I've been working in the motorcycle industry for almost 10 years now, primarily Harley Davidson though. If you want a fun starter bike that won't break the bank check out the Honda Grom. Don't be afraid of the streets, just always have the mindset that people are trying to hit you and ride cautiously ; ) They're small, but a real lot of fun to zip around on. Plus if you outgrow it you can resell it easily for about what you paid for it. Lots of mods for them, too.
I own a Honda XR 650, & let me just advise you to get a 450 or less if you plan on getting a dual purpose motorcycle, as a 650 is just too damn heavy for a free feeling offroad experience (imo).
ahh fond memories Growing up I had access to a lot of different vehicles to thrash about. For motorbikes I had sort of crappy scrap yard stuff but that is the most fun you can have IMHO Used to have a Yamaha Big wheel 250cc much like this one This thing was abused before I got it; Basically no exhaust (the inside of the big pipe bit fell out in flames one day) It was sitting fully fueled for 3 years, so the carburetor was all sticky, could only half fix it so the throttle would stick a little.. Rear sprocket and chain where ruined (no going up hills for me), rear sprocket was almost smooth from the chain slipping These things DO NOT go well on wet stuff After that, took prime ownership of my parents 200c Yamaha AG bike Built for farming stuff so a bit harder to throw around but can go highway speeds hahahahaha Both those bikes had the softest kick starter ever, one finger soft After that bike fell to bits went too a 1985? Yamaha 200cc semi automatic quad bike, very small so only had 2WD.. It had a go backwards leaver (reverse doughnuts hehe) This thing was super lite, so made going up treacherous terrain loads of fun. Also it can drift really well, very hard to roll! I have very fond memories of this bike, took me places where I couldn't get too before to take some of my favorite pictures. http://leham.deviantart.com/art/Tree-by-LeHaM-158254535 http://i1373.photobucket.com/albums/ag366/Slot1Gamer/IMGP3203_zpsl83ez0vf.jpg http://i1373.photobucket.com/albums/ag366/Slot1Gamer/IMGP3148_zpsb0bygarq.jpg http://i1373.photobucket.com/albums/ag366/Slot1Gamer/IMGP3153_zps73da9h4z.jpg That hill is way steeper in real life, I could never get a 2 wheeler up there, big rocks + very inclined hill. I had to sit on the front of the quad, heaps scary but soo much fun haha also made it easier to jump off if it did roll.. anyway all this talk of motorbikes has made me carry on a bit sorry haha
