[feliz]

Hi - I'm new here and just wanted to start a thread so I picked a rather frivolous topic. I'm an experienced rider having owned several bikes with five in my garage now the largest of which is a Suzuki Bandit 1250S. Aside from the CBR the rest are vintage bikes.

I've owned other 250s and love small bikes, I've had far more fun on 250 -400 bikes than on any larger bike I've owned. I'm 6'2" and 200 pounds and fit on the Honda fine......however, everyone I know tells me I look silly on the bike and it's happened so often on the Honda and on other small bikes I've owned I have a complex, I think I have small person envy. Can anyone here bolster my ego and tell me I don't look silly riding my Honda or any other small mike. I was riding my 75 Yamaha XS 650 the other day and a car pulled up beside me and told me to get a bike my own size and that's a lot larger bike than our Hondas. Just sayin............

Edit: I should add that I'm 71 and my friends all ride HDs so what does that tell you??

Happy New Year.

 

[Empty Sea]

I'm 50, 6'1" and 240 lbs. and just bought my first motorcycle -- a CBR 250r. I don't have a complex about looking silly on my bike for one simple reason: I have been riding around for the last year on my wife's Honda SH150i scooter. For a while, I was even using her helmet. I thought I looked like the Great Gazoo, but I had a lot of fun and it convinced me to make the move to a "real" bike. So, we traded her scooter in on 2 CBRs and I traded in my complex along with it. I feel that the bike suits both my size and my personality and I'm excited to get out there and ride.

I can't help you with your choice of friends, though.

 

[feliz]

I'm 50, 6'1" and 240 lbs. and just bought my first motorcycle -- a CBR 250r. I don't have a complex about looking silly on my bike for one simple reason: I have been riding around for the last year on my wife's Honda SH150i scooter. For a while, I was even using her helmet. I thought I looked like the Great Gazoo, but I had a lot of fun and it convinced me to make the move to a "real" bike. So, we traded her scooter in on 2 CBRs and I traded in my complex along with it. I feel that the bike suits both my size and my personality and I'm excited to get out there and ride.

I can't help you with your choice of friends, though.

WOW, 2 CBRs, good for you and your wife. I've never owned a scooter but I've often been tempted to pick one up. I especially like some of the vintage scooters, like the older Vespas. I hope your wife's helmet isn't pink like mine's is For a smaller bike the CBR accomodates larger riders better than any similar sized bike I've ever seen!!

 

[cbr9927]

If you want a man sized scooter with serious power check out the Yamaha TMAX. That thing will smoke a 250R.

 

[feliz]

If you want a man sized scooter with serious power check out the Yamaha TMAX. That thing will smoke a 250R.

You admit to being a Sharks fan??

 

[Torchsport]

Who cares what people think? Enjoy it! Let those Hardley guys enjoy over paying for their terrible, noisey, archaic, old technology tractors.

I to am an experienced rider. 31 years, and I average 15-20,000 miles a year. I have always preferred performance bikes. Cruisers have their place, and I've owned a few Yamaha cruisers. Love the japanese engines longevity, dependable to no end.

Good on you for still enjoyin to ride at your age. My father is 73, but does not ride.

 

[kgav]

I'm a 5'9" girl who's pretty thin--this bike fits me perfectly. My Aprilia scooter felt fine until I got on a bigger bike, after which the scooter felt like a tiny toy with tiny wheels. But still super fun.

 

[feliz]

Who cares what people think? Enjoy it! Let those Hardley guys enjoy over paying for their terrible, noisey, archaic, old technology tractors.

I to am an experienced rider. 31 years, and I average 15-20,000 miles a year. I have always preferred performance bikes. Cruisers have their place, and I've owned a few Yamaha cruisers. Love the japanese engines longevity, dependable to no end.

Good on you for still enjoyin to ride at your age. My father is 73, but does not ride.

