Hey, we ride "dorky bikes" according to th

[J-Double]

According to the guy in this story, we ride dorky bikes!!!

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/state/orl-asecunlicensed27032705mar27,0,4300246.story

[VTNewb]

Says the unlisenced rider who crashed.

[nathanael]

"At the time, I was thinking, 'I don't want to go and get my license now because I don't know how to ride, and I don't want to fail it,' " said Veilleux, who crashed two minutes into his first ride. "So I was thinking I would ride around and learn how to ride it."

Can you say Darwin award? Seriously, you shouldn't be able to buy a bike from the dealer without a motorcycle license at the least. It just makes sense.

[vfrocket]

You know this kind of thing still blows my mind. I have had several people ask me "what bike should I buy for my first bike?" and my resonse is always that I tell them they should take the MSF course at their local Jr. College, and then once they pass that start looking for a bike.

Granted riding a motocycle is not that dificult, but for someone who has never ridden one, and does not know how to operate it, it is just stupid to think you could just ride it with no problems straight from the dealer.

i would think the dealers are a little to blame for this as well...

[callmelenny]

Stories like that are really depressing.

I was at a dealer about 2 weeks ago to get some lube and I overheard the salesman suggesting that this guy look at the liter bikes cause he would be bored with the SV he was looking at. The guy was in uniform and I'm betting just back from Iraq with a big pile of cash in his pocket. I'm guessing he was a new rider cause I  heard him ask if the bikes had reverse...
I hope he survives his purchase

[cummuterguy]

It'd be better all around if you were required to have an endorsement in order to buy a motorcycle.
Think about it for a minute, the 'impulse buyers' who just want to look cool would back off a bit, thus less newspaper coverage.
The dealers would learn to trust potential buyers a bit more, heck, maybe even allow test rides.. how cool would that be?

[apbrian112]

wow... that's sad that so many people and bikes get trashed simply to look cool. but people like that kid who bought the gsxr750 just never learn. he says he didn't experience half of the power of the gsxr750 but i'll bet that won't deter him from purchasing another once he's recovered. reminds me of one of my sergeants when we got back from iraq. w/o a liscence he went and got himself a shiny new gsxr1000. well he wrecked it after a week and broke his leg. since he didn't have a liscence or insurance it got impounded. as soon as his leg healed what did he do? he got himself another gsxr1000. well needless to say he is no longer a sergeant.

[Blueknyt]

I could live with needing a License or endorsment prior to motorcycle purchase. however this would be effective for the Finnaced and dealer sold bikes.   ive Bought 2 bikes from a shop/dealer out of the many ive owned. how do you regulate private sales. you cant really.

i would have a hard time with MANDATORY bike insurence,  Car insurence is murder as it is and it IS mandatory which doesnt make it cheaper.  If it wernt for the fact Insurence wasnt required to register and operate a bike in florida, i wouldnt have had trasnportation for years which would have placed me in imposible positions for both education and employment.

Realisticly speaking the amount of accidents concerning bike and car collision where the bike was in fault are very low. often its the car's fault or the bike wrecks by itself.  i must admit its not often you hear about a bike plowing through walls and windows taking out folks sitting inside.

on those rare moments, when an idiot acts his nature then by all means punish him for it.

If Bikes had to have insurence then it should be extremely cheap as its not often going to be bike at fault or do the damage a car would do.

[cernunos]

How about if parents start raising children to have some common sense and the self assurance that prevents the need to go and get the biggest, baddest, fastest yadda yoda blada. Usually one of the first things said to me after finding out I have a Baby G is how their uncle or brother or friend or somebody has a Katinjacbrgsxbr12 that is much faster. I really don't get it because I can get to the speed limit just about as quick as anything else out there (ohhhhh gee, his bike can get to 65 about 2 sec quicker!!) and is definitely easier to maintain and work on. Not to mention you meet the nicest people on a tiny GS   . As i've stated before, i've never rode a two-wheeler that didn't make me laugh and grin. I guess my days of the need to impress are long gone by. Unfortunately our oldest boy thinks he has to have the greatest thing in four or two wheels to impress. He's the only one that has that need...where did we go wrong? Love the small and meek "dorky" Baby GS and I love participating on this forum.  :kiss:

C.......

[Larry]

I also love my "dorky" GS500E.  I am finding it a great fit for getting back into riding after 25 years off.

