I've got a quick question about boots. I'm a new rider getting ready to take the MSF riders school and need to have some boots for the class and later too. I have some good steel toe work boots. Will those work well? I was wondering about not being able to feel the shift lever with the steel toe. I noticed when I was at the motorcycle shop yesterday and I was looking at a bunch of the nice riding boots (Alpinestars, SIDI, etc...) and they all felt like they have a fairly rigid toe. Also my work boots have about a 1/2" heal on them. You think they'll work well?

Yes, for the MSF I would avoid buying anything if possible. So if you have steel-toes, just use those. After you actually purchase a bike then get into investing in proper boots. Riding boots, long-term, will be more comfortable than steel toes, so they're a worthy investment. They also provide greater protection for crashes.