So you want to ride a motorcycle? (Part 2)

Some sad news today; my wife has a friend who lost her son to a motorcycle crash on Sunday. Apparently he got the bike on Saturday, and Sunday morning lost control of the bike on a curve, and hit a telephone pole, killing him instantly.
This goes back to what I was talking about in an earlier post. The very first thing one should get is training on operating a motorcycle safely. As I noted the classes can well save your life, they also can save on your insurance costs.
I have been talking to a new "want to be" rider at work who is planning to buy his first bike: the new 2009 Star V-Max. As I have told him, that is probably not the best selection for a beginning (or long away from riding) motorcyclist. For that matter, it may be a bad choice for the somewhat experienced rider. Not because its a bad bike, but rather because it has performance that will come faster than you might believe.
The trick with riding a motorcycle is not to blast down roads at triple digit speeds; the trick to me is a to enjoy the ride, visit new places, and most importantly come home to tell about them. Evading cops, getting tickets (and higher insurance), or even worse....medical bills from crashes tends to suck all the fun out of riding.
Plus, there are so many good motorcycles that give (1) great fuel mileage (2) lower maintenance costs and (3) react with a lot less quickness that make riding a lot more fun. Getting way over your head is a great way to lose it.
So, get the training first. Get the best protective gear you can afford, and use it. Slow down and enjoy the sensation and the scenery instead of blasting though it. If you want to go fast, get to a race track. Many of them have "track days" for motorcycles, and even there you can get training on how to ride at higher speeds if that is your wish.
Getting hurt sure tends to suck the fun out of a good day riding!