So after a little delay I got my 250 this morning. Brought it in, tried to start it and nothing... oh boy! Went inside to get user's manual and in the pictures I see the engine cutoff. Silly me, I never turned that. So I go out again and try to start it; this time the engine turns but it doesn't start. I had already checked that there were gasoline in the tank and turned the choke on. My next guess is the fuel valve, but at this point we had to leave as we had an appointment somewhere else.

4 hours later I return home and look all over the user's manual for the fuel valve and I find it nowhere, so I can just assume there's none in here. I try to start it again and, voila! the engine starts and immediately stalls. I turn the choke on, try again and I have a "mean sounding" 250R running. I'm happy.

I let it warm up for a little while until I can turn the choke off and the bike keeps running. It doesn't take too long (less than 5 mins., easily). I turn it off and proceed to change the rear suspension from 5 to 3 (I'm not that heavy, and don't plan to ride with my wife just yet), which I cannot do because of limited space and I didn't want to screw anything yet.

My next assignment is to raise the bike, since the previous owner was a 4'7" lady and I'm 6' tall. She had someone put lowering links that I can just turn to raise back up. Which I do. Once I finish, I try the "power walk" exercise seen in the MSF course, to get familiar with the clutch on this bike. By this time, it's time to have dinner. After that I gear up. It's the first time I try all of my gear on and I start getting hot right away. I struggle to handle keys with the gloves, and look around with the helmet, but not too bad.

Get the bike started, open up the garage, go out and stop just outside the door so I can close it, and very slowly I go down the ramp as I am afraid of the sidewalk bump, but I get through that easily. I start my ride around the neighborhood. I have to admit that besides not feeling ready to hit major streets, the bike doesn't have license plates nor registration yet, so I definitely keep it in the quiet street of the neighborhood, and never got over 35mph.

So anyway, a couple of stops, a couple of rough gos, but everything is OK. There is a road that is very rarely traveled and has a couple of twists. This was by far the highlight of the ride, as I was able to consciously get a feel for counter-steering, even at 35mph. Oh, right along here I hit a dead end and as I am turning back the bike stalls in first gear; I start it back and go my way, but I do feel a little embarrassed.

On the way back I have a little hard time shifting gears smoothly; it's either a very quick clutch release or too little/ too much throttle. All of this time, the hardest part, by far has been using the turning signals. I have to think about putting it on, sometimes I have to look down and almost all of the time I forget to turn them off. However, the biggest revelation comes while approaching a stop sign I notice a vehicle approaching me, really fast. So I move over to the left of the lane, in case [s]he wants to turn right at the sign; at the same time I'm trying to measure the distance, since I'm not familiar with the mirrors yet, and when finally getting to the stop sign, I start to down-shift, but it feels very hard. I think about that and I realize that I'm not pulling the clutch lever... stupid me! I pull the lever and go all the way to 1st gear. I continue straight and the van keeps going behind me, so I consciously turn the turning signal on, down-shift once and make a right turn to finally get home.

I decide to try going up the ramp with my feet up, so I move wide left to get the ramp at a 90o angle and I do so without any problems. But as I stop close to the garage door, I forget to either put it in neutral or disengage the clutch, and of course, the bike stalls. Having a hard time reaching my pocket with the gloves I reach the door control, open it up, start the bike up, press rear brake (remember, I am uphill right now), slowly disengage the clutch while rolling on the throttle, and as the bike starts to pull, I release the rear brake; go inside and close the door. And I power the bike down.

So the revelation is, I am in no way ready to take the bike to traffic. I need to practice using the controls until I don't have to think about that and concentrate on traffic. It will probably take a week if I practice enough. Another thing is that I have been reading "Proficient Motorcycling" (about half-way done), and I also have to make those guidelines, such as scanning around for hazards, turn lanes, etc., second nature so that I don't have to think about that while also dealing with traffic.

Anyway, sorry for the long read but I wanted to share how I'm doing so far. If you have any suggestions or comments, feel free to post them here.

Congratulations on getting your bike finally.

