Handy
Information for new Bikers
For anyone considering buying their first real motorcycle,
not just a learner 50 cc, this question and answer interview with
a novice biker should help answer some questions you may have regarding
bike choice and what its like to start riding.
Mark is a 27 year old IT technician. He passed his motorbike test
second time around.
Why did you want to get into biking?
I have just always fancied getting my bike test. I finally got around
to passing my test in Feb 05, which I did on a borrowed bike, I enjoyed
it so much that I had to get a bike. My bike is not my main form of
transport so is mainly used for fun, although have done a number of
large journeys when the mood took me.
What is your previous experience?
My bike experience was very limited before learning, just the odd
weekend as a teenager playing around on scramblers on a field. And
driving experience 10 years in a car, used to enjoy giving it a bit
of right foot, but find cars quite boring now!
What other bikes were you considering?
I really want a sports bike, but decided for my first bike I would
get something not too mental, must be getting soft in my old age...
I looked at and test rode a few bikes in the 600 class. Hornet,
Yamaha
FZ6, Suzuki
Bandit and SV650.
I decided on the Hornet because I liked the looks and it felt like
I would get the most fun out of it, and as I was buying the bike as
a toy and not a commuter, fun was what I was looking for.
What do you use the bike for and in what weather conditions?
I drive to work and back in my car, so the bike is mainly for after
work fun and weekends. Living in the Lake District there is no shortage
of bike roads within a couple of miles of my house. I have also used
it on a number of occasions to go away for the weekend to Manchester
and Liverpool, this is great fun on the Cumbrian part of the A6 but
normal nip on to the motorway at Lancaster and that gets quite boring.
When I got the bike I didn't want to become a sun only rider, so in
the beginning I forced myself out in not too good conditions. Now
I will take it out in sun or rain... I have got caught in a couple
of massive hail storms in my short riding career, one of which was
on a test ride of a CBR600R which I had signed to say I would pay
for the first £1,000 worth of damage, that was fairly nerve
racking.
Any near misses or scary moments?
The nearest I have come to having an off was when I hit a cat. I had
just come off a roundabout and was doing about 80 down the straight
when a cat jumped out from a hedge. I missed it with the front wheel
and it went under the back one, the bike got a very big wobble on
but I managed to stay on. I defiantly got out of it better that the
cat.
I also kicked (not on purpose, it ran into my foot) a pheasant whilst
doing a nice speed, not too scary, but hurt my foot a bit even with
my decent boots on, so would defiantly not advise wearing trainers.
Apart from the cat I can't really think of any other moments where
I though 'I'm coming off here'.
What bike would you get next realistically, year, size, model?
Not too sure yet, defiantly planning on keeping this one for at least
one more year. I would really like a sports bike (Yamaha
R6, or Suzuki
GSXR600) but I like the hornet because I can go on longer journeys
without turning in to a hunch back. Hopefully if I have the cash I
can keep the Hornet and get a sports bike as well.
What bike would you get next if money didn't matter?
Probably a Ducati
999, but I think I would really scare myself on it.
Where do you see yourself as far as biking goes in 10 years?
Hopefully just toting up loads of miles and progressing to bigger
and better bikes. I have done 4000 miles in the 9 months I have owned
it and definitely want to do more next year. I am thinking of taking
a couple of weeks off work next summer and going for a spin around
Europe. I've got a few mates scattered around so I think it would
be good to just drive and see where I ended up. I have not really
considered a track day yet but I think it will be on the cards once
I get a sports bike.
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