First Bike

[stephen-schmidt]

Hey every one. Name is Stephen Schmidt, I am from West Des Moines IA and just graduated from high school. This is my first bike which i got as a graduation present. I have been riding it now for about 2 months and absolutely LOVE it. Mine is a 2008 gz. Black with chrome. I have not had to many problems with it except hoping for a little bit more speed. It is all stock right now and I have yet to start looking on what kinda mods to do. If anyone has any sort of suggestions on what i should do please feel free to comment. Not really sure how this whole forum works yet so if there is anything important i should look at please let me know.

[blaine]

Welcome to the forum.Check all the threads here:
viewforum.php?f=9
Good luck. :cool:

[Strelok]

stephen-schmidt~

Welcome to the Forum!

What a nice Graduation Gift.

All I got was a Cowboy hat.

:tongue:

[alantf]

Originally Posted by stephen-schmidt

If anyone has any sort of suggestions on what i should do please feel free to comment.

Hi there, & welcome to the madhouse

I've been riding for many years, & I've got a bee in my bonnet about NEVER riding without an engine guard. Despite the name, it's job is actually to protect your legs. If the bike goes down (actually, I mean WHEN the bike goes down, because I don't think there's a biker on the planet who hasn't gone down at one time or another) that's the only thing that'll stop you getting your leg trapped under the bike, or burned by the engine/exhaust. One word of caution if you do decide to get one - don't get the suzuki guard - it's for decoration only, & doesn't do the job it's supposed to do. I'm sure someone will come in here, with some recommendations on the best ones to get. I can't help you there, as I'm not in America. :2tup:

[savrip]

Welcome Schmidt. From a newb to a newb.

[mole2]

Welcome to the forum from South Carolina. Congrats on the hew ride. My only word is you should take your local MSF BRC (Motorcycle Safety Foundation Basic Rider Course) so you get off on the right foot and don't develop bad habits. Your life may depend on it. As for engine guards I'd recommend Baron Bars and/or MC Enterprise. They make good sturdy bars. Ride safe.

[alanmcorcoran]

Congratulations. I also have an '08. I wouldn't spend a whole lot of time and effort trying to make the thing go faster. You can add 10 mph if you don't have a windshield, tuck your knees/elbows in and stick your chin down on the speedometer when you are underway. I'm pretty sure no one on here has ever added 10mph with any technical wizardry.

If you are pooping out on hills or in wind, use fourth gear. You can go 65 in fourth. Save 5th gear for the flats or if you have a tailwind. The GZ is not really designed for extended highway use. It really works best as an around town or backroads bike. If you want a faster bike you should get a different bike. But I recommend you wait at least six months - you'll improve your odds of surviving the bigger bike with 3000 miles of experience under your belt.

[stephen-schmidt]

Hey thanks for all the welcomes everyone!! I have taken my local motorcycle safety class and gotten my full license and everything. So far i have put probably 1500 mi on the bike in the last month. The longest ride i have been on it so far is 45 min to an hour. Nothing to serious. I use it a ton to run back and fourth to my girlfriends house which is about a half hour away on the interstate. It has been handling pretty well doing that. I actually just topped it out at 84 today with a nice tailwind and face down. I also found if i put my feet up on my passenger pegs it helps add a couple mph. It probably isn't the safest so i usually don't do it for very long.

[stephen-schmidt]

Oh and where can i look for engine guards? i am kinda low on money so is there any place i can find used ones??