Great and descriptive read. My thoughts are that you're just getting started and already over thinking everything and try to watch and pay attention to too much at one time. Cut that out. :D That's the toughest part is trying not to over think. You're going about it right in that you should take the bike out to a parking lot and practice practice practice. If you have someone with riding experience that is willing to go with you then even better. They can help you with using your clutch levers and all the basic mechanics of riding. You can also get road cones cheap and start practicing your starting and stopping skills. The best thing is to take one goal at a time. Not try to learn all the mechanics in week. Know what I mean? :D Best of luck.

The problem is that I keep missing the controls, but I understand is part of the learning curve; later on, everything will come natural I'm sure (based on practice, of course), but so far, like you said, I have to think about doing everything. Turning lights are the worst so far, both turning them on and cancelling them.

Another thing I found strange is that every time the tachometer hit ~4000 I felt the need to shift up. Only once, and I had to do this consciously, did I make it to ~6000.

Bad part is, I found an oil leak yesterday, so I took the left fairing off (took me a while) and I think I have tracked it down to the front sprocket, but I'm still not sure what/where it is.

The bike still has warranty until March, so I'm going to call some local dealers to ask about that, but I wanted to see for myself as I want to learn how to fix it myself, but I don't even have a rear-stand so it's a bit hard.

The problem is that I keep missing the controls, but I understand is part of the learning curve; later on, everything will come natural I'm sure (based on practice, of course), but so far, like you said, I have to think about doing everything. Turning lights are the worst so far, both turning them on and cancelling them.

I know this is a dumb question but have you done your MSF yet? Forgive me for asking but I don't remember. One thing you can do right in your own garage is practice feeling out your clutch /throttle. Very slowly roll on the throttle as you very slowly let out the clutch (make sure you're in first gear) until the bikes starts to creep forward and move then pull in the clutch and let off the gas. Practice that until it's perfect. Take each task one at a time. That way when you get to the point of riding you can incorporate all the tasks together smoothly. Oh and when you try this task be sure both feet are on the ground. :) For right now don't even worry about your turn signals. Get down the basic riding mechanics first then worry about adding multi-tasking functions.

Another thing I found strange is that every time the tachometer hit ~4000 I felt the need to shift up. Only once, and I had to do this consciously, did I make it to ~6000.

This sounds to me as though you're trying to ride your motorbike like you would drive a car. VERY common mistake. You could go all the way to redline before you need to shift. Yes the bike might sound a little upset but really it's not. Above 5-6000 rpm is where you're going to get the torque out of this bike. By all means if you're hitting 5k rpm and feeling uncomfortable then shift. But the bike is more then willing and able to take that kind of treatment. :D
Now one thing I have learned with this bike is that shifting too early (aka too low rpm's) can and usually causes you to go into neutral. So it may not be that you're missing gears only that you're not pulling the bike to a high enough rpm for a smooth shift into second. Yes you can get it into second at low rpm but you have to be super smooth and slow with letting the clutch out and turning the throttle to enusre it engages or is all the way in that gear.

Bad part is, I found an oil leak yesterday, so I took the left fairing off (took me a while) and I think I have tracked it down to the front sprocket, but I'm still not sure what/where it is.

The bike still has warranty until March, so I'm going to call some local dealers to ask about that, but I wanted to see for myself as I want to learn how to fix it myself, but I don't even have a rear-stand so it's a bit hard.

Definitely contact a dealer and take it in.

No worries, I don't mind questions.

Yes, I did take the MSF course, and the very first thing I did after being able to turn the bike on was to get familiar with the clutch doing "power walks" (that's what they call them) in the garage. The problem is that the garage is a small place to try, but I didn't have any trouble, in the beginning, using the friction zone.

I have called a local dealer and it's due for check tomorrow afternoon. I just finished putting the fairing back together. It's amazing how little time it took me to put it back compared to taking it off.

On a separate note, is this lean angle normal (or acceptable)? It seems to me the bike is about to fall on its side, but maybe I'm just paranoid. Notice the garage door lines as a reference.

Lean angle while on the stand looks perfectly normal to me.
Glad you made an appointment. ;)


Now this is lean angle. Poor little bike just didn't know what it was in store for!

Yes, I meant on the stand :) That is a nice lean in the picture. I am planning on going to a track day at least once to try it out, but that will be in a couple of months when I get all the mechanics of riding worked out.

This morning I noticed there is no new oil on the floor (cardboard), which means the leak seems to happen only when riding. I will take it out for a spin before taking it to the dealership (it's less than a mile away) so we can easily (hopefully) see where the oil is coming from.

