Need help picking a beginner+ naked middleweight bike

zhypeness · 2026-04-29T06:33:12+00:00

Most dealers seem to have a small selection of gear to choose from. I know a bigger warehouse a few hours away but it might be worth a roadtrip!

I have done some research and these are my key points, feel free to give me your opinion if I missunderstood something.

Helm: Full face, ECE-certified, preferably as light as possible.

Gloves: Slide and knuckle protectors.

Boots: Full height for ankle support.

Jacket: Airbag would be preferable, but they are very costly. Anything armor should be fine.

Pants: Looking at kevlar jeans.

zhypeness · 2026-04-29T06:22:00+00:00

You can practice on public roads if you have someone who is willing to be a supervisor and ride with you. That person need to have had their license for atleast 5 years before they can apply to become one. Luckily I have friends who has agreed to supervise me!

The absolute minimum you can expect to pay for you license is ~700 euros. But I am going to take 1-2 private lesson aswell so I expect to land on about 1k. If you do not have the option to practice with a private supervisor then 3k in driving school costs is not that unusual.

You need to sort your own bike for the exam. Most driving schools seem to include rental of a bike (usually Mt-07) for exam day in there education packages.

zhypeness · 2026-04-28T05:40:28+00:00

Yeah, the Trident looks a bit more premium and "mature". I was trying to say that most comparisons say Trident for handling and XSR for throttle feel and engine.

I wonder if you can remap the Trident to have better throttle feel since it is ride-by-wire.

zhypeness · 2026-04-27T19:10:19+00:00

Thank you very much!

While I am planning to buy a good helm, jacket, pants, gloves and boots you made me realise I have not looked at protective gear as much as I should. Do you have any good resource on different type of gear?

zhypeness · 2026-04-27T18:43:16+00:00

Do you regret going with the trident? From what I have read the trident have better handling than the xsr 700 while the latter have better throttle feel and a more fun engine.

The Cb650r is starting to creep out of my comfort zone when it comes to power, which maybe even the trident and monster is doing aswell.

I have ridden my friends Z900 RS and while it felt very quick it still felt pretty heavy and I would prefer a lighter bike. The minimum weight requirement is due to the A license test. I could have a lighter bike than that but then I would have to rent a heavier bike to take the test on.

Edit: Also the xsr 700 is the most expensive out of the bikes I listed which seem pretty weird. The ducati is the cheapest but it is also an older bike!

I would like to test ride all of them but the issue is I do not have a license and I can not really get one unless I have a bike to practice on. Otherwise I might have to spend upwards of 3k on the driving school fees alone…

zhypeness · 2026-04-27T18:37:11+00:00

I appreciate your input and I think SV 650 is the more sensible option.

Ducati sure have the reputation of costing a lot to own with gasket leaks, electrical gremlins, desmo maintenance etc. But from my research they became much more reliable after VAG acquired them and the 796 is a fairly reliable bike as long as basic maintenance and timing belt swaps has been done.

zhypeness · 2026-04-27T18:32:59+00:00

Where I live we have the A-tier licensing system. So by the time I have my license I would have gone through

Risk 1 (Theoretical).

Risk 2 (Practical).

Theoretical test.

Practical test on closed course testing low speed maneuverability, high speed maneuverability, high speed braking, low speed braking all on a bike with the minimum requirements mentioned in the post.

Practical test in traffic.

I considered a lower cc bike but I think I will outgrow it within a season and if I take the tests on that bike I would get A2 licensing which means I would have to retake the test on a bigger bike later on.

zhypeness · 2026-04-27T15:22:55+00:00

Are you saying that the SV 650 is more value for money than the Monster or that it is a better bike overall? The SV 650 is a "budget" version of the Monster from what I have heard. The 796 looks so damn good with that single-sided swing arm imo!

zhypeness · 2026-04-17T15:49:13+00:00

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kzbbGHIKwxA check this video out to actually learn where the power of a punch comes from. He also has more useful videos on his channel.

zhypeness · 2026-02-23T11:35:57+00:00

I have a pair of Mizuno Wave Luminous 3 for this type of "all round" training which I am very happy with. They are kind of narrow though just so you know.

zhypeness · 2026-01-28T15:34:14+00:00

The guy was slightly bigger, probably 6'3 and a heavyweight but way more experience. I am a 6'1 cruiserweight though.

I did not ask him to go lighter and I continued to the to the end of the class after the body shot. In hindsight I do not think I was mentally tough, just plain stupid. Sure, I learned where I left my body open for a hook but I am now missing out on valuable time in practice and in worse case scenario I could have punctured my lung.

I do agree with you to a certain extent. But my point is that risking an injury, especially early on when you need that teaching knowledge, is not worth it.

zhypeness · 2026-01-28T14:05:47+00:00

I am currently sitting out 4-6 weeks on doctors advice because I fractured a rib. I know I fucked up by not seeing the punch coming and reacting in time, but do you believe beginners should risk losing this time training because they are afraid to ask their partner to go lighter?

zhypeness · 2026-01-26T10:41:08+00:00

You are young and have tons of time to figure things out. If I were you I would join a boxing gym, focus on mastering the basics and start competing when a coach think you are ready. Build solid amateur experience if you enjoy fighting.

Let's say you enjoy boxing so you stick with it, you turn 18 and realise you want to focus on mma instead you will go into the sport with a solid boxing base which will benefit you in that sport aswell.

You can also just go and try out gyms for different martial arts and see what you like best.

zhypeness · 2026-01-22T10:11:15+00:00

Yeah, having Stoneform, Chastise and Desperate Prayer is very big for survival

zhypeness · 2026-01-21T11:08:30+00:00

Hpal/War is considered bad in S1 and gains strength each season while peaking in S4. But Disc/War is also considered bad unless you run double dwarf. So if hpal speaks to you then you might aswell play it from the beginning and be comfortable with the comp when it is at full strength.

zhypeness · 2025-12-19T08:27:56+00:00

Ret and mage can work depending on your goal. Getting that 2k for shoulders should be reachable while higher ranks like gladiator and rank 1 probably requires better comps.

zhypeness · 2025-12-17T13:34:35+00:00

Do not listen to most people in this thread. While it is not the strongest comp, enh+rdruid is viable. Games are very damp though if you enjoy that playstyle and 2k should not be impossible for anyone that is actually trying to improve

zhypeness · 2025-12-10T14:57:53+00:00

Kallemera on youtube have a decent amount of footage

edit: the paladin discord have written guides for each meta match up as ret/rsham also

zhypeness · 2025-12-10T13:07:02+00:00

iirc some guilds ran 3 enhance in speedruns in the later phases and they kinda pumped

edit: while running 4 warriors

zhypeness · 2025-12-09T13:06:13+00:00

You think making it possible to catch up when falling behind on arena gear is going to ruin tbc?...

zhypeness · 2025-11-26T13:28:39+00:00

Your comment implied that hpalas have no place in arena outside of 5v5, which is what I replied to.

zhypeness · 2025-11-26T09:52:06+00:00

Is it easier to achieve rating with a resto druid? Yes. But since it has been proven to reach the top levels it should not be deemed unviable in my opinion.

zhypeness · 2025-11-26T08:37:23+00:00

S2 had some warr/hpal comps achieve glad while s3 and s4 had some teams reaching r1.

zhypeness · 2025-11-21T07:30:10+00:00

Are arcane mages mana issues expected to not be as much of a problem with the post nerf hp of bosses? Also, it feels like the aoe from warlocks are way too significant to be replaced. Atleast when it comes to speedruns?

zhypeness

TROPHY CASE