Motorcycle

I blame my dad for this, he is going through his mid-life crisis and decided he wants a motorcycle and now I do too. So last Saturday we went to our local Harley\Yamaha store, and I sat on a Harley Sportster 1200N. It was so comfortable, just the right width and height and the handle bars were in the perfect place and I could reach the foot controls comfortably. But the downside is that it costs $11,000! So yesterday we went on a little trip to a Kawasaki store just down the highway a bit, and I sat on a Kawasaki Vulcan 900 Custom. It's a little bit wider and a smaller engine, but it is $4000 cheaper.

Does anyone here have either of these motorcycles or have you ever ridden them? I am pretty sure I am going to go with the Kawasaki if I decide to get one. But a Harley is a Harley and they can't be beat, so I am stuck on the fence. What other cruiser style bikes do you folks have?

This is the kawasaki, I like the red one but it also comes in lime green and black.

Mainly I ride yamaha 250 cc But I also ride some kawasaki bikes off road.

now although its not the same bike, I would choose yamaha as a first choice, Far better performance ( this is in my year of riding experiance)

Harleys are junk. You buy them for the name not the technology. If you want to ride it, get anything japanese. Harleys break down every 1200 miles.

buy a moped!

If it is your first bike and you have never ridden, get a 500 cc something first!

There is a die hard Harley guy at my work, and he say exactly the opposite about Harleys versus "those jap bikes" as he called them. But he said that the sportsters don't hold their value as long as Harleys for some reason. I'm pretty sure I will likely get the Kawasaki, or something similar in power and price and physical size (I have stubby legs so sitting on a big bike would be a problem for me)

At first I had thought about getting a 450 or a 500 just because they are so much cheaper and would be easier to learn on, but I plan on taking it into the mountains and on the highway, so I'd like the extra power for getting around semi trucks and stuff. I have ridden my friends old dirt bike once, but it can't compare to a cruiser because that was just a little 125cc two-stroke. And I wrecked it, I almost forgot to mention that. I was going a bit fast through his yard and was trying to get around his porch and the very end of the right side of the handle bar caught on the corner of the house and threw me off. It's a very good thing helmets are required here isn't it!

Depends on who you ask. I think they are all good bikes, just depends on the rider.

If my father read this he would hunt you down then castrate and gut you with a plastic butter knife. He is a certified Harley mechanic and die hard Harley man. He also builds custom bikes from the ground up.

Harleys do seem to have a very loyal following and a good reputation. But with that comes the price, which is the biggest thing keeping me from going with that Sportster. It was quite a bit more comfortable sitting on it in the store than the other, and it felt a lot lighter but it weighs only 4 pounds less. I've got plenty of time to make up my mind though. My dad and I are going to wait to get our bikes until we have our motorcycles endorsements on our drivers licenses, and the first weekend of May we are signed up for a bike riders course, basically just a how to ride a motorcycle class, it should make the insurance a wee bit cheaper. It's not a requirement, but it will still be a good idea to do.

Are you crazy? A 500cc for your first bike? If someone wants a bike who has never had one before they want to look at a 125 - 250 cc

But a 500 (let alone a 125) probably won't do real well on the interstate trying to get around semi trucks and stuff. For going to work and stuff the smaller bike would be perfect but I do want to take it on road trips.

250 cc would be fine for all of that. DOnt go any higher than a 500 cc then mate. Well Its up to you, But for your first bike you would struggle to handle anything higher than a 500 cc

I should be alright as long as I don't go around hot rodding it. I think if I could just keep it under control and stay responsible with my riding I ought to learn to handle it.

A 500 cc bike is fine on the highway. It just doesn't go 150 MPH. 500 cc bikes stop at 120 MPH

Isn't that fast enough?

Of course it is, Your not going to push a bike to 120MPH anyway. Unless your stupid.

I would only drive that fast off - road l o l