on it. I've got quite long legs but find that the indents in the tank give plenty of leg room so I'm sure you'll be fine.

I can't really comment on the performance though as I've only had it for a couple of weeks and have been taking it very easy so far.

As far as I'm concerned it's an ideal first bike but I am ever so slightly biased.

[Chisanga]

PM gijoe1313. He is "Quite a big fella " :) and manages very well indeed onhis Hornet.

P.S. And he does BIG rides e.g. 500km+ in a day

[ZeroIndex]

PM gijoe1313. He is "Quite a big fella " :) and manages very well indeed onhis Hornet.

P.S. And he does BIG rides e.g. 500km+ in a day

yeah, GIJOE1313 and his pootles... he keeps up fairly well with that Hornet 250 of his...

[MSTRS]

Hi all hows it goin
Lookin at gettin my first road bike.....narrowed it down to a 250 Hornet, i think. only thing is im 6`1 and 135kgs. Would the hornet haul the lardyness ok? or should i be lookin at getting an exemption from the 250cc rule and getting something with a bit more torque. will be a weekend toy.....probably with a few open road trips. any advice welcomed, thanks

The Hornet will do, but might be working a bit. Try the exemption-thingie and go for a V-twin for that extra torque in a user-friendly package (Eg SV, V-Strom)

[Sanx]

If you're tall, and you can get an exemption, you might want to consider something like the Suzuki DR-Z400SM Supermoto, KTM 640 LC4 Supermoto. I'm of the opinion that if you're tall enough to handle them, road-legal trailies or supermotos make the ideal first bike.

They're probably the best bikes for riding around town. Ultra-manouverable, heaps of low-down grunt, easy riding position, lots of suspension travel (speed bumps become great fun) and you can take them for the odd weekend blast too. Even better, invest in a set of MX wheels and tyres for them, and you've got two bikes for the price of one.

If you just want a pure road-legal trail bike, the 'possibles' list is a lot longer. Yamaha and Honda both do several road-legal trail bikes. Most KTMs can be made road-legal by the dealer; and the same for Husaberg and Husqvarna.

[yod]

Hi all hows it goin
Lookin at gettin my first road bike.....narrowed it down to a 250 Hornet, i think. only thing is im 6`1 and 135kgs. Would the hornet haul the lardyness ok? or should i be lookin at getting an exemption from the 250cc rule and getting something with a bit more torque. will be a weekend toy.....probably with a few open road trips. any advice welcomed, thanks

135kgs?? dude, you're a monster...which scrum are you propping in south africa??

oh...and welcome to KB.....

[ZeroIndex]

If you're tall, and you can get an exemption, you might want to consider something like the Suzuki DR-Z400SM Supermoto, KTM 640 LC4 Supermoto. I'm of the opinion that if you're tall enough to handle them, road-legal trailies or supermotos make the ideal first bike.

They're probably the best bikes for riding around town. Ultra-manouverable, heaps of low-down grunt, easy riding position, lots of suspension travel (speed bumps become great fun) and you can take them for the odd weekend blast too. Even better, invest in a set of MX wheels and tyres for them, and you've got two bikes for the price of one.

If you just want a pure road-legal trail bike, the 'possibles' list is a lot longer. Yamaha and Honda both do several road-legal trail bikes. Most KTMs can be made road-legal by the dealer; and the same for Husaberg and Husqvarna.

Those Suzuki DR-Z400SM's are awesome...

[vamr]

Those Suzuki DR-Z400SM's are awesome...

Agreed. Just wish I could get more then my tiptoes down on one without hacking the seat up.

No better excuse to invest in platform boots. :done:

[ZeroIndex]

Agreed. Just wish I could get more then my tiptoes down on one without hacking the seat up.

No better excuse to invest in platform boots. :done:

I'm 6'4, and so far the only bike I've had a problem sitting on with both feet firmly planted is that new 950 v-twin KTM... those things have crazy amounts of clearance...

