your opinions please

[jmillheiser]

And don't look at it as your last bike, just the first of many

[Scott58]

How much "dinking" on dirt bikes did you do? I learned to be a pretty good rider in the dirt. If you actually got pretty good in the dirt the body english you learned to use will put you miles ahead of the beginning street rider who has no experience at all. I always side with the opinion that you should buy what you want so if this is the bike you got your eye on it's probably the one you should get. Learn your limitations and stay focused and you'll be fine. People might say there are alot of crashed sports bikes around, but actually there are more that haven't been wrecked. Ride safe and good luck.

[Skier]

People might say there are alot of crashed sports bikes around, but actually there are more that haven't been wrecked. Ride safe and good luck.

That's not true around here. I know almost every street rider in an 8 mile radius (about 50,000 people in the area) and many, many more have wadded their bikes than haven't.

In fact... I can think of about three people, including myself, who have not smashed their bikes up in the past three months. All of the crashing riders have, surprise, sportsbikes. None of the cruiser riders I know have tried to ride with the sticky side up.

[rubthebuddha]

Well right now im looking at bikes. My riding experience just includes dinking around on dirt bikes, but when it comes to this kind of thing i am very conservative. Not a fan of speeding or anything like that..

Anyways, like i said im looking at bikes. I want to buy from a dealer i think because i want the financing options. Plus i cannot find anything near me thats decent. I plan to only have to get one bike. I really dont want to get a wimpy 500cc and just sell it in a year. To me i would rather get one bike i can call my own.

Im looking at the Yamaha r6 and the suzuki gsx-r 600. I know many people around here belive that *new* bikers should go with 500cc or less but i think because im mature enough in the first place, that i can handle more. What are your opinions on this? What others would you reccomend? I deffinatly want a 2000 +.

Since you're "not a fan of speeding or anything like that" why would a 500cc bike not be good enough for you and why would you neet to sell it in a year? What makes the 500cc wimpy to you (if speed is not an issue)?. Just curious, seems like contradictory statements.
Having said that, I think you should get what you want to get - if you start out taking it easy and are "mature enough" as you said, you'll probably be fine on a quicker bike.

[Scott58]

Insurance statistics compared to the number of bikes would suggest otherwise. The fact is it's his decision. People come here looking for opinions, rather or not they go with that opinion is there choice. If he still wants the sportbike then the only other advice is to be careful on it.

[helix]

Well i personally dont feel a connection to any bike other than the sportsbike genre, and was drawn to the r6 because of what ive heard as a "dream bike" because its comphterble and quick. Just because you have a high powered car doesnt mean you do 95 everywhere. Ive heard 500s arent as menueverable which is why i consider them wimpy (i may be totally wrong here) + everyone has been telling me they have outgrown their 500s in no time.

What would you reccomend to me? i have about 15 hrs on a dirt bike and i really dont want anything other than the sports bike style. I dont want to get somthing totally out of my league, i want to do it right.

[ronboskz650sr]

If you have 15 hours on a dirt bike...Maybe a sportsbike from the mid-late eighties would be a cheaper way to go. They are pretty quick, pretty sporty, pretty upgradeable, and probably more than you need for quite a while. My "opinion" is ...15 hours in the dirt won't count for much on the street, especially if it wasn't recent.

[helix]

What do you guys think of the YZF600r? it looks very comfterble. Im not looking to buy new but probobly like i said around year 2000.

Problem with older vehicles, i dont want to have to start fixing and fixing a bike i just got. Around here, anything pre 97 is covered in rust as well. even if it was taken care of.

[shane-o]

I'm sorry, but here we go again. I'm sure you're mature enough and know what you're doing enough to get right on a high performance race machine. I won't bother to try to explain it again, as I'm sure you can justify why you will buy a race bike. The junk yard is full of previously owned race bikes that had owners that were careful too.

some guys just cant help em selves, nuthin better than leaving an "R1" at the lights on a smaller rig, cause the tosser on the R1 has no idea how to ride it

my opinion, an R6 is called a "race replica" cause thats exactly what it is. It requires respect, and the kind of respect that comes from those who have experiance. Its not the 600cc being only 100 more than say a gsx500 so I should be fine and safe, the issue is the insane power to weight thats the animal here.

Whats the hurry, as we learn to crawl before we walk, more experiance riding more knowledge you carry with you onto more complex machines

just an opinion not a flame

[Kal]

Something to bear in mind, a friend of mine who happens to lurk this forum took his 6 or 7 year old Honda CB500 (56+bhp 130mph or so top end) to a 'run what you brung' at a drag strip.

His Bike is standard except for an aftermarket exhaust that he forgot to remove the baffles from.

14.19sec @ 92.49mph for the 1/4mile on his first run
14.16sec @ 94.99mph for the 1/4mile on his second run


The R6, now that is a 117bhp 160mph machine.

In my honest opinion sportsbikes, even the serious 125 and 250 ones, are primarily track day tools that are legal to ride on the road.