"Sam" (samwellington)
05/06/2015 at 17:35 • Filed to: None
3
13|
"Sam" (samwellington)
05/06/2015 at 17:35 • Filed to: None | 3
| 13 |
The old man that owned the dealership said that I’d probably like it better than the Duke 390, but he’d call me when they get it in. I sat on it and it’s actually pretty comfortable. It’s a pretty typical supersport position, but the seat is very well padded. He told me to go get a permit from the BMV and he’d let me take it for a test ride, even after I told him I’d never ridden before.
He said that, given my age, he was surprised I didn’t want to get a liter bike or something stupid.
E. Julius
> Sam
05/06/2015 at 17:37 |
|
Oooh that looks fun. When are you buying your bike?
|
Sam
> E. Julius
05/06/2015 at 17:38 |
|
After I take the Motorcycle Safety Foundation course, for sure. It’s not super cheap either($5,500), so I have to save a bit for a good down payment.
nermal
> Sam
05/06/2015 at 17:39 |
|
How old are you?
Assuming you don’t have an M license - In that case, go take an MSF course. That way you can get your license, learn to ride, and drop and beat up on the clutch of one of their crappy bikes instead of your shiny new one.
I like the new little bikes though - between these and the R3 / Ninja 300, it’s great to see so much attention and development there.
|
Sam
> nermal
05/06/2015 at 17:40 |
|
19. So the prime territory for squid life. And I fully intend on doing the course. It means I can skip the riding test when I get my full license.
|
E. Julius
> Sam
05/06/2015 at 17:41 |
|
Ah ok. Pretty amazing what you can get for such little money. Obviously for younger people like us $5,500 isn’t exactly pissing away money, but it seems much more attainable than a $30,000 car. Two wheels good indeed.
Cé hé sin
> Sam
05/06/2015 at 17:44 |
|
“He told me to go get a permit from the BMV and he’d let me take it for a test ride, even after I told him I’d never ridden before.”
This is a thing where you are? Being able to get on a bike that size absolutely from scratch?
|
nermal
> Sam
05/06/2015 at 17:45 |
|
Yep, I did the same, except my first bike was a Ninja 650, which I then traded for a liter bike.
Start small, and be safe on the street. Do a track day if you can, they’re relatively cheap to do on a bike.
|
Sam
> Cé hé sin
05/06/2015 at 17:51 |
|
Yeah. I could jump on a new S1000RR as my first bike and no one could stop me.
|
Cé hé sin
> Sam
05/06/2015 at 18:07 |
|
Weird.
472CID
> Sam
05/06/2015 at 18:36 |
|
It seems like the perfect bike for a new rider. Gotta give KTM a lot of credit for making a 400cc bike look exciting and not a weenie noob bike.
|
Sam
> 472CID
05/06/2015 at 18:43 |
|
Yup. And they took the Mercedes approach to the naming scheme - the 390 engine is only 370cc. Still puts out 44hp, which is plenty for a starter bike.
AdverseMartyr
> Sam
05/06/2015 at 22:22 |
|
I don’t think any shop would let you test drive one without a full license though. Unless you gave a credit card with a balance able to pay for the bike.
Snuze: Needs another Swede
> Sam
05/07/2015 at 16:06 |
|
I missed this yesterday, was super busy at work, but this looks fantastic. I love light-middle weights. I currently have a 1989 Honda CB-1 which is a 400 inline 4 but should be very smiliar to the KTM 390. I might seriously have to go check one of these out.