I bought a bike.....

[jgcable]

Yea, you guys probably won't be too impressed but I settled on a 2003 Kawasaki Ninja 250R. It only has 1300 miles on it.
I figure its cheap, it gets fantastic reviews, its uber comfortable for me, its a great starter bike and supposedly its got really good performance in all respects. Its gotta be fun driving a bike that has a 14K readline and can handle shifting between 9K and 11K all day long. I heard that insurance is really cheap too because its only a 250.
My thoughts are that I could learn to ride on it for this entire season and once I decide that I like biking and once I know what type of bigger bike I actually want I can sell it easily and buy one.

The other nice thing is that with the money I have left over I can buy some quality riding gear and pay for that kick ass motorcycle course.
I guess gear should include:
Helmet
Gloves
Riding boots (which type should I be looking at??)
I would like to get one of those jackets with the body armor too.

Regarding helmets, any suggestions? Will a fully enclosed helmet be too much? I have never had a helmet on. Is visibility or hearing impaired? Some of my friends don't wear helmets. The others wear those 1/2 brain buckets. My dad has the helmet that has the visor on it. I like those fully enclosed helmets with the graphics that all the sport bikers wear.

Anyway, I am putting a deposit on the bike tomorrow and picking it up on Thursday.

[Cleveland Metal]

Don't know much about em, but it sure looks cool.

Congrats, and be safe!

[slayer32390]

Regarding helmets, any suggestions? Will a fully enclosed helmet be too much? I have never had a helmet on. Is visibility or hearing impaired? Some of my friends don't wear helmets. The others wear those 1/2 brain buckets. My dad has the helmet that has the visor on it. I like those fully enclosed helmets with the graphics that all the sport bikers wear.

Well I would say get a fully enclosed one, never hurts to be safe right? and as for the half helmets, I see it this way: Having an intact skull/top of your head doesn't really matter much if you ripped off your face and is laying on the pavement 50 ft behind you after a face first dive. Just my view of it though. Awesome bike and good luck with it

[LouSiffer]

Regarding the helmets, the full face are great for keeping the bugs and dirt out of your teeth.

I don't wear a helmet and oppose any laws forcing me to wear them, but, I recommend it. I have a different state of mind than most. I don't care if I die, just don't leave me paralyzed.

My first recommendations is the proper safety gear and dont forget the pants. If you ride for any amount of time you WILL put it down and bike pants help eliminate the road rash. -Lou

[RacerX]

FULL FACE HELMET A MUST!

If you got the bucks, get an Arai

If not, HJC

[thetroy]

I'd get leathers and an expensive helmet. You should probably end up spending about as much on gear as you did on the bike itself. I don't ride bikes much but I race shifterkarts and smowmobiles and you couldn't pay me to go without a good full-face helmet

[El_Kabong]

I was hoping for yourself that you would make this choice, congrats. Get a full face bucket and look around for used leather.

[emperor_black]

Will a fully enclosed helmet be too much? I have never had a helmet on. Is visibility or hearing impaired?

I had the exact same question for my friend who bought a black yamaha just a few months ago and it seems you feel its odd at first and then you get used to it. The "hearing impairment" is to protect your ears from the LOUD wind noise when you are cruising at 90 mph. And yeah, get one that covers your head completely. The wind is gonna come on your face so hard and heavy you wish you had something covering your face. :ROTF: And I believe the term is whiplash which happens so suddenly because of gusts of wind when you are riding at high speeds... good to be completely protected.

[Firebird V]

Congrats! I have a Blue HJC helmet. The Aria is he better helmet though. I have 2 of them actually. Bought my wife one but she never uses it.

[asix]

arai and shoe are both good just make sure it fits.

[SEEGERMANY]

Congratulations John! Many people are going to disagree with me, but I've been there and done that on purchasing accessories. I believe in safety, but I also believe in feeding the family. That includes the fish!

A good, mid-range full coverage helmut is a must. Match that with some good leather boots, gloves, and some decent, impact resistance eyewear and you'll be set. You should be able to get all these items for under $500.

Be safe, have fun, let'r rip tater chip!

[Chasbo]

Freaking fun looking bike man! That should be a blast to play on in the twisties.

As far as my advice on gear? ATTATG John. That means All The Gear All The Time. Live by that rule. Full face helmet, boots, CE armored jacket and pants and good leather gloves. While you are at it, if you can take the basic riders course, check with your DMV, you will give yourself a much better set of survival skills for street riding. Even just getting Hough's books and practicing his advice will help a ton.

That is the same advice I give to all new riders.

chuck

[zeegler]

I agree, get all the proper gear, and wear it all the time. I'm a hypocrite though, and have been know to jump on my bike and ride down to the store in flip-flops, shorts, a brainbucket, and nothing else.

I also have a nice scar on my leg. Pipes are hot.

[El Chiguete]

I guess that this is your first bike right?... well for the riding gear it all depends on what type of riding you are going to be doing? Just city riding, bar hopping, weekend rider, or long trips? For the city you'll need gear that will be easy on and off. Get a modular helmet, I like them better. But all depends on what tipe of biker you'll be. I woudn't recomend getting all leather up if you are only going to drive your bike 1 or 2 days a week to your friends place. Leathers are for road riding or weather riding (rain or could).

I ride a Harley FXDWG. On the city I allways wear my helmet (I have several small one since the hot wheather here in the caribbean, but my main one is a real 1941 german nazt helmet!), my gloves, my boots and my colors everyday (for those of you that don't understand those are my MC patchets). For the road I get all leather up with longer and stronger gloves and a full face modular helmet... ohh the and my colors. Remember that when you are going +60MPH you don't fell hot with them on. I do this because I'm the tipe of biker that no rain or fog will stop me!!!

Ride hard and continue riding, eventually you will want to get a bigger bike, but thats just how it's allways been.

[Thrust]

The following should be minimum:

Full face helmet (HJC or Scorpion for inexpensive; Arai or Shoei for the best).

Leather jacket with CE approved armor (see below)

Leather Gloves

Full-boots



I can't recommend these guys enough

https://www.newenough.com

I just picked this up (actually came in a few mins ago) on closeout. Great jacket @ an unbelievable price.

http://www.newenough.com/closeouts/leather_suits_jackets_and_pants/moto_gp/corkscrew_leather_motorcycle_jacket.html

Also, I'd recommend a full-boot. I ordered these--Oxtar TCS EVO ti (again, on closeout) from here

https://www.motorcyclecloseouts.com

Browse those sites if you're in a rush for gear (and you likely will be) also check out Ebay, craiglist, and other motorcycle forums for great deals on used gear.

Also, CONGRATS!!