Hmm I was thinking of the same risk. Just got myself a Sportster 883 not so long ago and have been doing it up, The power to weight ratio is tiny,Its only 222kgs and 33.6 kw, however reading the exemption they simply dont consider anything over the 650cc mark which is a bit silly in my opinion. Shes got FAR less power than a lot on the list already,Plus I'm a big bloke. I also dont want to now turn around and get an intermediate bike just to go through the learners time, complete waste of time and extra money (BUT I know I had to do this in anycase). Wish it was based in just the power to weight ratio, and not the cc.
ally-oop,
Jan 6, 11:25pm
yep, it is bloody stupid because although ltnz deem our bikes to be so damn difficult to ride (or whatever it is that makes ltnz decide to completely prohibit anyone from riding one-despite them being WITHIN the kw/kg 'allowance'-until the day they have their FULL licence), but then apparently it's perfectly ok to one day suddenly hit the road on one with the full rights of your full licence on the day you pass it, wth no restrictions whatsoever in terms of: 'L' plate, carrying pillions, towing, riding between 10pm and 5am, etc, having-in theory- never ridden the thing before because it's illegal to.come on ltnz.these bikes are either: A:ridiculously dangerous or something-to the point that we have to be prevented from riding them for the longest period available under the law, or B:they're suitable to suddenly-and fully legally- jump on (for the first time in your entire life-in theory) one day armed with full rights.it can't be both ffs!
toshibanz,
Jan 7, 12:04am
Yep. You can go from an entry level Hyosung 100cc scooter through your learners, and then step up to something like ours. Doesn't make sense, and then blame the bike for the statistic !
ally-oop,
Jan 7, 12:22am
Yeah ya gotta wonder what kind of fools they have making these decisions which create a situation whereby there literally is NO LEGAL OPPORTUNITY for you to ride your bike AT ALL before you pass your full licence. Morons.
a.woodrow,
Jan 7, 12:57am
People with common sense scale their motorbikes up as appropriate to their ability. the restrictions on motorbikes are there to help protect morons going straight to high performance or very heavy bikes when they are first learning to ride. The whole purpose of the graduated system is that you gain some riding experience before you move up to bigger and better things. Either you are still learning to ride, in which case you should serve your time and gain experience before you move up to a larger bike, or you are an experienced rider who should have got their licence years ago so they didn't have to go through the graduations now.
ally-oop,
Jan 7, 1:11am
Actually I don't really fit either of your 2 categories-i'm a mid 40's mechanic with very good instinctive driving and riding skills, co-ordination, and feel for machinery, balance, etc, who's ridden motocross bikes for decades but not a road bike and it just so happens that i have no interest in any road-going bike that has an engine smaller than 1340cc and as a passionate engineer/rider/driver, i won't volunteerily (sp!) operate a machine which i have no interest in.
toshibanz,
Jan 7, 1:39am
Really.I'm opening a whole new can of worms here, but what about a restricted car licence. You can go from nothing to fitting yourself into a super/turbo charged V8 if it takes your fancy. No need to graduate up in size or horsepower.
gunhand,
Jan 7, 1:55am
Well you are probably one of the groups there targeting. No experince on the road on a bike, and think there the best rider/driver since sliced bread. Stats show middle aged riders getting into it or back into bikes are a huge risk. I will say however riding MX does help somewhat but dosn't quailify you to be a good road ride straight up.Just wait the time and do correctly. Mind you there are plenty of others riding around on the wrong licence. If you get caught it then suck it up. And having that attitude also makes me wonder what other lasws you knowingly break just because it dosen't fit into your idea of how it should be. We are all (or at least think) we a re crippled by laws because "we" are just so much better at everything than everyone else and they shouldn't apply to "me" Sorry if don't like what Ive said but thats how I see it.
ally-oop,
Jan 7, 2:05am
i actually am good rider-including on the road (due to good natural instincts and mechanical knowledge/feel, constant vigilance and spatial awareness, etc) the middle-aged people you speak of generally wouldn't dream of doing things i enjoy doing on a motocross bike, nor have they had their own bikes apart to every last fastener and back together with improvements singlehandedly themselves. and they probably prefer automatic cars to manual.
gunhand,
Jan 7, 2:13am
Good postive responce, I was excpecting some abuse LOL which sometimes backs up some statements. I read it as you haven't ridden road bikes! Or is that just haven't for a long time! You may well be very good and safe etc but you have to apply the same to someone who isn't and is allowed out on a large bike.I for one didn't agree with the 250 restriction either but now we have lams bikes which should be much better for all. And if I read it right you only have untill March anyway!
