Most people are in agreement that buying a new 600RR or 1000RR is insane for a newbie and recommend going with a 250. The insurance adjuster told me that there are a lot of claims this season (including my own), but he went out of his way to note, over the past 2 weeks, he's had 8 claims on the Kawasaki Ninja 250. The last one he did the other day had 250 mi on the odometer...which was the highest he's ever seen on a Kawasaki 250R claims. Lack of experience drives home a very large point here.

 

wow, but not too surprising...inexperience.

 

You wouldnt want to drop a bike period but i guess if happened due to lack of experience it would be better to drop a $3k bike than a $8-9k bike

 

I'm not surewhat argument, if any, you are making herewoo, but I have this much to say. No 2 wheeled motorized vehicle is safer than the next, so on this point I agree with you. This much is obvious. That being said, when I had the Ninja 250 that I started on, I layed it down as well. If you are insinuating that it'sjust as safefor noobs to start on 600's and liter bikes, then I must disagree with you on this point. For starters, the 250 prevented me from getting into far more trouble than I could have potentially gotten myself into with my current ride. Additionally, the bike was cheap and I could care less that I layed it down as compared to how irate I would be if I layed my CBR down.

I don't recommend a 250 as a starter bike because they are safer. Far from it! I'm a firm believer in the idea that there are only 2 types of riders; those that have laid it down and those that are going to. 250's are beaters and I treated mine as such. I made my rookie mistakes on it and learned, but not before beating that thing to hell. In the end, even after laying it down, I made a $200 profit when I sold it. I will never claim to know everything about riding, but I will say that I believe I would have seriously hurt or even killed myself had I started on a 600RR. I feel I am at the point that I can responsibly handle the power that the CBR has, and if I had to start over, I would have still started on the Ninja.

 

Shortbuss, my fault for not elaborating. I believe going to a 250 is a smart choice for beginner riders for the reasons that you stated, cheaper. I personally started on a 600 (which is now considered totalled because of rash). And the choice of starting with a used bike was perfect for me. I just thought the information that the adjuster provided was 1. Interesting and 2. Drives home the point that it's better to start cheaper and work your way up.

 

Interesting. I think it just goes to illustrate how many noobs in fact mess up when they begin riding. I've dropped my bike 3 times total. Once on the first turn I had to make, it was after a stop sign; only happened once, but it happened right when I started. Next it rolled back in a parking spot that was on an incline. Lastly, I was almost run over in a parking lot exit that was also on an incline. 3mph, but the bastard almost killed me so I turned sharp and jumped off. Good thing though, I had a 1600 bike to practice on, and the paint was already messed up, lol....it still is.

 

i know the 2005 models had a fuel tank leak recall

 

2 bolts that held the fairing on were too long.



Who the hell does a claim on a 250 (old model). Get on ebay, choose from hundreds of parts for cheap, replace, ride on. If a bike cost less than $4k, its liability only for me. In 2 years on full coverage you'd have half of the same bike payed off.

 

sorry for the threadjack, but ranger... I just spent the last two minutes staring nonstop at your avi... it's very nice lol

 

250's lighter to throw around and pickup WHEN u lay it down. Way cheaper to buy. Most insurance companies charge by the cc of the bike so the 250 would be cheaper in that regard. Also if you paid only 3g's for a new bike why would you file an insurance claim on it for rash because the deductible would be a few hundred and your rates will be affected for sure and all over a couple hundred bucks and soon after it gets fixed there is a good chance it will go down again. Learn on it and sell to someone else to learn on with the rash because you will only lose a little money for a big lesson. Just my 2cents.