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I have started looking for a motorcycle to buy for the spring/summer of next year. I am 6' 4", so I am looking for a compfortable bike for myself. I am looking at a cruiser bike, maybe a VStar or a Shadow. Are those any good for starter bikes, and for tall guys?
At 6'7", I certainly feel your pain. I started on a Suzuki SV650 and found it to be accommodating enough. It's a torquey little bugger, though, which means you have to mind yourself. My brother is your height and started on a Nighthawk 750. It was a great bike for him, very neutral seating position and easy to ride.
If you're hard up for a cruiser, my folks ride Triumphs (Speedmaster and America) that seem to work well for taller folks and handle pretty well. Power is certainly newb-friendly and they're relatively cheap used.
I have a v star 1300 classic. Now I would not call it a starter bike but at just over 6 foot I have room to spare. If i was you i would look at the v star 950.
I too was thinking the SV650, but i'm biased. I'm not tall, but I do know the bike sits high enough and the pegs are low enough that taller riders don't feel too cramped. Engine is ok for beginners, and will grow with the rider as they mature, it has excellent torque just off idle, allowing you to ride around like a standard v-twin cruiser of sorts...a big twist of the wrist allows great power output all the way to the 10,000 rpm redline.
My $0.002:
1) Go sit, literally, on a bunch of rides within your price/preference range. Only you can decide whether it "fits" ergonomically.
2) A worthwhile consideration is that a good first ride may not satisfy you in a year or so of riding experience. Definitely go for solid, used units in your first couple of choices. The depreciation cost on new bikes is pretty significant, buying new is only for keepers, if ever. The odds are you'll upgrade in the first year or so.
Most folks are best served starting out with a "trainer" ride that lets them develop basic skills while not getting them in trouble with too much power and/or weight. Join/attend any rider affairs you can find in your area. Be upfront that you're a newbie and ask for all the advice you can get. The rider community, in general, is a great resource of knowledge and expert advice - benefit by it.
The downside of buying a "keeper" at the beginning is you might get killed starting out with more bike than you can, as a new rider, appropriately handle.
Riding, for most folks, has a fairly distinct learning curve. The sweet spot is to survive the first year, 10K miles (there is no absolute definition, I'm just picking numbers for example and my opinion won't buy you a cheap beer) and get yourself sorted out with a ride that works for YOUR preferences.
3) Allow me this serious opinion - its a learning experience, you've got to (cautiously, in my advice) explore what ride fits you and your skill level. Get too ambitious too early in your ride choice and you'll be a bloodspot.
Buy and seriously study "Proficient Motorcycling" by David L. Hough, it is, IMO, the Bible of motorcycle riding.
You can, and more than few do, buy more ride than they can handle initially. Its wise to "respect the road" and understand that riding isn't for fools or folks who don't understand that one mistake can easily cripple or kill you in a heartbeat.
4) Riding is way more fun than most other pleasures, in my opinion, but you should absolutely understand - it has risks which you need to respect. Ride safe and enjoy the road.
Last edited by Pilgrim21784; 11-23-2011 at 01:17 AM..
Something I forgot to mention that might be useful:
Consider starting with any of the excellent dual sport (DS) rides as a first choice. The experience of off road riding is an excellent way to develop skills that will serve you well on the hardtop road, as well as expanding your riding options. Learning how to control a skid or do emergency braking is way safer in a dirt environment than hardtop.
There are a ton of good low cost, used DSs available and their higher seat height will fit your taller frame well as you explore and develop riding skills. They tend to be lighter weight and highly flickable machines, very useful for learning how to ride. I've always been bummed that we shorter height folks (maybe 5'8" here on a "stretch" day) can't fit well on most DSs.
When both my daughters wanted to explore riding, I insisted that they start on dual sports, with most of their initial riding time off hardtop. Fortunately, both my munchkins are significantly taller than I am. JMHO
Last edited by Pilgrim21784; 11-23-2011 at 08:41 AM..
At 6'7", I certainly feel your pain. I started on a Suzuki SV650 and found it to be accommodating enough. It's a torquey little bugger, though, which means you have to mind yourself. My brother is your height and started on a Nighthawk 750. It was a great bike for him, very neutral seating position and easy to ride.
If you're hard up for a cruiser, my folks ride Triumphs (Speedmaster and America) that seem to work well for taller folks and handle pretty well. Power is certainly newb-friendly and they're relatively cheap used.
Mike
I own both a Honda Shadow and a Triumph Speedmaster. The Shadow doesn't quite have the quality feel of the Triumph, but you can buy a Honda and get it serviced anywhere. Triumph's network of dealers isn't nearly extensive enough to make it really newbie friendly. If I had a Triumph dealer near me and I was 6' 4" I'd look for a Bonneville to get that extra 2 inches of seat height. They're a little easier to find used than the Speedies and Americas are. I think that fact fairly represents the positive opinions that most Triumph owners have toward their bikes. Oh, and BTW the Triumph will run circles around the Honda... not even close.
Get too ambitious too early in your ride choice and you'll be a bloodspot.
How do you define "ambitious"? Are you talking about sport bikes that have too much power for a beginner to handle? Or are you talking about cruisers like Harley's and Victory's that are too heavy (and thus cumbersome) for a beginner to handle?
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