2021 bikesales Learner Bike of the Year starts here

With the 2021 bikesales Bike of the Year now underway, we’re expanding the motorcycle industry’s premier awards with a standalone 2021 bikesales Learner Bike of the Year, proudly presented by Shannons. 

That’s right, from now on the burgeoning Learner Approved Motorcycle Scheme (LAMS) category will have a bikesales awards process all its own, giving this vitally important segment the recognition it deserves. 

While previously we listed a LAMS winner for each of our former bikesales Bike of the Year categories, the recent restructure of our premier awards also led us to rethink how we could give worthy LAMS bikes the emphasis and focus they warrant. 

Related reading: 
LAMS bike buyer’s guide
FAQ: Which learner bike is best?
FAQ: What is a good first motorcycle?
FAQ: What LAMS bike should I buy?
2020 bikesales Bike of the Year
2019 bikesales Bike of the Year
2018 bikesales Bike of the Year
2017 bikesales Bike of the Year
2016 bikesales Bike of the Year

Where it all begins... 

Every rider remembers his or her first motorcycle: it's the bike that sets us off on our riding career, and a love affair that for many lasts a lifetime. And while previous L- and P-plate motorcycle frameworks often saw novice riders on bikes ill-suited to the task (250cc two-stroke race replicas, anyone?), today the LAMS framework gives newcomers a greater choice of appropriate first models than ever before. 

While that’s great for learners, it can also be problematic – how do you choose what’s best for you? And while we’ve published many advice articles and guides over the years to help first-timers navigate the buying maze, we thought complementing our bikesales Bike of the Year with a Learner Bike of the Year was a logical step. 

We hope our bikesales Learner Bike of the Year will help you on your search for a great first bike, and at the very least give you plenty of food for thought.

Of course, with the globe still grappling with the COVID-19 pandemic and its related health concerns and travel restrictions, the inaugural bikesales Learner Bike of the Year – like our main bikesales Bike of the Year – will this year be decided by examining previous bikesales reviews and rides, followed by extensive discussion by our in-house experts. 

2021 bikesales Learner Bike of the Year 

The 2021 bikesales Learner Bike of the Year recognises excellence in the LAMS motorcycle market and celebrates just one winner across the dozens of models on offer, after first establishing a shortlist of contenders. 

Basic eligibility rules require that all motorcycles must be series-production models available via dealers. For consideration, each motorcycle must be on sale prior to September 1, 2021, and must have been previously reviewed by bikesales since the model’s initial launch. 

In a point of difference to our main awards, which now encompass only new or heavily updated models, in this inaugural year of the bikesales Learner Bike of the Year we’re throwing eligibility out to all production bikes currently available as new models. 

If a motorcycle is not available for evaluation, we reserve the right to include it in subsequent bikesales Learner Bike of the Year testing. This ensures that bikes that have been launched but are not available for our test timetable can be included in later years. 

The contenders for the 2021 bikesales Learner Bike of the Year: 

And the winner is... 

We’ll be assessing the pros and cons of all these contenders over the weeks ahead, our discussions factoring in numerous aspects from performance and manageability through to safety technology, value for money, build quality and more. We’ll then name our inaugural 2021 bikesales Learner Bike of the Year on Wednesday, December 8. 

And this, we should point out, is just the beginning. Once we’ve transitioned to a more COVID-normal existence, we’ll be heading out on the road to bring you future bikesales Learner Bike of the Year awards, with a full group test as we’ve done in previous years for our main bikesales Bike of the Year mega-test. Bring it on!