What other bikes have you ridden?

[leetaylor742]

First bike was 1989 CBR600 - good bike to learn on

then 1995 FZR600R Foxeye - nice step up from CBR

from there 1998 TL1000R in bright yellow - loved this bike had nice loud cans and racked up 20k using it for commuting and also a tour to Monaco GP and around south of France (had it on limiter in top gear on autoroute on way down there)

Traded that in for 99 R1 - loved this bike also even though it hurt me pretty bad... highsided it while knee down on way to work at 80mph and broke my collar bone, shoulder, dislocated the other shoulder and twisted my pelvis! was still back on repaired bike before I even returned to work! - awesome engine on the road in my opinion

then briefly had a 2001 TL1000R in blue and white with Harris Titanium exhausts! very nice

had a year with no bike then picked up a mint 1997 zx6R which i ran from 12k upto 36k in two years commuting and weekend use

now got 2005 FZ6 N which I love of course!

Lee (UK)

 

[Smersh]

Yamaha TW200 - Learned to ride on parking lots on it (MSF course). Loved the posture, this is what made me think of KLR. I think it's a great learner for a season, as long as you dont try to take it on a highway

Honda CB250 Nighthawk - spent a day riding it, also on parking lots - realized it was a little too small for me.

Kawasaki KLR 2008 - my first motorcycle. Tall, nice posture for me (i'm 6'3). A little top-heavy and too heavy for real off-road, but with a few mods starts to look like just came out of Paris-Dakar or like something with a russian tank in its heritage. With almost dead battery you can start it off a 3-foot horizontal roll - single cylinder ;-). It's one of those bikes that is not great in any particular aspect, but overall - a great package. Planning on buying one and having it as a second (or third) bike.

Harley Davidson Softail 2008 - rented for a day and rode around Greenwich/Stamford. plenty of power (after KLR, it is ;-) ), heavy, not as maneuverable. Looks beautiful, don't get me wrong, but I would go with japanese cruisers.

Yamaha FZ6 2004- :Sport: :cheer:

 

[spine]

Yamaha SR125 for 4 hours = fab little bike i rode on the CBT. Enjoyed it muchly.
Daelim VS 125 = A great Korean first bike. Never broke down on me, I could get a good 70mph out of it and I knew the bike inside out. The perfect first bike.

Now: FZ6N = an absolute joy. Cannot fault it.

 

[deeptekkie]

Okay, we'll try this, (forgive me if I get some the designations wrong on bikes that weren't mine):
Mopeds and scooters of all sizes, brands, and designs. (All were a blast to ride!)
2 little Honda 90s but they would still do nearly 70 mph.
Mid sized Honda CB350 that would do 106 mph, (with one or two riders - it didn't matter = 106 mph).
Honda CB400TII that would do 112 mph but had a nasty habit of going into tank slappers at 80 mph on interstate ramps!
Honda 450 Scrambler: Tons of torque, would only do 110 mph, but it looked great!
Kawasaki 500cc 3 cylinder 2 stroke, ("Mach III"). This felt like the fastest bike I have ever been on. It would wind up so incredibly fast that all you did was speedshift it and in the seconds it took you to use all the gears you were already past 100 mph.
Kawasaki ZX600: Incredibly nimble bike. It had some tricks going for it and it would pull 135 horses on the dyno. I had it 153 mph but the rear end felt squirrely every time.
Kawasaki ZX900R: This was a wonderfully bad bike. It handled great, but felt heavy at the same time. This bike pulled around 135 horses stock. I had it 163 mph but it had some left. The only bike I've ever ridden that would power wheelie at 100 mph! (It still had lots leftover too)
Honda Trials 250. This little bike that looked so wierd just felt so good. I believe anyone would feel right at home on this bike.
Big, heavy, loud Yamaha 650. Felt like a British bike.
Yamaha 600 (?) Seca: Great looking bike and it felt great but I think they had a cooling problem with these bikes.
Suzuki TS185 bored to 200cc. This little bike was bullet proof! It was a 2 stroke and it could handle ANYTHING you threw at it and just come back again tomorrow for more abuse. The ONLY thiing this bike did wrong was the swingarm bushings. (You couldn't keep them in it! Perhaps riding in the creek with most of the bike submerged frequently had something to do with that? : )
Harley 1450cc Dyna Low Rider (3), Silver Anniversary Edition. Beautiful bike to look at but nothing to ride. Vibrations, loud, good mileage, 107 mph was ALL this bike would do and you could NOT lean right, (only left). Anything more than about (approximately) a 15 degree lean would drag the pipes and begin to unload the rear suspension! (Did I say lots of vibration?) You had to tighten EVERYTHING often!
Suzuki GS650 (F?) This bike felt good and ran great.
Suzuki Gixxer: Plenty of power and good balance. Good looking bike.
Honda 900 (Something or other) Lots of power but to me the bike sucked. Lots of intermitten vibrations that seemed to predict future problems.
Honda 400 cc dirt bike. Tons of torque. Tons of valve problems.
Honda 250 dirt bike. Lots of low end torque and great handling.
Kawasaki Ninja 500R: Enough power for almost anyone. Great balance, great feel, nice parallel twin sound/feel. Adequate brakes. Comortable seat, ride, and power - even 2 up!
Yamaha FZ6: The best bike I've ever owned (by galaxies) and the greatest pleasure to ride - bar none!
These are the ones I have ridden and/or owned and can remember. (I'm sure there were others)
I can forgive any quirks that any of them had except the 80 mph tank slappers that I did nothing to cause. I never forgave that bike and I got rid of it!

