Motorcycle Safety & Driveability: teenagers riding sports bikes, suzuki katana 600, motorcycle safety course

Question
Hi,
I'm a mom of two teenagers who took the motorcycle safety course sponsored by the State Highway patrol with my husband. They have also been riding dirt bikes on trails for a few years.
Once they got their licenses, they went motorcycle shopping and came home with a Suzuki Katana (600 cc) which is WAY more bike than I was anticipating! (I was thinking 150 to 300cc.. upright, safe looking) So, I'm concerned about safety... Do you know anything about the safety of one of these sports bikes? Is there a safest way to start on street bikes? My kids are responsible, but they are kids.
Thanks!


Answer
Even though the Kat 600 is on the "tame" side of sportbikes, a 600 inline-four sportbike is NOT appropriate for beginners. They're too expensive to insure and repair, they're too fast, and they're not very forgiving to an inexperienced rider.

The biggest problem is that these types of bikes can mask control problems and handling errors, which can lead to a dangerous type of overconfidence. A better choice for a first bike would be a 250 or 500 or 650 Kawasaki Ninja, or a Suzuki GS500 or SV650. (The 650s are twins and much easier to manage.) On a smaller bike, they'll learn much faster without being overwhelmed right away. After a couple years on a smaller bike, they'll be ready to move up to a bigger bike.

Bear in mind that only about half of motorcycle crashes involve another vehicle, and of those, only about 1/3 are directly caused by another driver. The reality is that motorcycle riders are the ones with the most control over their situation. Full riding gear, bright colors/reflectives/flourescents, lots of practice (with supervision), and careful monitoring of their behavior is about all you can do--with or without trading the bike for something smaller.

Pat