Will every beginning rider have an accident?

I bought my bike 2 years ago a Honda shadow ace 1100. I have had a few close calls but no accidents. You have to remember most bike accidents are not caused by the bike rider. I would say a 250 is small for you however I would get one to learn on. Buy a cheap one to practice then go bigger. I drove a friends cbr 600 and if you are not ready for the pickup it will hurt you. Ride safe drive defensive. Wear a helmet and good boots and most important when in trouble grab the clutch and get it under control Don't panic. My close calls a motorhome pulled out in front of me and a Truck changed lanes at a stop light in front of me never even saw me.

You know, I have been riding for almost 40 years and I have never heard anyone say that all beginning riders will have an accident. What we all say is that every rider (rookie or pro) will DROP their bike. Dropping it is not the same as having an accident. Dropping it is a matter of having it fall over. It's a low or no speed plop. It can be something as stupid as forgetting to put the kickstand down, trying to start the bike when it's in gear, pushing it backwards over a curb so that your feet aren't able to touch the ground when the bike loses momentum, or any number of silly things. As for rookies getting into accidents, I didn't have my first and only accident until I was well beyond the point of being considered a rookie.

From what I've read, the SuperHawk was aimed at riders between 5'8" to 6'1". It is also reported to have a ton of torque- which can be very problematic for a new rider - and will up the ante that you will be a new rider that has an accident- and I'm not talking about dropping it. I'm talking having the bike get away from you. Even experienced riders will sometimes twist the throttle when we don't want to do it, but our experience generally keeps us from becoming a statistic. If my front tire pops up, I know how to bring it back down without me going down, too. Where it makes me giggle, it could cause a novice to squeeze harder on the throttle. More throttle means tire higher off the ground and a greater likelihood that you'll end up on your back with a bike on top of you.

Go talk to the folks that sell the bikes and let them know what it is you want from a bike. They can steer you in the right direction concerning size. Speak with more than one dealer, though, so you can be sure the dealer isn't just shooting for the bigger commission.

Because you are interested in buying a sport bike, you may be right in thinking that buying used could be buying someone else's problems because sport bike riders are often out to ride the bike hard. Cruisers, such as Harleys or the metric cruisers are not as likely to be ridden in such a way as to damage the bike. I've only had problems with one used bike (I've owned more than 15) and it was a chopper- something that the owner had ridden hard. I knew it when I bought it, though.

Good luck to you!

In truth, no. Not EVERY motorcyclist has a wreck... However, you need to realize that a beginner rider is just that. New to something he/she may not understand. Every person is different, so the statement that everyone falls can not be true. I may not have been riding long (around a year, 3000 miles), but I have yet to have an accident. I have had deer run in front of me, people cut me off, pull out, etc... In a few cases it's pure luck, but in most of the other cases it was practice that saved me and my bike. Practice only comes from experience. I took the MSF Safety course before I did anything else. Some people get on their bike the first day they get it with no training or will to be safe on them. Shoot, I've heard of people who wanted to ride bikes but didn't know what a clutch was.

There is no single reason people have accidents. It could be a result of driver error, the bike could malfunction, it could have rained and been slippery, another person could be at fault, gravel, flat tire, and the list goes on an on. A beginner may panic in life or death situations and not know what to do, while a more experienced rider will control the situation and do every possible maneuver to avoid said accident... That choice may be to swerve, stop completely, slow and swerve, or outrun the obstacle all together, or any combination of those or even more.

Take the MSF course. They explain everything a whole lot better than I can, and It could save your life. After all, the work of art isn't just fairings on a bike, but its you.

I'm a new rider too and if you actually worried about having an accident then maybe a motorcycle isn't for you. From what I remember in the MSF class a large portion of the accidents are avoidable and a big portion of those are failure to negotiate a turn and running off the road. Even in the short time I've ridden I've had at least 2 close calls. One of them being a large truck almost failing to stop in time and becoming one with me. If he hadn't turned to avoid me I would have been on the hood on the truck on my back and my bike would have been gone. The risk of injury is something you will have to personally decide and if the risk is too large then please stay with a car.

But if you do decide that you want to ride a motorcycle go take the safety class and try out thier 250cc motorcycles and decide if they are too small for you before you buy one. I am 6'0 230 pounds and I ride a ninja 250cc and I'm ok with it. I'm not as fast as a good car but I've never felt like I can't keep up with reasonable traffic and on the freeways I can hit 85-90 and beyond with no problems. And its so light its just easy to ride it. For me the risk is reasonable and I just really enjoy the experience.

Good luck

You actually might be too big for a 250. Look for a 500 for a good starter. You are going to need a little more torque to get someone your size going. Then again, I am 6' and go 200 pounds and I felt fine on the smaller bikes I have owned.

I started riding 22 years ago and I have never been down (knock on wood). I started on an LTD 440 and then upgraded to a GS850. After that, I have had everything from hypersports to Roadkings. Each has been great in their own way.

I once heard someone say it is way more fun to ride a slow bike really fast than to ride a fast bike really slow. If you get a chance, hop on a 250 Ninja and see if the proverb works for you. I had an old 185 Suzuki that I used to love to pound the BLANK out of on backroads. I have had MANY bikes that were WAY better in almost every way, but I don't think any of them were that much more fun.

My current ride is an '02 Cyclone. I love the bike. I can't decide what to get next. I am thinking a 'Busa or ZX14, but I never know what the next one is going to be until the last minute.

My best advice to you is to ride the bike you are interested in. Don't just take it around the block. If you can, spend an hour or more with it. You will be glad you did.

Good luck.