Thanks for the help.

[EDIT] I just got back from the service shop. The diagnosis: oil overfilled. So now an oil change and a lot of cleaning is now due. I was also told that some oil must have gotten in the gearbox and that they'd clean it up when changing the oil. There is a lot of cleaning to do in the chain and front sprocket as well. Fun times!

I love my new 2009 Ninja 250 R..BUT, I think I am going to sell her for a bigger Ninja...I am a female and like my husband said, I would want a bigger bike after riding the 250. HE WAS RIGHT..LOL

It only has 400 miles.

That's a shame. From the sound of your posts, it seemed you were having such a great time with it. What made you change your mind? How long did you ride it?

EDIT: Nevermind, I saw in another thread that you've had it for a couple of months. I don't have a lot of experience, but I've heard from a lot of people that us new riders soon get comfortable and want to get a bigger bike, but a lot more time is needed to be a proficient rider. I'm sure your husband is telling you this, given that he has a lot more experience than you, so I'd listen and pay attention.
DISCLAIMER: This is just my 2 cents' worth and in the end you will do as you please, of course, but you might want to reconsider and keep the bike some more. I don't understand, it seems powerful enough to me. Anyway, I didn't want to say this in your sale thread to avoid going off-topic.

Personally (and just my two cents) if you've only been riding for three or four months I don't feel that you're ready for a big bike. A 250 is MUCH more forgiving then a 599 cc or a 649 cc. Mistakes are easily made on a bigger bike and more often then not are much more costly. It was recommended to me by every veteran rider I know (I was taught to ride by AFM and WSMC racers) to keep my 250 for at least 8 months if not a year. By then I will have learned proper use of controls, breaking and throttle and whatnot. As said by edgary I'm sure your husband is telling you all this as he has quite a bit more seat time then you.

In the end yes the decision is all your but please be openminded to keeping your 250 for 6 or so months longer.

As Zmoe says : They day you feel you've outgrown your 250 you've outgrown your helmet.

Or something like that. :D

edgary I am in the exact same boat as you. I just finished my MSF course sunday and I been riding it around town a little bit. Yeah I agree lol blinkers are tuff.

edgary I am in the exact same boat as you. I just finished my MSF course sunday and I been riding it around town a little bit. Yeah I agree lol blinkers are tuff.

Yeah, no kidding. However, I am almost to the point where I don't have to think about them. My biggest problem right now is the mirrors. I have been playing around with them for four days, and only until today I seem to have found a good compromise. Entire cars were hiding behind my little bike. Imagine that!

I finally took a 40-45 mph road today. I went to the MVD to register the bike, I called them before to ask what I needed and they said "only the title", so there I go. I brought the bike to work this morning (through a secondary, 30 mph, road because they also told me they needed to inspect the bike. So I found some slow roads to get all the way to the MVD, only to get there and be informed that the bike doesn't need to be inspected, and that I also needed the bill of sale.

On the way back I said "screw it" and got in a 40-45 mph road since it was pretty deserted. The ride was great but the bike seems like it's going to blow up at high RPMs. I accelerated all the way to 10-11k and was cruising mostly around 6-7k RPMs... and cars were still passing me. So I grabbed the bill of sale, went back to the MVD and got a license plate for the little Ninja. Fun times.

ha ha holy crap dude I swear your stoking me or something. You described my day yesterday down to the last detail. I've been having trouble with the mirrors and I took all the back roads to get my plates and get it inspected and on the way home I also road it on a major road for the first time. yeah the sound of the high RPM also freaks me out, I'm just so use to shifting at 3000 or 4000 RPMs in my car. It's just going to take some getting used to I guess.

ha ha holy crap dude I swear your stoking me or something. You described my day yesterday down to the last detail. I've been having trouble with the mirrors and I took all the back roads to get my plates and get it inspected and on the way home I also road it on a major road for the first time. yeah the sound of the high RPM also freaks me out, I'm just so use to shifting at 3000 or 4000 RPMs in my car. It's just going to take some getting used to I guess.

Yep, that was my day today. There must be some kind of initiation into motorcycles.

