650 suzuki savage

[newbie]

Thinking about this bike. I have only grew up on dirt bikes this will be my first road bike any thoughts?

[coffee_brake]

Small and manageable, but it will shake you to pieces on the highway.

It will be good to learn on, but I don't know many who can put any kind of distance riding on them....

Wow you're up late...it's early here....

[newbie]

I stayed up a little late,i do not get off work until 12:30a.m . Then I was checking out this bike on line and found this site. Usually in bed by 2:30 OOPS!

[Triumphgirl]

My sister has an older 650 Savage, the one lunger is or i should say was a good bike in her day. Great for the vertically challenged. Good bike for the newbie. Though I have to agree with coffee break, its not great on the long haul. But great for bombing around town.

[coffee_brake]

Well you really do have to look at who you are right now. Some younger folks know that they better get started on a 250 because they like to wring the throttle and go fast.

Some folks don't need the drama and do just fine with bigger motorcycles right off the bat. I started riding in my late 20's on an 800cc machine and had no troubles. Successfully and safely moved up to bigger machines, but my favorite bike is my 750 commuter.

Don't limit yourself to cruisers. Sit on every bike the dealership and the local bike night locals will allow, even if you don't think you'll like it. The one that fits you will scream in your ear right away.
If you are a mature driver you will likely be a mature rider. Your driving record will tell the tale!

Let us know what you choose, we're glad to have you.....

[follow]

+1 on what coffee said.

Also you can rent bikes I do know HD has a deal that you rent for the weekend and you bring the bike back and switch for another, as many times as you want.
I'm not familiar with other rental companies if they will do the same, but will not hurt to check it out...call Suzuki and the other brands.

[tcreeley]

I love my 1987 Suzuki Savage. It has plenty of power and torque. Comfortable and reliable. Check out this Savage forum for another view of them - unbiased by the status quo! You don't have to have a bike as big as 800cc to 1400cc to enjoy it. The Savage, LS650, S40 are all the same basic bike - cruiser and comfortable. You don't have to buy a crotch-rocket unless you want to to own one. The Savage is the least expensive of the bikes and the quality is good. It is simple to work on- one carb and reliable. Parts are everywhere.
http://suzukisavage.com/cgi-bin/YaBB.pl

[MZ33]

I don't think anyone was knocking the Savage/S40 here. It is a fine bike, but for any distance, everyone I know that had a choice over a thumper vs. a v-twin or inline 4 or triple always chooses one of the latter. In fact, one of the women here had an S40, and traded it in for a smaller displacement V-twin, a 500cc Kawi Vulcan. She rode the Vulcan from Pennsylvania to Colorado and lots of places inbetween.

If the OP can get a Savage for a good price--and I imagine she can--it will be a good starter bike, and probably a fun around-town bike. One of the best aspects is that she will not have invested a LARGE amount of money on a shiny bike until she knows a bit more about her likes and dislikes.

[sunshine229]

+1 MZ33

It would be a great starter bike!

I have a friend who was in her late 30's when she started riding and started with a Savage. She loved it for the first while but upgraded after one year so she could handle longer rides. That shouldn't deter you though!