Yup, I like all bikes but some of the riders make me wonder. I was slated to ride to Sturgis with a HD guy I ride with until he asked me what bike I would be riding, I told him a Suziki and he responded "I woudn't be caught dead in Sturgis with a guy on a Suzuki"!! Needless to say I haven't seen him since.

I ride with two guys over 80, one fellow didn't learn to ride until he was 75. I thought he was BSing me but it turns out his riding instructor is a friend of mine and confirmed he was telling me the truth. I know another guy who bought an R1 when he was 71 and piled it up and subsequently bought a scooter.

 

[feliz]

I'm a 5'9" girl who's pretty thin--this bike fits me perfectly. My Aprilia scooter felt fine until I got on a bigger bike, after which the scooter felt like a tiny toy with tiny wheels. But still super fun.

Good for you!! The CBR seems to fit everyone. I worked in a bike store for a couple years helping a friend get his business started. He sold Aprilia scooters and I really liked them, more than most scooters. I had an Aprilia (Shiver) bike that I didn't like and sold it off rather quickly.

 

[jsonder]

Relax and enjoy, if I can give advice to an elder (I'll turn 70 next week).

I have inseam envy. I love trail riding and my 28-inch inseam limits the seat height for dual sport bikes. But, you ride what you enjoy and what works for you. Other opinions are pretty much irrelevant.

 

[Empty Sea]

This is a little off topic, but we did mention scooters. BMW is coming out with 2 versions of maxi scooters this year. They didn't suit my particular needs at the time (mainly I wanted a bike that I could shift) and I think they would have been out of my budget, but I think they look pretty cool.

 

[mpmiksauk]

Feliz, I am 6Ft6in and nobody has ever told me I look silly on my CBR250R. I have to say that it is a comfortable bike even for someone of my height. I did a 400km round trip on this bike stopping for only 20 minutes after 200km and appart from a slightly numb arse was fine.
The bike iteslf is not that small compared to othr sportsbikes in terms of length and height. Main different is the width as it is only a 250 mono.

 

[Torchsport]

Feliz, I am 6Ft6in and nobody has ever told me I look silly on my CBR250R. I have to say that it is a comfortable bike even for someone of my height. I did a 400km round trip on this bike stopping for only 20 minutes after 200km and appart from a slightly numb arse was fine.
The bike iteslf is not that small compared to othr sportsbikes in terms of length and height. Main different is the width as it is only a 250 mono.

Being that tall, I'm thinking nobody dares to tease you!

In all seriousness, it IS a relatively larger bike. I sat on one last week, and it looked huge compared to the bike it was parked next to, a 250 Rebel.

 

[kgav]

Good for you!! The CBR seems to fit everyone. I worked in a bike store for a couple years helping a friend get his business started. He sold Aprilia scooters and I really liked them, more than most scooters. I had an Aprilia (Shiver) bike that I didn't like and sold it off rather quickly.

The thing was a blast--lightly modified so it could hit 60, but still got almost 100mpg even when I rode it like I stole it. I would have kept it, but it just didn't make sense $$-wise to keep when I didn't have a car for winter here.

 

[Metalstorm]

So you big guys look like a 'monkey humping a football' when you ride your bikes.

Not a big deal. Do what feels right, not what looks right.
I will go out on a limb and say it's the folks telling you'all to get a bigger bike that have the problem. The big guy on a little bike doesn't fit in their image of what a rider should look like so it bothers them.

We who ride know better. We know that how we feel on the bike and how confident we are on the bike and how much we enjoy the bike is a gazillion times more important than how we look on the bike.

If I had listened to everyone who told me I looked silly doing this or that I would have missed out on so much.

 

[Bullseye]

My buddy and I ride CBR125r's and we are mid-aged (I am 41 and he is 37) and weight about 190 lbs and 5'10" !!
Now we look small for the bikes BUT.......... Man are they fun !!!

