Hey guys, I just got back into bike riding this year after doing a very small amount of riding back in college. 32 years old, pretty responsible guy, I took the MSF class and bought an SV650 to ride, even though some people told me that the SV was way too much motorcycle for starting out.
I've put 7,000+ miles on the SV and haven't had any drops or problems. I ride mostly the windy canyon and mountain roads west of Denver and went into a dealership last weekend looking for something with a better suspension and a little more grunt than my SV (and something that looks, rrrrmrmrmrm, HAWTER). My SV is also the naked variety and has ZERO wind protection on the highway, which even though I don't do a lot of highway miles, sucks ass.
I've always thought about an R1 but figured it was way too much power for normal street riding. A buddy of mine who was with me (who has been riding and done some racing for like 30 years) told me that I would be disappointed with a 600cc bike, that his son's R6 buzzed like crazy at highway speeds and he really recommended I go with something bigger.
I looked at the GSXR750 and was also considering the Honda CBR600RR. Once I sat on that R1 though I think I was hooked. I love the riding position on the bike and it is of course absolutely gorgeous. I asked the sales guy how much $$ they want and he said they were having a weekend sale for $9600 on the '04. That's a really good price for the bike here as everyone wants list price, in fact they wouldn't budge at all from list on the GSXR-750 because they are so popular. This makes the R1 cost about what the GSXR costs. When I checked out the GSXR it seemed to have a more aggressive riding position than the R1 that I didn't really dig, the yoke seemed further back and pegs seemed higher. The fit and finish on the GSXR also seemed very poor compared to the R1 and of course the styling is dated in comparison to the R1.
So anyhow, I put $100 on the last Shift Red colored one they had to hold it for a week while I think about it. The bike would mostly be used for riding in the mountains at high altitude where you can lose 15-20% of your horsepower (I only bring this up because the loss of HP on the SV is somewhat noticeable at higher elevations). I want a bike that handles well, but it would be nice to have something that wasn't so terrible for highway trips that I couldn't do them.
The guys at the SV board are by and large supportive of the R1 option and don't think that it will be overkill for an older (32 years old) guy like me who took his time learning the SV. There are a few of them saying though that the R1 is extremely buzzy, turns in slowly and that the motors are timebombs.
:scared
The thread is here if anyone wants to read up;
http://www.svrider.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=30916&sid=6e65d0312885563e98932c0719a79102
I'm looking for general advice from the gurus. I don't want a stunt bike but I do want a quick, sporty bike with a top notch suspension for moderately quick runs up in the mountains and foothills, and it's gotta look uber hawt (at least compared to an SV). I'm pretty fast with my SV through the canyons but not crazy fast like some of the guys I see that blaze through there at track speeds.
Any ways, advice would be appreciated, I also have to decide if I'm gonna sell the SV or keep it when I get the new bike.
:thumbup
I've put 7,000+ miles on the SV and haven't had any drops or problems. I ride mostly the windy canyon and mountain roads west of Denver and went into a dealership last weekend looking for something with a better suspension and a little more grunt than my SV (and something that looks, rrrrmrmrmrm, HAWTER). My SV is also the naked variety and has ZERO wind protection on the highway, which even though I don't do a lot of highway miles, sucks ass.
I've always thought about an R1 but figured it was way too much power for normal street riding. A buddy of mine who was with me (who has been riding and done some racing for like 30 years) told me that I would be disappointed with a 600cc bike, that his son's R6 buzzed like crazy at highway speeds and he really recommended I go with something bigger.
I looked at the GSXR750 and was also considering the Honda CBR600RR. Once I sat on that R1 though I think I was hooked. I love the riding position on the bike and it is of course absolutely gorgeous. I asked the sales guy how much $$ they want and he said they were having a weekend sale for $9600 on the '04. That's a really good price for the bike here as everyone wants list price, in fact they wouldn't budge at all from list on the GSXR-750 because they are so popular. This makes the R1 cost about what the GSXR costs. When I checked out the GSXR it seemed to have a more aggressive riding position than the R1 that I didn't really dig, the yoke seemed further back and pegs seemed higher. The fit and finish on the GSXR also seemed very poor compared to the R1 and of course the styling is dated in comparison to the R1.
So anyhow, I put $100 on the last Shift Red colored one they had to hold it for a week while I think about it. The bike would mostly be used for riding in the mountains at high altitude where you can lose 15-20% of your horsepower (I only bring this up because the loss of HP on the SV is somewhat noticeable at higher elevations). I want a bike that handles well, but it would be nice to have something that wasn't so terrible for highway trips that I couldn't do them.
The guys at the SV board are by and large supportive of the R1 option and don't think that it will be overkill for an older (32 years old) guy like me who took his time learning the SV. There are a few of them saying though that the R1 is extremely buzzy, turns in slowly and that the motors are timebombs.
:scared
The thread is here if anyone wants to read up;
http://www.svrider.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=30916&sid=6e65d0312885563e98932c0719a79102
I'm looking for general advice from the gurus. I don't want a stunt bike but I do want a quick, sporty bike with a top notch suspension for moderately quick runs up in the mountains and foothills, and it's gotta look uber hawt (at least compared to an SV). I'm pretty fast with my SV through the canyons but not crazy fast like some of the guys I see that blaze through there at track speeds.
Any ways, advice would be appreciated, I also have to decide if I'm gonna sell the SV or keep it when I get the new bike.
:thumbup
