As of last night, I am the proud owner of a dark blue 2005 Ninja 250R. Bought it for $2k with 10k miles on it. It's been mildly abused and neglected, but nothing catastrophic. The right handle bar has been bent about a degree, there is a small crack in the fairing on the right side, it needs an oil change, the chain needs to be cleaned and lubed, and the front right turn signal bulb needs to be changed. Except for the handlebar and fairing it's a bunch of small stuff that needs to be taken care of.
The good news: The bike holds its oil. The oil in the sight glass is pitch black and it's clear that the bike hasn't had it changed in awhile. In spite of that, the oil is topped off and is even a little overfilled. This Saturday I am going to go ride it, then change the oil, then ride it some more.
Now that I have completed this process of getting trained, licensed, equipped (I now have a helmet, boots, gloves, and a jacket; I just need pants now), and buying a bike, I hope to have more time to spend with the Miata. Maybe go autocrossing now that it's cooler.
