I had a 99 R1. You don't want to hear it, but if you are new to the motorcycle arena, you are getting in WAY over your head. Be careful what you wish for. If you havn't ridden one, it's too difficult to explain what the acceleration is like on these bikes once you hit their powerband. It's bizarre/scary/enthralling/other-worldly/etc. how fast those little things accelerate. They are monsters, and if you blink the wrong way once you could be well beyond the point of no return on your way to a crash. Is this your first bike? I've been wanting to get another bike myself, and have had my eye on something more along the lines of Honda's generic-because-it's-so-popular Interceptor. It's got about 800cc's, will turn a quarter mile in under 12 seconds if I remember correctly, which is faster than almost any production car in the 6 figure range, and will get it's lights absolutely blown out by one of the 1000cc sportbikes that you mentioned, although not as much with the RC51 as the other two you mentioned. Triumph is the other bike I was looking at, their 1000cc contender, the 955 is a sweet bike and not quite as scary fast.

Keep in mind today's liter bikes are way beyond what the top riders were racing on 10-15 years ago. I'm not trying to scare you away from getting a bike, I'm just agreeing that the biggest thing here is proper fit, and by no means do you fit those liter bikes. I'm generally not so blunt about this stuff, but having done wheelies at 75mph on ACCIDENT is not something I'll likely every forget.

Motorcycle.com has great write-ups, and I think the small fee was worth it. Sport-touring.net has some veterans that would point you the right direction I think, away from being a stereotypical squid that is.

Fit is important, as well as size. If you have never ridden motorcycles before, I'd recommend you start with a smaller bike. You can get all the power you will ever need from a 600 or 750. The GSX is a good bike. i think it's been one of the top bikes at the midsize class for a couple years. Some things to consider.

Height- most will be pretty close, but they vary a little. Height is mostly important if you're short because you will have some trouble pushing the bike around with your feet.

Handlebars - certain makes have lower handlebars which can put more stress on your wrists. You have to feel them to see what feels good. Again, if you're new to motorccles, you're probably better sitting up a little more, than leaning too far forward and down.

Seating - If you plan to ride alone, no big deal, but if you are going to have someone riding with you much, you might consider a bike with a good rear seat. Some of the extremely sporty bikes have only a token back seat, which isn't too comfortable, especially if you ride any long distance.

Basically, I would say that if you are completely new to motorcyles, you should probably look at a less aggressive bike that has you seated a little more upright and comfortable. Lot's of riders start on 500s or smaller, but a pretty nice, relatively affordable, good for around town bike can be found in the 600-750 range. I like the Yamaha YZF-600R.

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Slowguy

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Thanks Sojourner and Slowguy. It will be my first motorcycle, and I looked into the 1000cc bikes because I heard they hold their resale value better than 600's. After what you guys have said, and what I have researched thus far, the 1000cc engines are out of my league for now.

I seen good reviews on the Honda Interceptor too. Another question for you guys, would you advise to buy used or new for the 1st bike after your experiences?

Thanks,

Wei

I've bought three bikes over the years and all have been used. I always took a friend with me who knew what to look for, but people, especially sportbike owners, tend to turnover their bikes (that is, buy new ones) fairly routinely, so you can find decent bikes for a lot less than new. Since it's your first bike, and the chances that you might take a spill are greater, I think a used bike isn't a bad idea, espeically if you make sure you buy one in good shape. That way, if you crash, or discover it isn't really all the fun you thought, you haven't putyourself out 7grand or so. My first bike was a Suzuki 550cc that i got used for $2500. I rode it for a year and then was ready to move up, traded it in and got a good deal on a nicer bigger bike.

one nice thing about the Hondas is that most of them have centerline tailpipes, which means you won't be as likely to burn yourself on them while you get used to riding.

