I find this American attitude towards motorcycles fascinating. In pretty much everything the idea for most of you guys is 'bigger is better' or 'can't beat cubes', yet with motorcycles most everyone insists on those 250ies as starter bikes.
There is nothing wrong with starting on a 600 or 650 bike if it's a two cylinder engine. Something like an R6 is obviously a lot faster with the same displacement and demands a little more respect. But there's little reason to dogmatically stick to 250cc bikes. If anything they are often shod with lower quality tires and brakes (which is less than ideal if safety is of primary concern), they will also leave something to be desired in terms of power. Getting on an R1, 1098 or S1000RR your first day out is unwise, but there's a middle ground as well.
Anyway, congrats on all you new bike owners here. The Harley, SV650 and R6 all look great. For the guy who was sideswiped (Rass), glad you're okay, hope insurance sorts everything out.
@Soapster: that driving schools supplies those BWM S1000s? Very nice, great bike huh? That power curve is almost linear with that quick shifter
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As for my own bike, recently I finally mounted the exhaust system it deserves. It sounds fucking awesome now:
