Getting Started

[Cbell]

Hi Everyone,

I'm new this forum, and new to bikes. My experience is limited to a few dirt bike runs a couple years ago. I purchased a used Kawasaki 250R to get me going come spring. It seems like a good way to get into sport bikes.

Getting my licence and acquiring insurance without doing the motorcycle riders course is proving to be difficult. I plan to take the course in the spring, but would still like to have my bike insured and registered, and at the very least, run across the street to a parking lot to practice once the good weather hits.

So as of right now, I can't get insurance without my license, and I can’t take my bike to do a balance test to get my learners licence without having it registered, which requires insurance. It's a circle to nowhere, unless I'm missing something?

Has anyone recently got their learners licence without taking the course?

Thanks for the help,

Colin

[DarkSoul]

hey welcome to the forums!  You can get insurance without a learners, but they will give you the run around pretty good.  The Co-operators is a good company to start with, they seem to be more likely to give you less problems starting out.  However once your first year is up, I would start looking for a different company as Co-Op is pretty expensive.  I got my license (learners) quite a few times this way (kept expiring) before I eventually got my full license.  I took the course after that too because I was told it would reduce my insurance, but so far I have yet to see any company actually give that reduction.  Where are you from anyway?  Can always talk over coffee if your close by?

[Cbell]

Thanks for the reply! I called cooperators today and am waiting on a quote. So far no one else has been willing to provide insurance. TD won't even provide a quote unless you've been riding for 3 years, or have the course under your belt. RBC was one year or a course. I can only imagine how difficult it's going to be in another 5 years. I'll continue to shop around. Can't wait for spring!

[chezz]

welcome..

I never had an issue insuring my bike before taking the course thru Sackville Insurance and then I registered it 10 minutes later.. (insured it over the phone while at the DMV since I forgot to do it before hand).. I already had my auto and home policies thru them so it made it easy to do it this way.....
and then my broker told me to send my bike info along after I was done at the DMV... Too easy!!!




I highly recommend taking the course... I'm yet to hear of a single person out there that took it, that didn't learn a lot..
Hell, even the 2 guys in my course who had been riding with no liscence for 25+ years each even learned a lot..

[DarkSoul]

+1 on the course, I was riding for about 20 years when I took it and I learned a ton.  And yeah, banks hate looking at people without previous riding experience.

[nighthawkrdr]

Welcome, normally if you have auto insurance it only takes a phone call to your carrier for the additional vehicle. But as a new rider it will probably be costly. Why not go to whoever your family buys their coverage from, they may be a lot more willing to talk.

[Cbell]

I got the bike insured through SMK insurance at a decent rate. Spring seems so far away! Just finished setting the valve clearances only to have it leak coolant on the first start... off to freedomcycle for a few seals.

[DarkSoul]

crappy on the leak.  did it leak before you did the valves?  Shouldn't have caused any problems by doing them?

[Cbell]

It didn't leak before. I had to pull the coolant line from the head to gain enough room to remove the valve cover... shouldn't have tried to re-use the o-ring. I knew better.. lesson learned.

[DarkSoul]

what year is your Ninja?  My wife has a 99, and I didn't think I had to pull the hose to get at the valves?  Maybe I'm missing something that might make it easier for me?  I do remember it being a major pain in the butt to do the valves on that ninja compared to my GSX-R

[Cbell]

It's an 09. It's all back together and ready to go for the spring... can't wait! To get the valve cover off I had to remove the right hand side fwd engine mounting bracket, the #2 coil, the coolant thermostat (just enough to push it up out of the way), the tank, and the radiator (just enough to let it fall forward a bit). It was a bit of a squeeze to get out... I had to shove the aluminum coolant line off to the side, and I must have pinched the o-ring in the process. If I have the bike long enough to do it again, I’ll remove the aluminum elbow that goes into the top of the head right from the get-go - with that aside it was much easier to fish the valve cover in and out.

Colin

[DarkSoul]

sounds like some work!  The 99 is a bit easier to get at, but its an older bike.  Would love to get a look at one of the new Ninjas one of these time.  Maybe I'll see you wround in the summer?

[Cbell]

Yeah, I'd like to go on a group ride or two in the summer for sure. Here's a shot as it sits now.

Colin

[DarkSoul]

looks awesome!  I really like the new look of the ninja 250's.  Kawi did good when they designed it   What area are you from?  I'm in the Westville (New Glasgow) area.