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Slowguy

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If you're truely new to motorcycling, dont get a new sport bike as your first. Learn on an old dirt or dual sport for a few months at least. I got my first mini-bike at age 14, upgraded the next year and started racing Motocross. Raced 12 years of MX, harescrambles and Enduros. Worked in the business for 3 years,then got my first sport bike. You'd be suprised how many people die their first summer of riding. About 16 months before I quit, I met 2 guys out riding, both had 30 day tags, total newbies. We had ridden about 10 miles, speed limit 30 on a park road, averageing about 60MPH, with them in front. They both over cooked it into a corner and lost it, crashing into the woods. One was a little banged up, the other was in a coma for 6 weeks before he died. That's what you can do to yourself, without even mentioning what the car drivers are likely to do to you.

Now I work in the insurance business. Price insurance before you commit to the bike, that can easily double your cost.

Thanks for the input guys. I am going to lay off the "R" suffixes and prefixes bikes for now. I am going to get an used less aggressive bike to get the hang of basic skills first before moving on to the racing replicas. That will save money up front and I can tinker with the bike more without the "new" bike worries.

Wei

Wchinchen, for the record, you are an absolute bastard for giving me the bug once again. Now I'm trying to figure out how to juggle my finances so I can afford a new Interceptor. Motorcycle.com just did a write up on the '05 and they dig it. It would just be too cool to have a rack on my bike to carry my bike. Someday, hopefully soon.

Your welcome! :)

One word: Ducati

Ditto the piece of advice: start small & move up.

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"There are two novels that can change a bookish fourteen-year old's life: The Lord of the Rings and Atlas Shrugged. One is a childish fantasy that often engenders a lifelong obsession with its unbelievable heroes, leading to an emotionally stunted, socially crippled adulthood, unable to deal with the real world. The other, of course, involves orcs." John Rogers

Liter sport bikes are lots of fun. I would advise you to take a class geared towards sport bikes.



Of the bikes you mentioned interest in the RC-51 is the easiest to ride. It has loads of torque off the bottom and is not a viscious when it comes on. I have hot lapped all three. All three have a huge sh1t eating grin factor after a couple of e-ticket rides....

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I am going to just have to take your word about the RC-51 for now Slider....but I will test the RC-51 later on for sure. :)

After researching abit, I am leaning towards the Suzuki SV650S; seems alot of people suggest beginners to get this bike. In addition, sportbike camps seem to use the SV650s too.

Wei

Buying a litre sports bike as your first bike is like buying a ferrari as your first car; just don't do it.

You won't have any of the control skills to get you out of the trouble you are so certain to get yourself into. As someone with over 20 years on bikes, I would echo all the other comments here and say please get something with a lot less power.

I'd recommend something in the 600-750 range, not a crotch rocket, and spend a year learning to ride. Oh, and you're going to drop it sometime during that year, so don't get something with all enveloping plastic.

Buy second hand, enjoy it for a year and then see what you think about a newer bike after that.

Welcome to the club,

J.

Good for you!! Smart choice! I have gone"knee down" on one a few times. Aftermarket footpegs will help once you learn to lean....



Have fun!!!

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Not a bad idea to invest in a set of frame sliders too. These are hard plastic pegs that bolt to the frame of the bike. when you lay it down, and you will probably lay it down, the bike slides on the sliders, saving some of the fairing and frame and parts from damage.

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Slowguy

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What kinda rocket is she on???

My son finally got my (45 years) moto bug at the age of 30. We looked into what would be appropriate for him, and we settled on a Honda 599. Highly recommended, it's plenty quick, wide bars so it's easy to steer at low (town) speeds, impeccable Honda quality. A perfect first bike, which he'll use with pleasure for quite a few years. The SV650 would have been a good choice too, lots of torque, but to me (and him) it's an ugly piece of work, and a bit 'cheaper' than the Honda. A lot of fun to ride, and very 'modify-able', but maybe at your stage that's not a consideration.

I currently have a '95 Honda VFR750, which I love, beautiful to look at, plenty quick, not a patch on current 600/1000 hyperbikes, but different, really. Highly recommended, the VFR line, just gets better with age.

Enjoy whatever you decide on - learn with circumspection, mind the cars, and motos will never leave your blood, trust me.

Cheers

Barry

I would look into getting a Yamaha FZ1...why??? because that is what I ride!! honestly, if you are going to go the 1000cc route, and put in some good time riding, you are going to want to be comfortable. and boy is that bike comfy!

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