[cletus]

sweet....thanks for the replies:yes:

[peasea]

Hi all hows it goin
Lookin at gettin my first road bike.....narrowed it down to a 250 Hornet, i think. only thing is im 6`1 and 135kgs. Would the hornet haul the lardyness ok? or should i be lookin at getting an exemption from the 250cc rule and getting something with a bit more torque. will be a weekend toy.....probably with a few open road trips. any advice welcomed, thanks

Can you get an exepmtion to the 250 rule??? I got plucked on my 1340 HD on a learners and the cop never mentioned THAT!!!!

[Ixion]

You *can*. But it's not easy. And learners is much harder to get exemption than restricted. Basically have to prove that a 250 is unsafe for you. And convince them that you don't just want an exemption to buy a big bike.

Being old helps. And having a good driving record for lots of years (in a cage, usually). And if you can say that the bike you intend to ride will be no faster than most 250s that helps (proves its not just "I wanna really fast bike").

And the luck of the drawer. Some get it. A lot don't. It's one of the harder ones, because they know that most people who complain about the 250 rules and want a bigger bike just want it for the speed. Which is exactly what the 250 rule is designed to prevent.

It's totally at their discretion by the way. Absolutely no appeal, and no guidelines except the "must be no less safe for you and other road users." And, by definition a >250 is assumed less safe than a <250, until you overthrow the assumption.

A 1340 Harley would be pretty tough.

[xwhatsit]

Absolutely no appeal
Can't you just resubmit?

...

Ask GiJoe1313 about his Hornet. GiJoe1313 is a pretty well-built guy (although not as much as you), it's a good thing he's so friendly because I sure as hell wouldn't want to look at him funny in a dark alley :D He cracks his 250cc Hornet along at a very reasonable pace. I struggle to keep up with him, even off the lights, and my bike weighs very little and so do I.

Just give it shit. I've heard the engines are exceedingly reliable.

[dman]

If you're tall, and you can get an exemption, you might want to consider something like the Suzuki DR-Z400SM Supermoto, KTM 640 LC4 Supermoto. I'm of the opinion that if you're tall enough to handle them, road-legal trailies or supermotos make the ideal first bike.
Hmmm.... tempting what you wrote afterwards, but for long distance commuting (say 100k per day) or traveling wellington/auckland a couple of times per year then it would be a bad idea when compared to a sports bike or cruiser?


At 6' 4" I can get an exemption from having to ride under 250cc?! Neat, might look into that later.

[mitchilin]

Can you get an exepmtion to the 250 rule??? I got plucked on my 1340 HD on a learners and the cop never mentioned THAT!!!!

Exemptions cause you're too tall?Shit I'm 6'3 and used to ride a CB100 and a U70 suzki.And they were way easier to jump on than trying to get in a corolla.

[dman]

True, I so rarely travel inside a car these days it always feels very cramped and constricted whenever I have to travel inside a cage.

[cletus]

went and rode one on wednesday.....happy enough with how it went so i bought one...picked it up this morning and have already done 120km on it. great fun! wound up the rear spring preload and it doesnt bottom out. only things ive taken a while to get right is remembering to turn the indicators off and getting used to the revs it likes....doesnt seem to wake up until bout 10,000rpms :scooter:

[gijoe1313]

went and rode one on wednesday.....happy enough with how it went so i bought one...picked it up this morning and have already done 120km on it. great fun! wound up the rear spring preload and it doesnt bottom out. only things ive taken a while to get right is remembering to turn the indicators off and getting used to the revs it likes....doesnt seem to wake up until bout 10,000rpms :scooter:

:woohoo: Good on ya matey! Yeah, 10k is perfect happy hunting grounds for the twisties - loves it, get use to the 4k to pull away at lights! :lol: If you have any questions at all, just give me a PM and I'll be happy to answer any queries!

Piccies? :drool:

[cletus]

thanks man....heres a pic:yes:

[peasea]

Hi all hows it goin
Lookin at gettin my first road bike.....narrowed it down to a 250 Hornet, i think. only thing is im 6`1 and 135kgs. Would the hornet haul the lardyness ok? or should i be lookin at getting an exemption from the 250cc rule and getting something with a bit more torque. will be a weekend toy.....probably with a few open road trips. any advice welcomed, thanks

You'll probably be at full throttle a lot but yup, it'll be fine. Go grab some k's and smile!

Welcome.