Selecting your first motorcycle, part 2: engine size vs. bike size
By Maverick - Nov 17, 2005

Of course it depends on the size of the person, but 200 to 400 cc has plenty of power and will be light weight and manageable.  The weight of the motorcycle you decide to buy is more important than the size of the engine.

Can you imagine what it would be like driving a car if you had to balance the weight of it, keep it upright, always ride with the windows open or the top down irregardless of weather conditions?  Imagine pushing your car into and out of parking places, leaning it over when you park it and standing it up when you want to ride it.  Imagine driving your car into and out of a curve or turn, while maintaining the correct speed to negotiate the curve, but also keeping the car upright. Too fast and you may drift into oncoming traffic.  If you are on a hill and going too slow, you may stall or drift off the roadway. 

If your car stalls when you are leaving a busy intersection, you may be embarrassed, but there is no chance it will fall over.   Let’s say it does fall over, how would you pick it up, reload and stabilize everything, including any passengers, without getting smashed by another vehicle?  

Have you ever thought of any of these questions?  Of course not, because you don’t need to when you are driving a car.  Cars are more forgiving. 

But when riding a motorcycle, you will need to think of these things and more.  Surface moisture, oil, gravel, railroad tracks, uneven lanes, trash and other drivers are just some examples of things that create different challenges than the same will do while driving an automobile.  Any of these variables or circumstances can or will exist at one time or another.  

When you first start riding a motorcycle, you will want to focus on developing skills to maneuver your bike out of your garage or parking place while dismounted, starting and moving into traffic, accelerating and decelerating with traffic, changing lanes, riding so you can see and be seen, making safe turns from a stop, making safe turns while moving, adjusting to road conditions and braking, etc. 

Driving a motorcycle is much different than driving a car.  The forces of wind, weight of the motorcycle and speed of travel will influence your stability and safety. Therefore, it is wise for a beginning rider to learn on a motorcycle that is physically manageable or within the beginning rider’s physical capabilities.  Beginning riders should increase knowledge and handling skill before moving onto a larger motorcycle.