New bike for tall rider
#11
07-18-2005, 04:05 PM
RE: New bike for tall rider
ORIGINAL: teach
I'm gonna say something unpopular but I think it needs to be said.
Your a NEW rider and you WANT a HD but you don't NEED an HD. So my advice would be that you spend your $9500 a little wiser and go buy yourself a Suzuki C90 (1500 cc and looks like a Fat Boy). At your height & weight your gonna look like a toad sittin on a toothpick riding a Sporty. I know what I'm talking about here, my younger brother just started riding street bikes 2 years ago. He is 6'2" about 250, he had to have a HD but was afraid anything bigger than a sporty would be too much bike. So he bought the sporty against my recommendations, it lasted 1 month and got traded on a softail standard. He had the Standard for a year and has just traded on a EG standard. He's lost his butt on every trade, plus he's paying through the nose on Insurance because he is riding an HD with little street experience (he's ridden/raced dirt bikes for 18 years but that doesn't count).
So my advice to a new rider is buy the HD look alike metric, practice, learn, and don't worry if you nick it, its a metric so it won't hold its value regardless. Once you have a year or two under your belt and some practical experience riding spend the big bucks to get the Harley that you've really always wanted. Of course this is just my opinion/recommendation. But a Sporty is gonna be a very bad choice for you.
I'm gonna say something unpopular but I think it needs to be said.
Your a NEW rider and you WANT a HD but you don't NEED an HD. So my advice would be that you spend your $9500 a little wiser and go buy yourself a Suzuki C90 (1500 cc and looks like a Fat Boy). At your height & weight your gonna look like a toad sittin on a toothpick riding a Sporty. I know what I'm talking about here, my younger brother just started riding street bikes 2 years ago. He is 6'2" about 250, he had to have a HD but was afraid anything bigger than a sporty would be too much bike. So he bought the sporty against my recommendations, it lasted 1 month and got traded on a softail standard. He had the Standard for a year and has just traded on a EG standard. He's lost his butt on every trade, plus he's paying through the nose on Insurance because he is riding an HD with little street experience (he's ridden/raced dirt bikes for 18 years but that doesn't count).
So my advice to a new rider is buy the HD look alike metric, practice, learn, and don't worry if you nick it, its a metric so it won't hold its value regardless. Once you have a year or two under your belt and some practical experience riding spend the big bucks to get the Harley that you've really always wanted. Of course this is just my opinion/recommendation. But a Sporty is gonna be a very bad choice for you.
Most new riders that are wanting to get into a HD are afraid of the bigger bikes...they quickly outgrow the smaller bikes...further, after just a month or so of riding regular, they realize they could have/can handle the bigger bike...it's not that big of a deal.
Having said that, if you're a new rider, you WILL drop your bike. It's GOING to happen, so just plan on it. I don't mean get it and throw it on the ground, but it's going to happen. You learn from experience, and that unfortunately includes mistakes made.
That being said, it never hurts to learn on a more economic metric...just buy it used, run the crap out of it for a season, sell it, and then after you have some experience and know what you want...go get it...
If you have the money and don't care...get the HD Ultra right off the bat and disregard the above post...
Mac
#12
07-18-2005, 04:50 PM
Grand HDF Member
RE: New bike for tall rider
I know a guy that had a metric bike for a long time, he finally broke down and bought a 05 Heritage and he said he couldn't believe what he had been missing all those years, don't be fooled into thinking that you want take a bath on a metric bike also, pay $9500 for it, put add on's and say you've got $10,200 in it, keep it a year then you'll be lucky to get $6000 out of it, do yourself a favor and go rent a bike for a day, say the DynaWideGlide, it's a good bike for tall guy's and then decide what you want then, I think you'll be happier with the Harley.
Sorry guy's to disagree with ya on this but that's the way I feel.
Sorry guy's to disagree with ya on this but that's the way I feel.
#13
07-18-2005, 05:08 PM
RE: New bike for tall rider
I dunno. I think telling people to start out with smaller, lighter, cheaper bikes is
not necessarily good advice.
My Fat Boy is the first bike I've ever owned. It was also the first bike I ever rode.
I had a lot of folks say this same thing to me.
Buy something smaller first.
Buy something cheaper first.
Nope, I wasnt gonna do that.
