i bought a 1993 600F2 as my starter bike and am selling it after 5 months....it's called a starter bike because it's not a long term investment...it's somthing you get....learn the roads....learn the basics of riding then you sell it and upgrade...for some people it's 2 months for some its a year...depends how much seat time you get and how quick of a learner you are....there are 600's out there that you can start on like my F2 is not anywhere near a newer supersport style bike but it's still fun to ride around on....but yea as said above pay your dues cause you will drop a bike and it's better to drop an older learner bike than to drop a shiny new 08 just for the sake of looking cool doing it