Choosing a GS500 to become a beginner, for the 2nd time

[Teek]

I have ridden bigger bikes than the GS, but I sure don't feel the need for one, and my partner is thinking of going back to a 400 from his 650. He's had his share of liter bikes, he just thinks he doesn't need the weight, he prefers polo ponies over draft horses.

that is prolly the coolest way to describe a flickable bike i've ever read. hope it's his own words, cause that makes it even cooler.

Yes it's actually my hubby's own words, but *I* made him read Kipling's "The Maltese Cat" which is what made him think it, and I have also forced him to sit in Will Rogers State park and watch Malibu play some other rich polo club for an afternoon! I was broadening his worldly knowledge.     I usually say "cutting pony" for flickable, but a polo pony is more sophisticated. A supermoto would be the polo pony, a 250cc 2 stroke the cutting horse. Both the horses and the motos are small and light and extremely nimble and quick as cats. I rode horses for 30 years and a little horse can do a heckuva lot, sometimes the big ones can't get out of their own way. My champion jumper was little and slab sided and ugly as sin, but the only jumper that came close to him in competition was also ugly and short backed and quick.

[A_Steel_Horse]

Quite frankly, wanting to have the government save you from your own poor decisions is utterly absurd.  Being the land of the free means we must be accountable for ourselves.

So, when are we going to put vending machines that dispense concealable handguns, since, you know, we have a right to be free and that means being able to make any decision you want 

[makenzie71]

That's also absurd.  If they made vending machines that would abide by the laws of sales then it would be perfectly fine, but purchasing a gun is never a poor decision.  It's our right to purchase and own guns.  That means we can have them if want them (saving you've not done anythin to give that right).

[bikejunkie223]

there's nothing wrong whatsoever with owning a concealable handgun. It is our right to own guns provided we haven't given up that right by being convicted of some crime. Owning guns isn't the problem, it's assholes using guns to commit crimes that is the problem and your local gang banger isn't going through a mandatory 10 day waiting period to buy his Glock.

One other difference is that when someone has a motorcycle that is much too powerful for thier skills or maturity likely the one to get killed is the person that bought it- this is rarely the case with guns- they usually end up laying in a drawer for years or plinking some cans or target paper.

[A_Steel_Horse]

All very good and valid points. You all got me thinking, and that's good. It's the spirit of debate, no? Instead of law, we'll have to rely on the opinions of people like myself to steer people in the right direction when it comes to riding that first motorcycle. I do my best to persuade someone who's contemplating riding to take the MSF first and foremost. After that, I encourage a scooter, if they live in the city, or a Ninja 250/GS500/Bergman-esque motorcycle for a year, at which point they're free to upgrade if they need to run the quarter mile in 10 seconds. I've currently pulled two friends into my obsession, and one has taken the MSF, the other will take it once he's in a position to afford a motorcycle.

I also preach having a budget for your first bike and then deducting $1,000 from whatever you've got for gear. You buy a cheap motorcycle used and use it to gear up. Once you know what you like and what fits, then you can move on to the faster stuff.

P.S. I inherited my grandfather's 1911 and it sits in a drawer, unloaded and separate from it's ammo and clips, although I have taken it target shooting a few times, so I'm not anti-gun, but I do think that a pistol is something generally used for entertainment the way an iphone is far more for entertainment than work. I can see using a shotgun for home defense, not entertainment. On that subject, doesn't it make sense to load the first round with rocksalt, the second with birdshot (as it will lose most kinetic energy traveling through drywall if you miss) and only the 3rd round should get the 3" slug

[bikejunkie223]

You should only shoot at people you intend to kill. You don't want to maim them and have them sue your ass off. I agree about the home defense shotgun- you don't have to practice like you do with a pistol to be leathal. Also, the sound of a shell getting racked is kind of a universal way of saying "you have entered the wrong goddam house" I keep mine with .00 buck and solid slugs loaded alternately, and anyone that breaks into my home while I am there will leave in a bag. No warning shots.

[tripleb]

I'm not sure you can shoot people that have invaded your home without having no alternative unless you live in a state that allows you to shoot the invaders.  Florida is one of those states, but I have no idea if Oregon is.  You should probably check before you pull the trigger or you could be watching the guy in the bag being loaded into the coroner's van while in handcuffs in a police cruiser.

[bikejunkie223]

In Oregon if you feel your life or the the lives of your family to be in grave danger of bodily harm you can blow them away leagally. Someone breaks into my house I'm not going to wait and see what kind of weapon they are packing- they get a verbal warning to piss of, then they get shot if they don't- because after having been given the opportunity to leave they didn't which means they obviously intend to harm me.

[makenzie71]

Only warning anyone would get with me is the sound of the slide being pulled and released.