When you read that story the key word is "rush".  If its bigger and faster, then he thinks that he will get a better rush.  So sad.  No commitment of any type to learning a skill and enjoying a sport.

And insurance is very important in this day and age.  You don't even need to make contact with a car to have a huge judgment against you.  A "low side' slide"on a right turn that causes an oncoming car to leave their lane can cost big $$$.  A $50,000 SUV filled with mom and the kids that hits a tree avoiding you will cost more than you can imagine.

[70 Cam Guy]

It'd be better all around if you were required to have an endorsement in order to buy a motorcycle.
Think about it for a minute, the 'impulse buyers' who just want to look cool would back off a bit, thus less newspaper coverage.
The dealers would learn to trust potential buyers a bit more, heck, maybe even allow test rides.. how cool would that be?

What I heard is there was a lawsuit where a person was not allowed to buy a car because they did not have a license.  It turned out that it was meant to be a gift and he/she won.  Thus nobody will require licenses to purchase though most dealers around me said they would not sell me a bike without my endorsement or permit and proof of insurance

[cummuterguy]

hmmm....

Ok..  how bout you can't REGISTER a bike without a licence, and make it a crime to "loan" someone your tag "for the ride home"

Dealers can say no rides til registered, and private owners will be less likely to let a tag go with the bike (thus unregistered bikes are easy to spot... no tag)

I'm totally with blueknyt on the insurance thing.  I don't insure my bike, knowing it's unlikely that I will cause damage to another driver(and be at fault). I have medical coverage for myself. I have no plans to insure this bike, maybe once I upgrade i'll think about it (read, once all my points are off my licence... had several tickets in the last few years)

[VersOne]

In California, you can ride a bike without a license...All I had to do is take a written test for which I studied the night before.

Nest thing you know, I was on a 250 ninja(insured nevertheless) riding in parking lots and then on the open roads.

My friend took the MSF class and I studied all his books.
I have to say that I am 25 and I consider myself responsible and mature...but come on, it's a little too easy to get out on the road with no "on the bike" training.

I grew up in Paris, France.  Over there, you start with a 125cc license and progressively work your way up. Result is much more serious & responsible riders (hmm..yes, I know what you'r thinking...Black prince is a nutcase...the original ghost rider)

The side effect is it becomes a lot harder to sell busas and liter bikes...and we all know that's were the money is.

That also explains why you get really "cool" lower displacement bikes abroad.

Anyways,  I'm taking the riding test at the DMV tomorrow morning...wish me luck.    


Ride (hard) safe

Jonah

[fettcols]

I think this is the wrong post for me to be reading... I'm an insurance agent for a living... I'll save the lecture...

When I bought my 500F I hadn't ridden in years... I found the best deal from a shop about 35 miles from my house and I really didn't want to try that durning rush hour... I loaded it into my truck and brought it home. I was unloading it on the hill in front of my house and this 16-17 year old kid was riding his bicycle down the street. He stopped and checked out the new shiny bike and said... "Why did you get a 500? Even I can ride a 750"

Granted I did learn to ride as a teenager on a Kawasaki 750LTD twin but that was some old school not so sporty stuff...

I told him when he can afford more than a schwinn I'll sell him a 500...

[fettcols]

[William M]

> this 16-17 year old kid was riding his bicycle down the street. He stopped and checked out the new shiny bike and said... "Why did you get a 500? Even I can ride a 750"

And from the article:

>Still undergoing physical therapy for his injuries, the teen is not sure how he will pay off about $11,000 owed on his wrecked motorcycle.

"Honestly, I was only on the bike for like two minutes, and it was just incredible. I loved it; it was such a rush," he said. "And the thing is, I didn't experience half the power on that bike."

<sigh> Ya know, I posted a "what do you need 180 mph capability for?'" and "real men don't have to ride big engines" messages and got some flack for it.   Hey, to each his own, but when I see new riders absorbing this mindset it really makes me sad. The stuff in that article, though, is simply unbelieveable...including 2 unlicenced riders who crashed *into each other*.

[alexXx]

"Honestly, I was only on the bike for like two minutes, and it was just incredible. I loved it; it was such a rush," he said. "And the thing is, I didn't experience half the power on that bike."

facking. idiot. i'm sorry, but why couldnt he have been a fatality?  its that damn mindset that !%*@^&!#^  :guns:


- alex