Just picked up my 04 Gs500f yesterday and I gotta say I love it.  I had never ridden a bike before yesterday but I hopped on it and was amazed by how easy it was to ride.  A friend of mine who has been riding for some years now was supposed to come by and give me a few lessons but when he could'nt make it I decided to give it a try on my own.  As you can expect I stalled out a couple of times until I figured out you have to downshift through all the gears to get back to first, but overall it came pretty naturally.  Put 40 miles on the bike yesterday just cruising around and I can only imagine the power that lies beyond those 5000 RPM shifts.

On a side note, how many of you have walked on to an MSF class.  It takes sometime to get an appointment here but I was told you can fill in for no shows and I would like to get into it ASAP.

I've been an avid reader of this forum for about a month now and am grateful for all the valuable info I have found here. I look forward to participating even more in the future.

welcome to the dark side!

A guy I rode with had his name put on the "call me if anyone cancels" list for the local MSF course. He only had to wait one week before filling a spot. I would call the sponsoring shop/school and ask to be put on their wait list. While you are on the phone with them, however, be sure to go ahead and sign up for a class in the fall... you know, JUST IN CASE!  

Good luck, have fun, and be safe!  :mrgreen:

Welcome, have fun, get the gear and be visible. The brighter the better!

I just walked in and filled a spot. Actually,  there were serveral open spaces when I arrive for the first meeting.

i took the course in december....i had no trouble getting in.  Of corse i live in texas but it was still too cold for most people.

welcome! im new here too, and also just picked up my bike this past friday, and i love it. put about 160 km (100 mi) on the bike this weekend.

hi, i'm new to this forum. I just got my new gs on sat, like one or two of you out there. Had a scooter for ten mths but always wanted a proper bike and now I have one!!! It's so cool, I thought it would be too big for me but so far so good. Had it on the motorway today, it was so nice to be able to keep up with the traffic!!! Not like the scooter when I always had some tosser up my tail running me off the road. Still getting to grips with clutch and gears after automatic - taking it slowly but hey, practise makes perfect right?. How long does it take to master pulling off at a respectable speed? I find i'm erring on the side of caution so as not to stall and drop my new beauty.

It doesn't take long to get used to not stalling it.  What really helps with this is an ignition advancer and/or installing a 15 tooth front sprocket.  I highly recommend these improvements for all GS's out there.  Well worth the time and money involved.

Welcome to the family!    :mrgreen:

Reminds me of the time I got my first bike.  I learned to ride it in front of the dealet.  No one ever told me how to let out the clutch.  I stalled out about 6 times before I made it home.  This was in Brooklyn, so 6 times stalled out is not bad, considering all the lights and stop signs.
Good Luck