ally-oop,
Jan 7, 2:33am
yeah i realise that it has to apply to all (which is the problem i guess)i used to ride my mate's 250cc 2-stroke honda road bike years ago(don't ask me which model lol-i have no interest in such things, so therefore couldn't tell ya as (in the interests of keeping focused on stuff i like) i never committed it to memory.when i jumped on the rider training gn125 to do my basic skills handling etc,the guys running it kinda didnt really believe that 'd i'd: A: never owned a road bike nor ridden one for an extended period at some point, and: B: hadn't ridden any bike for a couple/few years at that particular timeand they relatively quickly stopped concentrating on me-the new guy, and went back to focussing on the asian guy who was trying for the 8th (i think) time.i got the impression that he was wanting his licence solely to save money (fuel) not cos he had any interest whatsoever in motorbikes (hardly the ideal reason to get into something that requires skills that some people naturally don't possess-and never will. )um, as it stood when i got my learner's in june i was gonna be able to get my restricted in december (which i have since done), and then do a course and get my full in march, but it changed along with the introduction of 'lams' in october, and as it now stands the soonest i can get my full and ride my bike legally is in 17 months time.
gunhand,
Jan 7, 2:39am
Yea 17 months will seem like forever. But there really is no other choice legaly to do it. Hell ive known guys with no licence riding large bikes.Odds of being caught (my neck of the woods anyway) are slim if you are not doing anything wrong. A check point or stupidity will be the quickest ways to be caught I would think.
ally-oop,
Jan 7, 2:41am
p.s this might back a few things up:i (happily) drove from auckland to south canterbury (because that was the closest bike of the particular model i wanted) in a manual 70's falcon ute to collect my bike, as compared to left clicking on it and then left clicking on the most convenient deliver time lol
ally-oop,
Jan 7, 2:45am
i tend to agree (and to quite a degree have little choice anyway) staying under the radar is the trick-although sadly h-d's have that unshakeable magnetism for the cops thanks to the disproportionate number of buffoons who've ridden them over the years, plus mine's kinda loud (a safety feature when you're sharing the road with malaysian housewives, but a pain when you're trying to 'lay low' lol.
ally-oop,
Jan 7, 2:47am
your neck of the woods almost certainly statistically better for not being pulled over compared to here in dorkland. oh well, only another year or so before i move to the south island.yay!
gunhand,
Jan 7, 2:50am
I can't remember last time I was pulled up in a car or bike for any kind of random check. Haven't even been through a check point in years either. But riding a loud bike might create attention for sure.
urbanrefugee54,
Jan 7, 8:37am
actually I've got a feeling that if you lose your licence for a year + 1day - you have to resit 'everything, that includes going back to the learners on all levels - no matter how much exprerience you had in the past. if you do courses, it takes time off each level [but costs $$]- to me the levels are about $$ not experience - I don't mind being proved wrong - but that is how I've read the rules.
a.woodrow,
Jan 7, 8:42am
The point I was trying to make is that because there are morons out there that don't ride within their abilities (not referring to posters here but people in general), we are stuck with cumbersome legislation to "protect" us. The one size fits all graduation scheme unfortunately fits very few
gunhand,
Jan 7, 8:50am
I went from 100cc right through to a hypersonic 1400cc bike with many steps up throughout the years.It would be just wrong to allow a new rider on a bike that knock on 300kph plus.I don't agree with 250cc either as there more dangerous at times than there worth unless you never go out of town. Its a hard one but what do you do. Mind you letting anyone ride whatever may just eliminate some idoits from our roads sooner rather than later.But they have mothers too so shouldn't be so harsh.
richynuts,
Jan 7, 11:27am
So you think your a better rider or deserve better treatment than everyone else that has had to graduate from a learner licence! Suck it up man
richynuts,
Jan 7, 11:27am
So you think your a better rider or deserve better treatment than everyone else that has had to graduate from a learner licence! Suck it up man. it's like your saying "I don't need to get a WOF for my car coz I am a qualified mechanic"
desmodave,
Jan 7, 7:52pm
Why are utes so expensive to buy . Im sure its cause every Harley owner has to have 1. Enjoy your ride .
ally-oop,
Jan 7, 8:03pm
no it's not, read it properly-and actually, your analogy is ironic as know my vehicles so intimately i've only ever considered w.o.f's as a sticker that keeps cops happy-and rightly so.
ally-oop,
Jan 7, 8:03pm
i only put it on the ute cos i had no bike licence
ally-oop,
Jan 7, 8:21pm
p.s richynuts. i actually only consider my vehicles' w.o.f's as a sticker that keeps cops happy-and rightly so, after all, i'm not gonna put my safety in the hands of some brainless twit at vtnz (i like to drive pretty hard at times and when i'm relying on my steering and brakes, etc i wanna KNOW FIRST HAND exactly what they're good for, and there's only one way to achieve that level of peace of mind/confidence).
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