Im a new rider. I have rode friends Ninja 250 and I think its too slow for me. Should I go with a 650?

A 650, while not exactly a starter bike, is not too big for a starter. I would recommend a used bike, though, until you find out what bike you really want. Please take a safety course. It is well worth the cost.

Have fun riding, and Good Luck.

I would suggest Ninja 250 ( a used one though... no wisdom in buying a new one since the resale price decreases A LOT in the first year).... you'll be surprised how much you can learn from just the 250.... if you are looking for more, get the ninja 500 or GS500 .... but don't go more than 500cc... trust me, you may feel very confident right now to buy a 600cc or 650 cc bike... but you'll be a WAY better and safer rider if you start off with 250 (or at most a 500cc bike)... Please do think of your safety than pleasure and enroll for a Safety course or Rider's training course (In Canada, Riders Training Institute is pretty good... I took a course with them and it was well worth the money)!

Have a great fun and safe riding season :)!

stick with the 250 untill you are a master at riding it, and not just in a straight line. you will learn how to actually "RIDE" a motorcyle if you start on something smaller. you will be surprised when you master a smaller bike how much a better rider you are compared to those who are just into bigger bikes because of what the 1/4 reports were in the magazines. I've ridden 26k miles on my RC51, and I acutually would love to have a new 08 ninja 250. those are some pretty snazzy bikes. i know it doesn't have the accelleration, but i'm just immagining how nicely it must cut in the corners at the racetrack.

I am amazed that members are suggesting that you start on something bigger than a Ninja 250.

Truth to the matter is if you think the Ninja 250 is to slow then you are doing something wrong.

Any responsible member would advise you to start on nothing larger than the 250.

Why do you think that the MSF uses the Ninja 250?

I highly doubt that in your first year that you will ever fully tap into the potential of the 250.

Do yourself a favor and enroll in the MSF course and upon completing the course make your decision.

http://www.msf-usa.org/

I love the ninja 250 and i believe that you'll learn better riding skills and habits on it than you will on a larger bike, on a twisty road I can outrun 1000cc rockets all day long on my 250, while I know that most people disagree with me, i think they are mostly people who never spent the time learning how to ride a 250, good luck with whatever you choose

Yes that's the common wisdom everyone told me when I was thinking of riding. You'll outgrow a 250 in a week. If you are already riding motorcycles I would start off with something not less than 600cc.

If you're new, there's no such thing as a bike being too slow for you. If you're not scared of riding the bike, then you should be.

stay away from the rice rockets until you get some more experience and a safety course or two. more in-experienced riders are injured or killed because they get on a bike that is too powerfull/fast for their skill level. take your time and ride safely and you will be around for many years to come

SV650. The Ninja 650 was introduced to cut into the SV's market. Lots of used SV's out there. Lots of fun to ride, little money.

650