[afflo]

Guys, thanks for all the help. Turns out I won't be a GZ250 rider after all. I decided to give a local used bike shop a good look, and what did I find calling my name?

Well, as of this morning, I'm the proud owner of a 2006 Ninja EX250, in blue. The thing looks like it musta been one of those "Honey, I'll buy you a bike and you can ride too" sorta deals that just never really worked out. It's got all of 1300 miles on it. The "break-in" instructions are still on the clear sticker over the speedo. Even better, it came in WELL below my budgeted bike-shopping fund!

I got it from a shop that was recommended by my MSF Ridercoach (apparently, he's one of their VERY regular customers). I spent the afternoon out on sparsely traveled roads in a decommissioned military base, getting lots of experience with practice emergency stops, u-turns, etc. All in all, I'm super excited! I wanna build up some experience with the basics, but I'm dreaming of the day I hop on CA-1 South and ride Big Sur (I live about 25 miles north of it!)

I do, however, think I'll be checking out the Boulevards, Shadows, Vulcans, and V-Stars in a few years when I'm ready to move up. I'm hoping that the Ninjette will have enough high end power that I'll be satisfied for the next year or two, and despite falling for this bright blue temptress, I still see myself long term as a Cruiser rider rather than a Sport-bike rider.