I have already been told it just needs some getting used to (about the RPMs) but the bike just feels like it's going to fall apart. :ohno

Thank you...I appreciate your feedback. I will wait. My bike is garaged right now , but the first day it clears up with this cold weather, I am ready! It has been very windy lately. I had some wind kick up my back tire a month ago at 35 mph..very scary. My husband was riding behind me and saw it too..well I felt it..lol

I thought a bigger bike that weighs more would be easier in the wind. My husband drives a Honda VTX1300.

A heavier bike will definitely be more stable in the wind. As far as I've heard, the major complain of the 250 is getting blown on interstates. However, there are far too many other risks associated to bigger bikes that in my opinion it's not worth it.

I'm glad you decided to keep it. Hopefully, come spring, the weather will be more forgiving.

High winds are an issue with any motorbike. Yes it's felt more on a 250 but in high winds you'll still feel it on a big bike. Maybe even more so give that the bike is larger. But that is really where trust comes into play. Trust for your tires. That's what I would consider an advanced skill though. :) I've ridden in high winds, even on the track and be thankful you're on the new 250. Much more planted! As time goes on and you get more seat time then you can learn to be comfortable with feeling the bike move under you. Personally if the bike doesn't get out of shape under me then something feels off. I like for the bike to flex and move. :eek: Most riders do not like that. But really it's excellent training. Again, I am getting to far ahead of myself. :D

The best thing to do with your mirrors is adjust them before you even leave the house. Do not adjust them while on an incline or while you're already in motion. I only say that because I've seen it happen with new riders. Honestly you SHOULD NOT rely on your mirrors. In my 100% honest opinion they're only there to make the bike legal to be on the streets by law. They don't help you see shit. Learn to use your head. :noteeth Meaning turn your head quickly - safely and look. A quick glance over your shoulder will tell you all you need to know and show you all you need then relying on your mirrors. The only time you should look in your mirrors is when you're at a stop light to quickly watch the cars behind you. That's it. The best way to learn to use your head is to do one of two things. 1) Take your mirrors off and do short rides in your neighborhood or parking lot. 2) Tape over them. This way it trains your brain to turn your head. :female ;)

The best thing to do with your mirrors is adjust them before you even leave the house. Do not adjust them while on an incline or while you're already in motion. I only say that because I've seen it happen with new riders. Honestly you SHOULD NOT rely on your mirrors. In my 100% honest opinion they're only there to make the bike legal to be on the streets by law. They don't help you see shit. Learn to use your head. :noteeth Meaning turn your head quickly - safely and look. A quick glance over your shoulder will tell you all you need to know and show you all you need then relying on your mirrors. The only time you should look in your mirrors is when you're at a stop light to quickly watch the cars behind you. That's it. The best way to learn to use your head is to do one of two things. 1) Take your mirrors off and do short rides in your neighborhood or parking lot. 2) Tape over them. This way it trains your brain to turn your head. :female ;)

Maybe it's my experience riding cars, but I don't agree with that. Like in my car, I feel I need to be aware of everything that's happening around me (I check all three mirrors in my car constantly), to both sides, behind me, behind me in the adjacent lanes, of course in front of me and in front to the sides. Now, in the car this is very easy to do because 1)I can adjust the mirrors in such a way that I only need a split-second glimpse of each mirror to see what's going on, and since I check them periodically, there's not a lot of information to process from one check to the other; i.e. I don't need to think about it; and 2) because I have trained myself to do this; i.e. I do it by conviction, and I have been doing it for quite some time. And it has helped me avoid some crashes.

The problem here is that, like you said, the mirrors in a motorcycle are not as efficient, by a long shot. I still think that I need to be aware of what is happening all around me, in all the same directions as in the car, but I don't think it's a good idea to do such a thing by looking back. The main reason for that is that turning your head back is not a split-second action, and I wouldn't consider it wise to do it that way constantly.

I'm not saying you are wrong. I'm just saying it wouldn't work the same for me. I do agree that you have to do a head check whenever changing lanes, but there is a lot of other things you have to be aware of, all around you, and at least at this point in time I can't afford to look back constantly to be aware of what's happening behind me.

What I believe is best is to have a balance of looking through the mirrors, and look back if anything seems unusual; in other words, as you very well put it: do not always trust the mirrors. Then again, it might be that I'm just starting, but I'm basing this on my, dare I say it, very good experience as a car driver.