I've wanted, not just a Harley, but a Fat Boy specifically since they first came out in 1990
and I'm damned if I was gonna spend a nickle on a cheap look-a-like just to turn around and buy what I
really want some other time.
If you KNOW what you want, buy it and dont let anyone steer you into something else
because its "safer" because that just isnt always the case.
Smaller doesnt mean safer. Cheaper sure as hell doesnt mean safer.
Safety comes from what kind of rider you are.
Do you dress appropriately? Do you take road conditions into consideration?
Do you keep your bike in good working order?
Do you know your limits and stay withing them?
How aware are you?
These are the things that make a good rider, Its not something thats inherent in the specific bike you are
riding.
Everything else being equal, I dont see any value in developing muscle memory on a 500 lb bike when I'm
planning to switch to a 700 lb bike
I also dont feel like spending more money than necessary. If doing so vastly improved my margin
of safety, that would be one thing, but I dont believe that it does or would.
Buy the bike you want.
If you are new or inexperienced, all you have to do is proceed with that
fact very firmly in mind. You are new and inexperienced.
Be careful. Dont put yourself in questionable situations. Proceed slowly. Learn as much as you can.
Take a rider course. Go one step at a time.
Use your common sense!
My friend who has been riding for 25 years bought a new Dyna Super Glide Custom the same day I got my Fat Boy.
He laid his down in less than a week. Not too bad. Couple dings on the bike, couple dings on him. All will be OK.
He took a turn too fast. Why?
He was used to a different bike and experience notwithstanding, he failed to take that fact into consideration.
I have almost 2000 miles on mine so far without a problem so far.
I have no illusions about it. I dont think those 2000 miles make me a good rider.
Still, I try to employ all the tactics I mentioned above every time I ride.
I take nothing for granted.
A smaller or less expensive bike would not have made me any safer.
not necessarily good advice.
My Fat Boy is the first bike I've ever owned. It was also the first bike I ever rode.
I had a lot of folks say this same thing to me.
Buy something smaller first.
Buy something cheaper first.
Nope, I wasnt gonna do that.
I've wanted, not just a Harley, but a Fat Boy specifically since they first came out in 1990
and I'm damned if I was gonna spend a nickle on a cheap look-a-like just to turn around and buy what I
really want some other time.
If you KNOW what you want, buy it and dont let anyone steer you into something else
because its "safer" because that just isnt always the case.
Smaller doesnt mean safer. Cheaper sure as hell doesnt mean safer.
Safety comes from what kind of rider you are.
Do you dress appropriately? Do you take road conditions into consideration?
Do you keep your bike in good working order?
Do you know your limits and stay withing them?
How aware are you?
These are the things that make a good rider, Its not something thats inherent in the specific bike you are
riding.
Everything else being equal, I dont see any value in developing muscle memory on a 500 lb bike when I'm
planning to switch to a 700 lb bike
I also dont feel like spending more money than necessary. If doing so vastly improved my margin
of safety, that would be one thing, but I dont believe that it does or would.
Buy the bike you want.
If you are new or inexperienced, all you have to do is proceed with that
fact very firmly in mind. You are new and inexperienced.
Be careful. Dont put yourself in questionable situations. Proceed slowly. Learn as much as you can.
Take a rider course. Go one step at a time.
Use your common sense!
My friend who has been riding for 25 years bought a new Dyna Super Glide Custom the same day I got my Fat Boy.
He laid his down in less than a week. Not too bad. Couple dings on the bike, couple dings on him. All will be OK.
He took a turn too fast. Why?
He was used to a different bike and experience notwithstanding, he failed to take that fact into consideration.
I have almost 2000 miles on mine so far without a problem so far.
I have no illusions about it. I dont think those 2000 miles make me a good rider.
Still, I try to employ all the tactics I mentioned above every time I ride.
I take nothing for granted.
A smaller or less expensive bike would not have made me any safer.
#14
07-18-2005, 05:13 PM
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RE: New bike for tall rider
You know guys, Harleys are a good investment and there are some good deals out there on used Harleys... How much does a new bike depreciate when you drive it off the showroom floor? A good used Dyna or Softtail could be just the ticket!
#16
07-18-2005, 08:36 PM
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RE: New bike for tall rider
This new guy is sitting back just laughing his a$s off at all of the responces
How many times can this guestion be asked????????????????????????????????
How many times can this guestion be asked????????????????????????????????
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