What Are the Easiest Motorcycles to Ride?
Riding a motorcycle – any motorcycle – is inherently challenging. Beyond the obvious need to balance on two wheels, a rider needs to coordinate foot and hand controls that differ from other machines. Still, there are features, formats, and technologies that can make some bikes easier to ride than others. While some riders covet increased involvement as part of the riding experience, others might appreciate an easier go of things. Here are some ways riding has been made easier for us.
Go Mini
For those of us lucky enough to start riding as kids, the machines dedicated to pint-sized riders are the easiest to ride. Minibikes like the tiny 50-cc units available from each of the major Japanese bike makers (plus other low-cost Chinese companies), are the best way to introduce kids to the exciting world of motorcycling since they counter all the fears most novice riders have. Minibikes are small, so they’re easy to swing a leg over and plant both feet on the ground and they’re light enough that, even full of fluids, they can be lifted into the back of a truck or big SUV.
Bikes like Yamaha’s entry-level PW50 are not only affordable to buy, but they’re really simple to operate with an automatic clutch, a single-speed transmission, and shaft drive, which means there’s no drive chain to get tangled in. It also means a rider only needs to worry about balance, steering, and throttle. Minibikes are robust and can take a bunch of spills on the lawn or dirt, usually without hurting the bike or the rider. And as an added bonus, they typically employ basic, old-school mechanicals that are great for learning about maintenance, too.
There are even mini motos that are street legal for adults with Kawasaki’s Z125 and the Honda Grom and Monkey models allowing affordable purchase and running costs in a very small format.
Get Dirty
Of course, a grown-up riding around on a minibike can look like an escapee from the circus, but there are plenty of trail bikes up to 100 cc in size that offer a slightly larger, but still lightweight format with manageable power and an automatic transmission. From there, moving up through 150-, 200-, and 250-cc machines, the speeds and capabilities increase in manageable steps, allowing a rider to grow and progress through bigger bikes.
While a trail bike’s seat height can be imposingly high, the suspensions are soft to absorb bumps, which means even riders with modest inseams can still get comfortable on them quickly. Many trail riding bikes tend to have modestly tuned four-stroke engines that make their power delivery smooth, and their upright riding position comfortable, with a natural posture for balance and control. Being unencumbered by big fairings or stretched out forks, off-road bikes like these provide lots of steering angle and can make them very manoeuvrable even at very low speeds.
Riders wanting to make the transition from off-road to on-road can stick with a trail bike style, but fitted with mirrors and signal lights for street use with a dual-sport machine like the lineup offered from Honda ranging from 150 to 450 cc’s.
Scoot Around
Motor scooters aren’t as popular in North America as they are in Europe and Asia, but they should be. They provide a fun, affordable, and efficient way to zip around urban centres, and they’re very easy to ride. With a step-through format, a rider doesn’t need to kick a leg in the air and swing it over a tall saddle. Instead, just step through, sit down, and roll off with the ease of an automatic transmission.
Most of the mainstream motorcycle companies provide at least one scooter model in their lineup, while others – like Vespa – have a full range of fashionable rides. Their tidy dimensions and usable under-seat storage make them great runabouts for around town, while other manufacturers have made larger-displacement scooters like the Suzuki Burgman 400, whose top speed in excess of 90 mph make them suitable even for highway stints.
Electrifying
There’s an increasing presence of electrification in the motorcycling world, and its simplicity is sure to appeal to riders looking for an easier riding experience. Again, without a lot of moving parts, and no clutch to worry about, electric bikes are as simple as charging them, hopping on and twisting the throttle. Like gas-powered bikes, there are electrified versions that span a wide range of sizes and formats, and similarly, their range and weight can vary dramatically too. Although bikes like the high-performance Damon Hypersport can be frighteningly fast, other machines like the Zero S, Kawasaki Z e-1, and the new Can-Am bikes hold promise for being great around town, on the highway, or the back roads.
Embrace the Technology
Finally, even for larger-displacement, more traditional bikes, technology can make riding easier as well. ABS braking and traction control systems, often with advanced anti-wheelie programming, help keep riders safe in dire circumstances and have become commonplace in the industry.
Honda has successfully employed a dual-clutch transmission into several models in recent years, to great effect. By eliminating the rider’s need to select gears and actuate the clutch, the rider can focus more on throttle and steering inputs. Honda has also introduced an E-Clutch system which bridges the gap, enabling the rider to make all the gear selects, while a computer handles the clutch operation. For new riders in low-speed situations, this could be a very welcome feature.
For many riders, the easiest bike to ride is the one they’re most familiar with. Bike formats can affect how easier they are to ride. Super sports and cruisers, in particular, have more extreme riding positions which can compromise turning, particularly in tight, low-speed scenarios, while giving great stability at elevated speeds.
Armed with all this info, get searching Cycle Trader for your own easy rider.
Jeff Wilson
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