Never did buy that bike. Dealer went crazy with extra dealer costs at the last minute. So I'm picking up a base 650 next week. I'm hoping the vstrom is a good way to get back into riding.
I bought a base 2019 650 a month ago and put about 650 miles on it so far. My last ride was 30 years prior to that. I grew up on mini bikes and trail bikes, and had a couple years of street riding as an adult.
I did not intend on buying a vstrom 650 when I went to the dealer but the bike's ergonomics fit me the best. I did some research and bought it the next day.
For me, I stuck to the neighborhood for a couple of days, then ventured out to some parking lots and practiced low speed manuevers and emergency braking. I still make minor errors, not downshifting to 1st at red lights, etc., but the Wee is pretty forgiving. Just keep traction control on, don't speed, don't rush, don't let other vehicles dictate your pace. My longest ride was around 50 miles, 3 weeks after I practiced almost every day.
I took the MSF class, too. Riding in traffic is a whole different game compared to trails and I wanted to get into the defensive riding mindset. In 1 month I've had people cut me off, stop in front of me, almost U-turn into me. It's dangerous out there and you need to have your head in the game.
, but no damage to the bike.
