Choose your own adventure
The time to choose your bike will eventually arise and the question of which one is best for you can be incredibly intimidating. There are so many different types and sizes that making a decision can drive one nutty. The question of which bike is best for you can be made if you take a measured approach to your purchase.
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There are a few things you need to keep in mind when starting your bike buying journey, the first one is of course your budget and then you can move onto the helpful points listed below.
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Ride your ride
The first thing you need to decide is what type of riding you are going to be doing. Are you looking to hit gravel and do some adventure riding, are you just looking to commute, or are you looking to get your adrenaline pumping with track activity? The riding you will do predominantly will dictate what type of bike you should get. Will you be taking a pillion along on the ride? Are you touring? or are you seeking out some freedom in the form of an American classic? Once you answer these questions it will narrow down your choice of machine. Below are just some of the segments that you can explore.
- Grand Touring (GT)
- Touring
- Adventure Touring
- Adventure (Adv)
- Track
- Commuting
- Classics
- Street
- Cruising
- Offroad
Getting the wrong bike for the riding you are going to be doing will drastically reduce the amount of fun and technical capability you are going to have, so take your time to consider your needs and then move onto the next step.
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Size matters
Overall bike size and engine displacement are the next deciding factors. Often, the type of bike will also dictate what engine size you can have. When it comes to size, it should always be about the comfort levels of the rider. Do they feel comfortable handling a big bike with a big engine? Another factor to consider is how quickly the rider will outgrow the machine in terms of skill and comfort. Often, certain bikes will only have small displacement engines, and certain models or types will only have large engines.
It is also important to consider if the bike in question will be a stepping stone to a larger machine. How long you intend to keep it, if it is financed or a cash purchase as bikes under finance will need to be kept for longer and a degree of consideration for the outgrowing effect will need to be kept in mind.
As an example, Cruisers and Grand Tourers will not have small displacement engines under 1000cc, Adventure Touring machines will be big and heavy to handle gear and terrain, commuters will have smaller engines for fuel savings, and track and street machines will have mid-size engines, enabling them to be light and agile but they will not be very comfortable for long rides.
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It's just right
Once you have decided what type of riding you want to do and what size and engine displacement is suitable for your comfort zone, you can start shopping. Let us imagine a bike purchase.
Meet Avery, an 18 year old outdoor enthusiast who has just passed his bike license and is looking at getting his first bike. Avery is really into adventure touring and is looking to get a bike that he can use to get to work and avoid the traffic. Avery is not overly comfortable with the thought of a big adventure machine offroad and is going to be financing his purchase. So he will be looking for a middleweight adventure bike that is not too heavy, has plenty of offroad prowess, can handle luggage, is not too heavy on fuel and is compact enough to zip through traffic.
The checklist is there to follow and some quick internet sleuthing reveals two choices that meet all his needs. He can choose between the BMW F900 GSA or the Husqvarna 901 Expedition. These two bikes represent everything Avery is looking for; both machines are adventure bikes geared towards touring with luggage, both have extremely good offroad capabilities, have decent fuel economy, are light and agile and will need to be long-term finance deals as Avery won't be upgrading to anything bigger any time soon.
All that's left is for Avery to test-ride both and make his decision from there.
