What ever happened to ‘building up’?

[Balky001]

I leave this thread for 1 day and it's all gone educational on me. I didn't study hard, didn't get any A's or A* (which came naturally to me!), didn't do a paper round (even though my dad owned a newsagent) or ride a bike when I was 16/17. I'm confused, am I in the right thread? Maybe I should have gone straight to a thou or should I have got a 50cc?

9000 miles on my CG125 in 9 months (which I still have 9 years later - feck doesn't time fly). A couple of '000 on a GS550M restricted as I was desperate for something quicker than the CG. Then a CBR600 a year or so after that. Wrote the CBR off in 4 months from new (See avatar).

So I started the building up thing quite well and learned an amount on the CG, then the Katana. The CBR was perhaps too quick (ultimately speed combined with a lack of experiance got me in trouble I couldn't get out of). An SV650 at that time would have been a better bike. Ho-hum can't change the past now (though you have no idea how much I wish I could).

The CG is still my weapon of choice for hooning round the roundabouts of Milton Keynes even though I realise the handling is awful and of course it has no power. The main thing from riding it that still shows in my riding today is my overtaking. I'm not quick but I will make progress in traffic by overtaking in a manner many people won't, but they haven't done 20000 miles on a CG (yes I carried on riding it) and on a CG overtaking becomes a privalidge and an art rather than a quick twist of the throttle.

So yes I agree that there is value in working your way up. However it's not practical or affordable these days so it's no great supprise that it doesn't happen.

Built up myself...

Went from a 125 to a gpz500 to an sv and now to a cbr600rr

bikes are alot more affordable these days and people have disposable income hence all the new riders hoping straight on 1000cc bikes... and crashing them

I don't see how working your way up isn't affordable??

I bought my VT250 for about £700, and it insured for a pittance. Now compare that to an SV650 at 17, bit of a difference there. My 400 was also only about a grand, again cheaper than an SV.

[Biker Biggles]

I think the affordability thing applies more to riders over 21.My lad got a 50 scoot at age 16 as that was all he could ride legally,did his test at 17(restricted to 33 bhp)and kept his scoot as it was all he could afford to run.
He got taken out by a bus and bought a 125 (Hyosung Comet)out of his compensation.When he finally dropped that and damaged it he had done about 12000 miles on it and his license had "matured " into a full one.He also had 3 years no claims and could afford to buy a cheap old SV and insure it without getting a mortgage.That's what I call building up,but anyone who is over 21 can just go out and do their DAS and buy whatever their disposable income allows.

I paid for and insured all my bikes myself. Motorbikes are the only reason I got a job in the first place and carried on with them while Im still at school. My parents said 'if you want bike, buy your own' so I did!

Originally Posted by Iansv

bikes are alot more affordable these days and people have disposable income hence all the new riders hoping straight on 1000cc bikes... and crashing them

Ohhh ... when I moved on from my TS50X, my next bike was an MBX80 ... just sen one on eBay ...

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/1985-HONDA-MBX...QQcmdZViewItem

Mine was a black one like that, but had a 100cc big-bore and a fill Micron expansion chamber, giving it about the same poke as a stock 125!!

Needless to say I loved this little bike too ...