Welcome to the site from New Jersey. Look around and enjoy yourself

 

I'm sort of like Tral there in that I took my MSF classes over Memorial Day weekend. My "starter bike" however, was my sweetie pictured below: '06 Springer Softail. I did a lot of what Tral did--ride around my area a lot and got used to the bike and turns and how it felt to shift, etc. Made a couple of runs to Hartstene Island which is like an hour ride on some gorgeous back roads in the woods and along the ocean. I've never regretted buying the Springer right from the start. One, I had the bike I wanted and started learning how to ride right away on the bike. I didn't start riding a lesser model (and then take the hit on financing and selling and so forth) and then the learning curve a year or so later on the Harley.
You have to do what you can afford and what you're comfortable with, but I've never regretted the decision I made.

 

Hard for alot of us riders to have proper perspective on this sometimes. I think for me, I often forget how nervous I was when I purchased my first road bike, a 1995 honda Shadow Vlx deluxe 6 friggin hundred brand new. I rode that bike for 3-4 months and got sick of it because I realized it wasnt enough bike for what I wanted and needed. At first it was great around the neighborhood and a few backroads and highways. It wasnt till I hit the interstate that I realized how bad it sucked. Anything over 60MPH felt dicey, insecure and unstable. I sold it got married had kids and quit riding for 10 years. 1 month ago I got a street bob brand new. It is the bike of my dreams and rides like a dream everywhere. Now I grew up riding minibikes, dirtbikes etc from the age of 11-18 then didnt ride a friggin thing for 28 years when I got the Honda. I wasnt scared to death of my new dyna becasue of the honda experience-and therein lies the rub. I will fall into the camp that sez; "get a cheaper mid-size bike to learn on for one season. I only dropped my honda once at a standstill-totally lame. I have never even come close to dropping my dyna and hope I never will. Get a used v-star, honda or whatever that is of the Harley copy-type. Something that more or less resembles what you hope to ride one day. I dont recommend a light or mid weight sport bike becasue they wont handle anything like a full size HD. Get a cruiser type bike to learn on. That way you will learn the limitations of that type of bike. Becasue in the end (when I compare dirt riding experiences) the only real differences are in cornering, slow speed maneuvering and handling the heavier weight of what you one day hope to own. I get on my wifes 650 v-satr after my dyna and it feels like a toy-almost like a I can throw it around like a ragdoll. That is great for building confidence which doesnt take very long at all. For me it was about 1 week with the honda-the rest was just finding out its limitations and my own preferences. With the Bob it took about 3 days-the rest has just been finding my limitations.

 

i was in the same situation as you . i took the msf course, bought an 06 1200c right off. after a few weeks i know i did the right thing. this is my starter bike and probably my only bike. i started late. just buy what you want and enjoy.
stay safe and welcome

 

Welcome aboard from Omaha, Nebraska. [sm=icon_cheers.gif]

 

Welcome from Miami, Fla buy what u think is right for u , am 43 haven't ridden since i was in my early twenties , took the class & bought a 2003 wide glide and never looked back , it's a totally a personal choice , what right for me might not be right for someone else ...

 

Hello and welcome to the forums.

I see that you are from PA. The BRC is free in PA, the dealer course will run you about $300.00

I am a *little* suprised that you want to buy a bike before taking the course and/or getting either a permit or a license. Have yiou ridden before? Are you sure you will like it? There is always the potential that motorcycling is not for you and you could end up with a rather expensive garage ornament.

That being said, there pros and cons to both sides of the starter bike issue. First off, a new rider will typically have some number of mishaps during the first 1,000 miles of learning. This is just due to inexperience. There are any number of types of mishaps, but some percentage will involve dropping your bike. Can you live with the bike of your dreams having a few dings or scratches? Only you can answer that question.

Be aware, the even with experienced riders, it takes about 1,000 miles on a new ride to become really ZEN with it.

As far as what to do. Get your license. plan a short route around your neighborhood in little to no traffic. All right hand turns, preferably with some stop signs. Repeat until you are comfortable. Expand your circle - still all right hand turns. When you are comfortable, repeat the entire process using left hand turn only.

Then proceed into light traffic. (right hand turns are preferref until you are used to riding in traffic).

enjoy.

Keep the shiny side up and the rubber side down.

 

then of course there's the way i did it. my only riding experience was over 20 yrs ago on a raggedy 72 honda cb350, and some joy rides on a friend's son's beater kaw kz650. being the subborn ba$tard that i can be, i just went out and bought the bike i wanted (an electra glide) and learned from there. as luck would have it i have always had a "touch" with vehicles, i just seem to have a knack at learning how to operate them, even with a 150 ton diesel locomotive once (that was a blast)!
however, i can't exactly say my method is for everyone.

 

Its my opinion to get a starter bike, for these reasons 1) what if you finance that new HD and then realize that riding is not all its cracked-up to be? I mean there are alot of scary blind dumbasses in cars. 2) If you have a small mishap and drop it, then its no biggie
3) an inexpensive starter bike can almost always be sold for very close to what you paid for it, maybe break even, maybe make a few bucks. This way you can be sure, then go for it. Just my 2 cents. Dan

 

Get the one you want now if it is a Harley.......I had starter bikes because I was into racing (street bikes)........for the price of Harleys......get the one u want after taking the course