Then again, it might be that I'm just starting, but I'm basing this on my, dare I say it, very good experience as a car driver.

There in lies the problem. You are thinking and riding like a car driver. Not a motorcycle rider.

Think of where the mirrors on a car are located and how many there are. Now think of where the mirrors on a motorcycle are located and how many there are. Motorcycle mirrors DO NOT offer you even close to the full view that cars do. So in turn you do have to use your head to obtain the information you need to keep yourself safe and your bike upright. I'm sure you were taught this in the MSF. You can adjust the mirrors all you want but you will still need to use your head more often then not to fully see what you need to when changing lanes. How are you going to see a car coming up fast to your right or left in your blind spots by looking in the mirror? You won't and there is a damn good chance you'll either collide with that car or dump your bike trying to avoid colliding with that car. Cars have this amazing tendancy to get into a blind spot and stay there. Or you think as they start to pull up next to you that they are going a certain speed and you check your mirror don't really see them and go to change and then smack or you have a butt pucker because you almost side swiped a car.

My point in saying all this is when you become a motorcycle rider you HAVE to change your mindset 100%. You have to think like a motorcycle rider. If you don't you will crash or worse become a statistic. We don't want that to happen.

Agreed, and all of that I do understand. Like I said, I know you will still need to do a head check when changing lanes to avoid hitting something in the blind spot. And I believe we also agree on the number and position of mirrors in a car compared with a bike, that's why I said I'm finding it more difficult to be aware of what's happening around in the bike.

Now that we have that out of the way, I am still curious about riding in the same lane and being aware of your surroundings. The way I see it now is to use the mirrors to do periodic check ups with an occasional head checks. Do you think it's paranoid to want to know what's happening behind you?

To me, and this is just what it is for me, there is a fine line between just trying to stay safe and paranoia. For some strange reason constant paranoia and checking seems to bring about the thing you're trying to avoid the most. I hope that makes sense. I check my mirrors often but not sit there or while on the bike check my mirrors every five seconds. I turn my head a lot and listen. Listening will be one of your biggest tools along with your eyesight. You will hear a car coming up behind you. That's when you check your mirrors real quick to see. You'll hear the car stop behind you. At a stop light I only check my mirrors once or maybe twice. When leaving the stop light or changing lanes or turning that's when you use your head. At that point (again in my opinion) is when your mirrors become pretty much useless. I hope this is all making sense.

It does make sense. Of course my concern is pretty much still up in the air, but now I know that it is because there is no "rule" set in stone and it's a personal preference, always open for debate. I was very glad you shared your point of view, though, and I appreciate it.

I believe my answer will come in time, probably from a combination of riding experience, books on the subject and other people's opinions. It's been great to discuss this with you.

On a separate note, I made a dumb mistake this morning when I was at a stop light behind a small truck. The street after the intersection goes into a shopping mall's parking lot. Light turns green and the truck turns left (my direction as well) and I follow; I proceed to turn off the turning signal before I finished the turn and, this is where it gets a little tricky, while doing so I think "Would that oncoming car have noticed I'm turning left before I turned off the turning light?" Of course this is an instant thought, and right after finishing pondering my ideas, I hear the oncoming car's horn. I turn to her and she raises her hand as if asking: "Are you out of your mind? You arrogant biker!" and quickly realize she had the right of way.

Not a very good job of handling traffic, but at least it wasn't even close to a crash, and I'll make sure to be better at that. Probably the biggest mistake was thinking about the turning signal instead of traffic.

Yeah those turn signals are tricky beasts. For making a turn like that you just have to be as obvious as possible in what your intentions are. Maybe leave the turn signal on a few seconds longer then you normally would and blah blah blah. Sad truth is most cagers just don't see our turn signals. When changing lanes I use my body to indicate my intentions. Use my left arm and point that I am going into that lane and /or use my right leg and stick my leg out and point with my foot to indicate that is where I am going. Yes it looks like some sort of motorbike hokey pokey but it works. The cagers see that.

Thank you for listening. This has been an excellent conversation. I appreciate your open mindedness and willingness to learn.

To be fair, it was my mistake as she actually had the right of way. I guess I just didn't process it right since she was coming out of the parking lot and I was thinking about the turn signals, which I have to stop doing. But the advise has been noted.

And it's really my pleasure to have such discussions and learn from different points of view.