If I were to get a bike licence ...
Discussion
... then what would be the "best" way of doing it?
Does the following train of thought make sense?
I've never been on a motor bike before (well once on a 250 years ago).
Before spending a wad of money on a bike / insurance / clothing / helmets I want to know if I like it and want to continue with it.
I reckon I need to be able to commute into London (from Windsor) to make it worth my while - ie convince the wife this is a good thing
The Direct Access sounds to be training you to pass a test? But they do let you rent their bikes to do it on which is handy. I'm pretty sure I'd need more training afterwards to avoid killing myself but at least I can practice on my own. Or is there a better way than the DAS course? Can anyone recommend somewhere near Windsor (I've found one place near Maidenhead that does DAS but there doesn't seem to be a lot of choices).
Actually I'm probably happy enough to do DAS and then go straight to more training before I start commuting.
And this is the bit where all experienced bikers are going to laugh at me. I'd want a bike that is fairly quick but comfortable, the VFR 750/800 looks good but am I likely to be biting off more than I can chew? I can't afford to buy a bike for a year / two and then trade it in. I suspect if I do much commuting (300 miles per week max) then the value is going to pretty much plummet so I'd rather get something that's fast enough for a few years and can take high mileage and be reliable.
Does the following train of thought make sense?
I've never been on a motor bike before (well once on a 250 years ago).
Before spending a wad of money on a bike / insurance / clothing / helmets I want to know if I like it and want to continue with it.
I reckon I need to be able to commute into London (from Windsor) to make it worth my while - ie convince the wife this is a good thing
The Direct Access sounds to be training you to pass a test? But they do let you rent their bikes to do it on which is handy. I'm pretty sure I'd need more training afterwards to avoid killing myself but at least I can practice on my own. Or is there a better way than the DAS course? Can anyone recommend somewhere near Windsor (I've found one place near Maidenhead that does DAS but there doesn't seem to be a lot of choices).
Actually I'm probably happy enough to do DAS and then go straight to more training before I start commuting.
And this is the bit where all experienced bikers are going to laugh at me. I'd want a bike that is fairly quick but comfortable, the VFR 750/800 looks good but am I likely to be biting off more than I can chew? I can't afford to buy a bike for a year / two and then trade it in. I suspect if I do much commuting (300 miles per week max) then the value is going to pretty much plummet so I'd rather get something that's fast enough for a few years and can take high mileage and be reliable.
I was in a similar boat to you. I decided to pass my DAS first using the bike schools kit and bike, then bought the lid, leathers and bike. I now commute 300 miles a week on a Bandit 1200S (half nice'n'twisty, half m'way.) I passed last August and the bike has now got 14k on it and will be practically worthless if I want to swap, however it's a great commuter, v.fast and provides me with fun at the weekends too, so I'll probably keep it until it rots. My insurance came down from £750 to £330 this year (TPFT.)
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