We have taken them on some trips and have a blast !!! Last year we rode about 2600 kms on our bikes on a 7 day road trip !! We even packed about 25 lbs of gear (tent,clothes,etc) . Got lots of comments at gas stations cause people noticed how small the bikes were and that we were travelling with them. We had lots of people asking all sorts of questions and stare-in at the bikes in disbelief that we were road triping on 125's !!! IT WAS AWESOME !!!

Would do it again in a heartbeat !!

(BUT maybe this year on a CBR250r, that my dealer wants me to buy !!)

 

[feliz]

My buddy and I ride CBR125r's and we are mid-aged (I am 41 and he is 37) and weight about 190 lbs and 5'10" !!
Now we look small for the bikes BUT.......... Man are they fun !!!

We have taken them on some trips and have a blast !!! Last year we rode about 2600 kms on our bikes on a 7 day road trip !! We even packed about 25 lbs of gear (tent,clothes,etc) . Got lots of comments at gas stations cause people noticed how small the bikes were and that we were travelling with them. We had lots of people asking all sorts of questions and stare-in at the bikes in disbelief that we were road triping on 125's !!! IT WAS AWESOME !!!

Would do it again in a heartbeat !!

(BUT maybe this year on a CBR250r, that my dealer wants me to buy !!)

Wow!! Good on ya. I have to plead ignorance, is the 125 much smaller than the 250? Did you have back packs or luggage?

 

[kvr929rr]

I concur with Metalstorm, if you're comfortable on the bike don't worry about what others think. It's your story not theirs. Remember, it's just a tool, like a hammer or a refrigerator, in spite of what the magazines say. The way some of these Harley guys and sportbikers talk you should use an 18lb. sledge to drive finishing nails. Any real rider would just welcome you to the club and answer your questions. If they don't do that, they're not worth your time.

 

[7point62fmj]

Hi - I'm new here and just wanted to start a thread so I picked a rather frivolous topic. I'm an experienced rider having owned several bikes with five in my garage now the largest of which is a Suzuki Bandit 1250S. Aside from the CBR the rest are vintage bikes.

I've owned other 250s and love small bikes, I've had far more fun on 250 -400 bikes than on any larger bike I've owned. I'm 6'2" and 200 pounds and fit on the Honda fine......however, everyone I know tells me I look silly on the bike and it's happened so often on the Honda and on other small bikes I've owned I have a complex, I think I have small person envy. Can anyone here bolster my ego and tell me I don't look silly riding my Honda or any other small mike. I was riding my 75 Yamaha XS 650 the other day and a car pulled up beside me and told me to get a bike my own size and that's a lot larger bike than our Hondas. Just sayin............

Edit: I should add that I'm 71 and my friends all ride HDs so what does that tell you??

Happy New Year.

Nobody likes me.. every one hates me.. I am going to eat some worms
I would try to offer some advice but honestly if you are 71, I dont know what I could realy say on a little motor cycle board that is realy going to make that much of a diffrance but.. here it goes... IF they dont share your same name or sign your pay checks or are the deity you pray to then why does it matter?

 

[feliz]

Nobody likes me.. every one hates me.. I am going to eat some worms
I would try to offer some advice but honestly if you are 71, I dont know what I could realy say on a little motor cycle board that is realy going to make that much of a diffrance but.. here it goes... IF they dont share your same name or sign your pay checks or are the deity you pray to then why does it matter?

Well, I did say that I'm new to the forum and really just trying to introduce myself and at the same time get some people's opinion on what I did say was a frivolous topic!! I thought it was obvious what I was saying was "tongue in cheek".

I'm not sure if I'm childish or senile but every time I bring home a new bike my wife calls me one or the other. Like everyone says.....size doesn't matter as long as we're enjoying ourselves

Anymore small bike stories!! Here's a picture of my first one, you can see I'm partial to thumpers. I sold it to a friend who still rides it. It's an 82 Yamaha SR250 Exciter: