There are people that have not crashed and people that have and want to make themselves feel better by insisting that everyone does/will.

This is the equivalent of saying you’re not going to learn to parallel park without ramming into a few cars. This is horrible, horrible advice

But perhaps there are other goals besides riding faster? For example, riding safely.

Maybe for the race track, but that’s insane advice for riding on the road.

This is under the HUGE assumption that people have a desire to be not only faster, but even fast, and not just to ride.

I ride on the dirt all the time and yes you will fall. Just having fun and fooling around on the dirt.

Yes. Novices. Reread the thread title.

Wrong! 100% wrong!

“Don’t take advice from Evel Knievel”

That advice made me “good” at riding a dirt bike. Completely agree that's bad advice for a street bike.

Don’t ride “hard enough”

This is 100% fair.

I was feeling dismissive after reading the first 6 words of your post, but as someone with a whole hell of a lot more experience, I can say that you’ve already learned the most important thing I’ve ever about riding a bike.

Riding outside your comfort level is NOT the only way to learn to ride. You can take more classes and more classes and learn much faster that way than by trial and error.

Good point.

Didn’t call it retro, did call those plastic bikes transformers. Sean for mayor.

This is why you struggled as a moto journalist. Not everyone has to ride an adv bike in Rev’IT adv suits.

Whatever you do, just don’t start out with a Panigale or something ludicrous. Even a busted old 250 is great fun.

haha same here about the oscar line, sure some was throw back but a black jacket isn’t retro just because it doesn’t say “BRO RACE HARD BRO XX Z5000 Extreme” on the side in neon yellow letters. It’s just a black jacket, not a new thing but also not retro, just something that’s always been around.