Thinking about getting a bike.

Joker said:
I purchased a KTM RC390 two months ago, awesome bike..


bSTWrXY.jpg
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That is beautiful.

Where did you get it?
 
I would ride a bike if it weren't for other motorists, pedestrians and animals on the road.
The fact is that the risk of being injured or killed on a motor bike is much higher than a vehicle.
Nearly everyone I know who have ridden motor bikes have either had life threatening accidents, died in a crash or they're limping around with metal pins holding them together.
If you have a good life insurance that will pay out enough to support your dependents in case of permanent disability or death and you don't think they need a father or husband, then go for it.

<cue all the motor cycle enthusiasts who've been fortunate enough to never have a crash>
 
Paul_S said:
<cue all the motor cycle enthusiasts who've been fortunate enough to never have a crash>
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No such thing. All of us have had crashes, just the severity differs. Some due to you putting your foot down on an oil patch and coming short, others because of people running red lights. I'm fortunate in that none of my offs have resulted in anything but a bruised ego and feeling like an idiot. I just don't take chances when I'm on a bike. That being said, I'll probably be selling my bike as honestly, I don't use her anymore because of my promotion which requires me to have long stays away from home.
 
I used to cycle 15km every day to work. On a R500 Chinaman buttraper from Game. In Johannesburg. Yes I took a shower on hot days before anyone got there, but it was major fun.
 
SauRoNZA said:
Burn the R500 odd and go do a beginning rider 5-hour training course.
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I'm planning on doing this, however, the courses I've found are A LOT more expensive than this. Any such courses in JHB you can recommend?
 
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Have to say, been driving bikes both on-and off-road (mostly on road up until now) and the two things I found are most important, wet or dry, is to ALWAYS think for everyone else on the road and to know exactly what your bike can and can't do. Have seen quite a lot of guys in traffic who just look uncomfortable on their bikes due to them not taking it out on a quiet road or track and learning the feel of it before you tackle the traffic.
Just think for everyone and you should be ok, barring the odd ankle biter running from an open gate :wtf:
 
tRoN said:
Before you buy think about the other idiots on the road

http://youtu.be/PuN5HsaOMiU
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Only idiot in that video is the guy riding the bike.

Let's not bull**** ourselves and make it everyone else's fault.

Paul_S said:
I would ride a bike if it weren't for other motorists, pedestrians and animals on the road.
The fact is that the risk of being injured or killed on a motor bike is much higher than a vehicle.
Nearly everyone I know who have ridden motor bikes have either had life threatening accidents, died in a crash or they're limping around with metal pins holding them together.
If you have a good life insurance that will pay out enough to support your dependents in case of permanent disability or death and you don't think they need a father or husband, then go for it.

<cue all the motor cycle enthusiasts who've been fortunate enough to never have a crash>
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Again I bet if you were honest about it then you will realise that your friends being severely injured or dead did it mostly to themselves and it wasn't magically everyone else's fault.

Yes you do get injured when crashing a bike. You don't automatically die because you ride one though, unless you volunteered yourself for that.

Circumstantial anomalies aside people who ride bikes also need to be honest with themselves and accountable to their actions. It's not magically everyone else's fault.

I've had numerous accidents and I can't say for I was magically innocent to all of them and that it was absolutely the other party involved's fault.

Yes they ultimately made a "maybe" accident into a real accident, but it could have been avoided completely based on my actions leading up to it.

To this day I don't have any additional metal bits in my body and have all my limbs...12 years and a 100 000+ km later. Worst that has happened to me is breaking my foot and that was the lowest speed accident of them all.

****

But I agree everyone should have Life Insurance and more importantly Medical Aid in place when riding a bike. Actually the same should be applied to cars...there are more of them on the road and you are more likely to collide with one.

GhostSixFour said:
I'm planning on doing this, however, the courses I've found are A LOT more expensive than this. Any such courses in JHB you can recommend?
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Sadly I don't know of any. But it's a priceless exercise compared to buying a bike and gear only to find out it's not really for you.

srothman said:
Pretty...

How much are they though?
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I think 56k or so brand new. But the reason I list it as a starter bike is that it comes with ABS (which nobody should go without on the road, not even pros) and the engine is small enough to not be intimidating while having enough poke to be fun.
 
Mista_Mobsta said:
Have to say, been driving bikes both on-and off-road (mostly on road up until now) and the two things I found are most important, wet or dry, is to ALWAYS think for everyone else on the road and to know exactly what your bike can and can't do. Have seen quite a lot of guys in traffic who just look uncomfortable on their bikes due to them not taking it out on a quiet road or track and learning the feel of it before you tackle the traffic.
Just think for everyone and you should be ok, barring the odd ankle biter running from an open gate :wtf:
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And understand your relative speed compared to everything else.

Doing >45km/h between 1st/2nd gear traffic is going to make you a statistic.

Don't follow other bikes and try to "keep up" let them go their own way and be accountable for themselves.
 
(without reading the entire thread, just wanted to mention this)
A lot of people say that "cars" and other "things" generally are out to kill you on the road.
While this is true, how you ride your bike on the road also plays a rather big role in whether or not you get off your bike
safely at point B with both feet and tyres on the ground.

Ride like a chop, you're asking for trouble. Take responsibility, and ride well.

I do have days where I ride like a chop, but it endangers myself and others.

In general, ride safe, be aware, wear your gear, and you'll be fine. Got some friends who have been riding for decades without any accidents. Simply
because they ride well and aren't adrenaline junkies. That, and a bit of luck. :)

Good luck and have fun! Owning a bike is one of the best things ever.
 
I couldn't help but read that like a robot... I only got to the second line though before wanting to stab my eyes out...
 
SauRoNZA said:
I think 56k or so brand new. But the reason I list it as a starter bike is that it comes with ABS (which nobody should go without on the road, not even pros) and the engine is small enough to not be intimidating while having enough poke to be fun.
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How do you think the 200 will compare? I'm also looking to enter the motorcycle market (been toying with the idea since forever though...), so something that, like you put it, isn't too intimidating for a beginner sounds very good to me.

EDIT: Nevermind, I see the 200 doesn't have ABS, so that goes out the window...
 
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