First Bike?!

[stoo61]

Hey folks, im looking to buy a GS500 at somepoint in the near future, my Dad had one bfore his Bandit, however it will be my first bike following the lawnmower of a scooter i have been ridin for the past year. What do you think of it as a first bike? too big? It was my dads first bike but he was the top end of 30.

Would be interested to hear what you think. Im not a rash hot head though dont worry


Stoo

[manofthefield]

I rode an 80cc yamaha for abour a year, then got a used GS as my "first bike".  I think I am a better rider for having been on the little Yamaha, and it made the transition to the GS pretty smooth, but obviously the GS has a ton more power.  It's a great first bike, especially when you pair it with the MSF course.  And its something you can keep ridinging for a few years to develope your skills.

[Ry_Guy]

I used to ride a 50cc moped before I got my gs. Check out the Decepticon Moped Army www.mopedarmy.com if you have time  :lol:  Riding a motorcycle definetly has a different feel, but is just as fun. Just don't go into it with the confidence you may have had on your scooter.

[Roadstergal]

It was my second bike - after a too-big-for-me, too-heavy-for-me '99 F650.  If you respect it and aren't afraid of it, I think it'd make a dandy first bike.

[vtlion]

the GS is a great first bike.

Beginner-level power without being so wimpy that it is unsafe on the road.

A suspension that will let you know immediately if you do anything wrong.

Simple to work on and cheap to own and maintain.

Insurance premiums are pretty cheap compared to more powerful bikes.

Honestly, the only reason I can think of NOT to recommend the GS would be if you are looking at a 2004.  The fairings probably will get scratched or damaged in the learning process  :dunno:

[R3d]

It is my first bike.  Loving it so far  Oh, and this forum of course. lol

[Caravan]

...well, my '04 F' is my first bike in 30...er, 35....er, a lot of years!  It is cheap to run and insure (at least for an old guy).  If you take it seriously, it is a hoot to ride.  The power curve is predictable and it is quite fast enough to avoid becoming an SUV hood ornament on the highway.  As another poster suggested, take the MSF course.  The defensive riding instruction was worth the price of admission.  So far, I have managed not to drop or scratch mine so I can only surmise how expensive it will be to fix the fairing, but, I can guess   .   Since I am already looking at other bikes, you might consider buying used and cheap for your first if you can.  But, all said, I love my GS and had looked at bikes for a lot of years before I bought this one.  
Ride safe.

Gene

[johncam4]

i was my first street bike two

[Dandy D]

Hey there Stoo,

The GS is my first bike. I'm.....thirty something almost forty something - (oh well)  

The bike is fantastic IMO. It has power but not so much that if you get jarred on a bump while making a turn you don't shoot off the road into a ditch - I've been jarred and tweeked the throttle. I thought to myself if I had the 600 that I originally wanted I would have been off the road with that little incident.

It is forgiving. The sweet little thing is no pushover though. I have taken it on a 3500km tour through the mountains and it has no problem keeping me entertained. Through the curves it can handle anything I would ever want it to do. One of my buddies on the tour couldn't keep up with me. He has oodles of years of experience and was riding a ST1100. Now, on the other hand, there were more people there that were by far my betters that I had no hope of keeping up with. But I did well. The guys I was riding with thought I rode really well especially knowing this was my first riding season they said it sure didn't look like my first year riding - Wow, was I full of myself  :mrgreen: . I give the little GS the credit for that - it inspires confidence.

I ride it to work occasionally - nothing but good things to say about it here, I ride on the highways - again all good. It actually has no problem crusing at 135kph (just a little faster than the cars, trucks etc. - I'm serious, the cars are doing 130 around here on the highways). I did buy a windshield for the highway riding (National Cycle F15 Tour shield). I even had the chance to take in on a track last month, following a pace-setting-racer-guy, but it was loads of fun. I kept up with everyone in my group who all had 600 sportbikes or bigger.

I'll probably keep riding my GS for at least another year or longer. At this point I can't see any reason to go bigger.
For reference I'm 5-6 and 155lbs  - it fits me very well.

I do need to upgrade the suspension though. The front is quite soft and can bottom out occasionaly. One other oddity is neutral, I sometimes have trouble getting it into neutral then sometimes have trouble getting it out. Might just be a quirk with my bike  :dunno:

Anyway - I think its a great first bike and that's my $0.02

Ride safe
Dandy D