 

[FB400]

I don't have a long riding career and the FZ6 is my first bike. I have a very generous friend who let me ride his 2 bikes with my learner permit (prior to FZ6)

1) 2002 Kawa ZRX1200R: A stout retro styled naked bike with enough torque to throw you off the thing. I was scared at how much power this thing had. I didn't like not having any wind protection.

2) 2003 Yama FJR1300: Smooth as silk! A very well mannered bike in all ways. Power is plentiful but linear and never overwhelming. I learned slow speed manuevers and figure 8's on this bike (with hard bags installed). This is an awesome bike and would be my choice for a tourer.

 

[Shinn]

My turn for my tiny list!

Bikes I've owned:

1) 1987 Honda CBX 250. SIngle cylinder that my father bought for me to learn on. Loved the bike, but it needed parts and we could not get a thing. Brakes sucked, but the suspension honestly wasn't bad for a 1987 motorcycle. Lots of zip until 120, then ran out of power. It honestly scared me because the brakes were so bad.

2) 2004 Kawasaki ZZR250 (Ninja 250). My parallel twin. O how I loved her. I rode her hard as I could, learned so much on it. Brakes were much better then before, but the suspension was very sketchy on rough roads. I ended up trading her in after a year because it was too hard to keep up with my dads FZ1.

3) 2005 SV650S. The sport version of the SV, in bright flaming yellow. I looked like a giant bumblebee. This is the bike that turned me off of RR styling. Was an awesome motor, though revved slowly compared to the FZ6. Handled amazing, but that seating position was good for only 45 mins. Suspension was upgraded but still sucked worse then our 6's, and the brakes were awful, especially the rear. I crashed on her once due to locking the rear in gravel. Traded her in a month after.

4) 2007 Yamaha FZ6. My first new bike that I purchased. I love her. She has a few things that could be better, but for the price (I paid $7000 brand new) and the the comfort she will do anything. I was going to trade her in but I can't do it. I lov her too much (This sounds like a bad romance)

Ridden not owned:

2001 Honda CBR600F4i. Awesome RR, rode it before the SV. Hated the cam chain tensioner rattling all the time. Handled not bad (SV was actually more fun) but I should have bought one instead of the SV. I regret that one.

1992 Yamaha FZR400RR. Pure love. I still cream my jeans over this bike. You think 600's need to rev... this thing had nothing till 12000. But wow, what a handler and sexy bike. Would sell my first born for one, but need to have a kid first.

2002 Kawsaki Ninja 500. A awesome beginner bike. If I had not got such a deal on my 250 I would have bought one. Better everything over the 250, and the best Canada offers for a beginner in my opinion.

2000 Honda Rebel 250. Piece of S**T. I felt like I was riding a mini bike, my knees were over the tank and it just wouldn't do anything. Thank god it was just at training school.

2007 Yamaha FZ1. Dads bike. My personal favourite bike out right now. IT sits in the bike shed beside mine (As I live at home still) and I can ride it any chance I can get the keys off of dad. Amazing everywhere, and does anything you ask to. Honestly, it is a little beyond my skill still so I do not want one yet.