Sorry to hear about your accident, but you sound like a person that has a lot to give to a horse and I think it would be a shame if you couldnt get back on a horse. Take things slowly - I think you're doing the right thing in starting back slowly on a riding school plod of a horse - every school has one of these - they're there to give confidence - and this is what you need. go once or twice a week and see how you get on with it... then as your confidence starts to come back, try going that bit further. I thin you should take on t his horse you mention - at least you'd have him in the wings for when you get your confidence back. You dont have to go back riding young spooky horses anymore - something like him that you can have a bit of fun on and do things without the fear of him spooking or throwing a shape like the youngster you fell off, will be enough for you - so long as you're back on board! I wish you all the luck in the world with this! I had a bad accident ten years back where I was in a coma for 2 months and suffered from brain damage - I made a full recovery, and I had no qualms about getting back in the saddle - but thats probably because I cant remember the injury I had or the difficulty of going through it. The fact that you nearly lost the use of your mobility is enough to scare anyone - so I can totally see why you'd be sceptical about getting up again. Good luck! xx

Hmm... I realize that most of the people who answered before me have a lot more experience than I do, but I still disagree:

If most crashes weren't the riders fault I wouldn't be riding, The sad fact is that most crashes are the riders fault, and in most of the other cases the rider should have been able to avoid it. The Western Australian Police Force recently issued a statement that 18 of the 19 fatal accidents involving motorcycles this year didn't even involve another vehicle.

That being said, you shouldn't be too surprised if you drop it while you are learning (you aren't going to be good at anything straight away.)

When I was learning I dropped my bike 3 times, leading to a grand total of $300 dollars repairs and one band-aid in medical expenses. (Wasn't wearing gloves and fell on gravel). Haven't come off on the road since then. (I currently have a broken collar bone from falling off on the racetrack, but that's different.)

As for a 250, you won't be able to drag off any Ferraris, but it'll still get you moving at a decent rate. Do not under any circumstances ride a 1000 cc without at least a year's experience, unless you want to become very well acquainted with some roadside shrubbery.

As you have read your answwers, some go down while others dont. Those that dont are the exception; plan on going down and always wear all the proper safety gear. I recommend taking a riders course throught the Motorcycle Safety Foundation. Even if you do not know how to ride, once you go throguh the Basic Course you will feel confident and learned many skills and things to look for and how to react to various situations.

I would start with a decent cruiser type bike with a low center of gravity in the 600-650 cc range. You will probably want something bigger after riding a short time as your abilities will develope. A 600+ will have decent resale value. I recommend buying used as you will probably sell it rather quickly as you are a big guy.

first, no, not every beginner rider will have an accident, however, the odds are higher that beginners will. it all depends on the rider. if you ride safely and within your limits you shouldn't have a problem. when i first started riding the only accident i had was laying the bike down at a stand still, i did this twice thou both times were on the first day i ever rode a bike. if you're super worried about having an accident you should really look into taking an MSF course in your area. they're usually held on the weekends and what the coaches teach you is invaluable, plus, many people say what you learn in that weekend is the equivalent of riding/learning on your own for 2 years. also, at the MSF course you generally ride on 250cc bikes (with your height thou you may be a bit crammed on one - thou my mom is the same height and she got thru the course on one) so you can see what you think of a bike this size. as for buying used, i would highly recommend it, especially with your first motorcycle - odds are you might drop it/lay it over (but then again i never dropped or laid mine down - i laid the MSF bike down the first day, it's better to do it on theirs!!!) and you will be learning on this machine so you may want something you can dog and not feel bad about. lots of luck and don't let the fear of accidents deter you from riding!!!!

Yes, every single motorcyclist has an accident. A rare few may not have, but the vast majority do.

Mt accidents have included coming of my bike because I came up to a T-junction and despite stopping and checking both ways a car driver pulled out in front of me (I had right of way). If I hadn;'t braked sharply or had been going faster I would have hit him.

My other one was where I came up to a set of traffic lights when it was raining, and the lights turned red. I stopped the bike and heard the car behind me brake and skid. Fortunately, all that happened was my back number plate was broken off. If he had been going faster then I could have been in big trouble. I live in Northern Ireland and one time I almost had one of those armoured police landrovers crash into the back of me as well.

Another time I was driving in a built up area and it was raining. The back wheel of my bike hit a wet manhole cover, slipped and I went down.

Neither of these was my fault, and I don't see how I could have avoided them.

Even if you are a perfect driver and never make a mistake, then you still have to deal with the stupidity of others. I have only mentioned actual accidents, but I have had near misses as well.

Not only that, one time I was caught out by a sudden snowstorm as I was driving home and I came off the bike several times because it was so slippery. There was no warning of snow on the forecasts otherwise I would have left the bike at home. It was treacherous.

If you think of it like this. A motorbike has the power to weight ratio which is several times larger than a car. It has no protection except what you wear, it has tremendous speed and acceleration and is unstable (the only contact you have with the ground are two tiny patches of rubber and if one wheel skids, then you are lying on the ground).

I love my bike, but you have to be realistic. I have crashed before and I will probably crash again. I have so far been lucky, but I know people that haven't. I know one guy who has lost the use of his left arm after a motorcycle accident.

I think you should start with a 250 cc bike. Here all beginners can ride is a 125cc bike and everyone manages fine. You may want to get a bike with a bigger engine later on that's fine, but the bigger the bike the more likely the accident.

If you drive a car, I would advise you to keep it. Get a bike if you want but start off with something low powered until you have experience. The reason why a lot of beginners have accidents is because although they may know the rules of the road, on a motorbike you have to be super aware of potential accidents. Because you are fast and small, cars will not see you until you are on top of them.