The SV650 is only marginally heavier than the Ninja 250 (430 vs 375lbs) and older versions are actually slightly lighter at 368lbs. Seat height is slightly taller for the Suzuki than the Kawi, but it’s by no means a high seat height at 31". Riding the *extremely” forgiving SV is not at all “orders of magnitude” harder…

Those wheels and tires are heinous. What is this, 2003?

Hot take: Police generally don’t shoot white people just for having guns, or even holding a gun in the presence of the police.

I’m pretty sure you can run this at the SCTA events (eg Bonneville Speed Week) that it was designed for. I’d want to add a roll bar though, so maybe in the interests of keeping it period-correct it’s not raced. 

Oh cool. It wasn’t in December!

Oh cool. It wasn’t in December!

My point exactly. Go for the midpoint, and an SV650 is the definition of a midpoint bike. It’ll never be beyond anyone’s skill level, but it also won’t be so much of a starter bike that it’ll lull anyone into a false sense of security.

Dollars to donuts you’re a white male.

I would agree if anyone was trying to start out on a Gixxer, but an SV650 is a forgiving bike.

Eh, you’re only going to outgrow it, so you might as well develop skills and confidence on one bike that you can basically keep all your life. I basically learned to ride on a NT650, but I wouldn’t recommend a carbed bike to anyone these days.

Jesus H Christ, are you serious?

No. It does not. It looks like an Air France shuttle car for plebs.

Between Smarts and bikes you, Miss Merc, have a serious fucking problem!

This. SV650 is THE first bike. There is no other.

SV650 is the ne-plus-ultra of first bikes. Don’t bother with a 250. You’ll learn more/faster/better with a larger (but very manageable) bike.

Ashley and Courtney? What were the other two called, Britney and Stacey?

No. We’re not. Far from it.

I discovered this stuff the end of last year while working for Nike in Portland. The photo studio would go through two bottles a week. I would buy it every time I was there. We moved the studio to LA, so I don’t know that I will be able to get it again (it wasn’t on Amazon when I searched it).

I discovered this stuff the end of last year while working for Nike in Portland. The photo studio would go through…

I was walking up La Cienega an hour ago and saw a mint third-gen liftback Celica driving by. I see something special here almost every day. I love coming to CA for the amount of amazing classic cars you see being dailied.

Hey! I own a Flex and I run a tune, speed regularly (V1 hard-wired into the rearview; did you know the EcoBoost has the same HP as a Macan S?), and loathe left-lane hoggers with every bone and muscle.

I know a dude called Bill Powers. He’s an art writer and the husband of fashion designer Cynthia Rowley.