A biker noob checking in..
Discussion
All my motoring thrills were of the four wheeled variety up till now, but I decided now was the time to experience the freedom I felt around 15 years ago when I had a play on a mates bike.I asked a few people I know who are into bikes which was the best route to go and decided a quick CBT and a Jap 125 was the way forward for now.I'm not a lover of those 125 sports bikes which look like a 'proper' bikes children, despite the fact they are a great bikes no doubt, to me they look like they have been popped in the oven and shrunk, so I narrowed my choices down to a funky and more sedate looking Yam TW, Suzuki VanVan or a Varadero.I wasn't bothered about that 2 stroke speed some rave about really, nor was I gagging to get my knee down and scare myself, I just wanted a commuter (short journey) and something to play on for a while on sunny days with a view to climbing the CC ladder at a later date if I became hooked.
Long story short, found a decent Varadero which didn't require me to sell organs to afford it and collected it today.I decided on one of these as I'm not a small lad, am rather stocky and the Varadero suits my frame far more than some of the other bikes.
I also picked up a relatively decent but plain looking jacket and helmet a few weeks back at a bike show, jacket was a ton, helmet was reduced to £30 from around £70 and I shall probably grab a pair of those bikers jeans later and some gloves and boots.
What can I say! Seeing as I have not ridden a bike properly since around the early 90's (and even then only three or four times for half an hour), I was suprised just how easy it was to ride and how much confidence it inspired after only a minute! I even had a go at some seriously slow and tight turns and it just lapped them up.I only had a short while on it as I have yet to do my CBT (I know, odd way of doing things) and my brief ride was undertaken at our works yard, but I loved it and still managed to get into 5th and open her up a bit
So, if like me you are in your late 30's and are looking to get a bike which appears to be bigger than it is CC wise, is damn comfortable, a joy to ride and will lead you gently into your first biking experience (to see if you really love it or not), the Varadero comes highly recommended by me.They do seem to command a premium however, but £1400 picked me up a decent 51 plate example with just under 8k miles and only a few marks here and there, so you don't have to spend 1700+ as I thought I would need too.
Can't wait to get out on it now and start the real learning process..
Long story short, found a decent Varadero which didn't require me to sell organs to afford it and collected it today.I decided on one of these as I'm not a small lad, am rather stocky and the Varadero suits my frame far more than some of the other bikes.
I also picked up a relatively decent but plain looking jacket and helmet a few weeks back at a bike show, jacket was a ton, helmet was reduced to £30 from around £70 and I shall probably grab a pair of those bikers jeans later and some gloves and boots.
What can I say! Seeing as I have not ridden a bike properly since around the early 90's (and even then only three or four times for half an hour), I was suprised just how easy it was to ride and how much confidence it inspired after only a minute! I even had a go at some seriously slow and tight turns and it just lapped them up.I only had a short while on it as I have yet to do my CBT (I know, odd way of doing things) and my brief ride was undertaken at our works yard, but I loved it and still managed to get into 5th and open her up a bit
So, if like me you are in your late 30's and are looking to get a bike which appears to be bigger than it is CC wise, is damn comfortable, a joy to ride and will lead you gently into your first biking experience (to see if you really love it or not), the Varadero comes highly recommended by me.They do seem to command a premium however, but £1400 picked me up a decent 51 plate example with just under 8k miles and only a few marks here and there, so you don't have to spend 1700+ as I thought I would need too.
Can't wait to get out on it now and start the real learning process..
Here she is.It has a couple of marks and a bent lever due to falling over, but nothing I was bothered about for the price and the location.The guy I went with to pick it up who has been biking for 40 years and owns a new Busa, GSXR1000, an older GSXR 750, a Duke 851 (all mint!) and something else I can't remember, said it was a lovely comfortable ride.
I have started ordering various bits and bobs now, you know, chain lube, service parts, tank protector thingy..
I have started ordering various bits and bobs now, you know, chain lube, service parts, tank protector thingy..
Edited by Digby on Sunday 29th June 21:42
Cheers
I can't wait to get on it now.
I'm not sure if everyone has seen them in the flesh, but it's probably the biggest 125 you can get.It looks more like a 400/600 or something to the untrained eye.It's all tank and plastic of course though to make it appear so big, but it's great for the larger rider and gives you a taste of that bigger bike feel.
I can't wait to get on it now.
I'm not sure if everyone has seen them in the flesh, but it's probably the biggest 125 you can get.It looks more like a 400/600 or something to the untrained eye.It's all tank and plastic of course though to make it appear so big, but it's great for the larger rider and gives you a taste of that bigger bike feel.
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