Your Rider Resume

[Texan1948]

Greetings,
62 years young, many bikes since 1972. The first was Yamaha RD 350 then to 750 Norton Commando. The story goes on with Harleys and Choppers. Now to my first sport bike. I love it and RESPECT it. This is a new learning curve for me. And learning the curves it great! The bike has 1400 miles. It is the 2009 black. Got it October this year. Thanks to all of you on the site I was able to get a great deal of information on the bike before I purchased. Also I have a Yamaha XT 250 great little round town bike.

 

[rickthefix]

TEXAN,
I am only 53 , boubght my first sportbike about 8 years ago, Ninja EX500, 2 yrs later bought a 04 ZX6R 636, then October a year ago bought my 07 FZ6.
Welcome & have fun !

 

[Yamma~Tiger]

Well... I have been riding since the summer of 2009. I live in Wisconsin ane ride about 7 to 8 months of the year. Passed the MSF course in summer 2009. I have about 4000 miles of, but have owned 3 bikes. The first one was a 1990 Yamaha Radian.... Gorgeous bike, probably the best looking bike I owned so far. 1990 yamaha radian - Google Search
Then I sold it after about 1000 miles and got a FZ1.... Yeah I know, you probably think I'm a squid, but it was cheap, $2000!!! who could resist? however, before I bought the FZ1 I had my mind set on a FZ6, and even after I bought the FZ1, about 5 months later, I bought a FZ6, so now I have both, but will probably sell the FZ1 next Season.

 

[rickthefix]

Good on ya Tiger for taking the MSF Rider Course, I teach the MSF BRC classes.
You're not he only one that has MMS (multiple-motorcycle-syndrom) I own 6, only 5 are runners.
77 XS650-D / 79 XS650-SF (street-tracker) / 96 EN500 Vulcan / 04 ZX6R-636 / 07 FZ6 / 80 TS185 (parts donor for recently restored & sold 79 TS185)

 

[DeepEmissions]

Wow ya'll are making me feel bad... Well to start I am Mechanicly inclined, in just about all aspects except motorcycles. I have worked on small engines, but of course nothing as advanced as a fuel injected 4 cyl with 5 valves per cylinder... Amazing by the way. I am a Modder and I try to mod everything I own, to make it my own, from my truck, to my 2nd Gen iTouch, to my Smart Phones, Blackberry, HTC Hero and SamSung Galaxy S Epic 4G. So basically what I am saying is that I am brand new to bikes but an eager and quick learner.
I just recently went to MTII to get a Basic Riders Course training (mandatory in Florida now) and was amazed at what I learned. Can't wait to go to the Advanced Course they offer and eventually go to Track Days (now were talking!). Ive owned 3 motorcycles in my life, a 1988 GPZ750 that was a project bike I never got to start on, a 1974 Honda CB350F, I LOVED that thing, Loud n slow, the perfect starter bike for me. And now my FZ6, which, sad to say, seems more Technically advanced than my truck! one of the first mods I plan to do is the Headlights and PodLight mod, really looking forward to having Blue PodLights to accent my blue halo eye HID's!!! I bought a new Fender Eliminator Kit, thanks to boneman for the link and when I get the LED Blinkers I will be installing that as well. And when I'm ready the Power Commander will come into play. but first I gotta figure out how to lower it a couple inches...

 

[expatmanxman]

Lowering is easy. let the tyres down :rockon:

 

[Def]

The first motorcycle I owned was a Yamaha DT 175 when I was 15.Got my MC licence and rode it on the street for a year. Next bike was a Honda CB350T followed by a Norton 850 Commando Interstate(even had an electric start). Next bike was a brand spanking new naked Honda Goldwing 1000. Then....had to sell my toys to buy a house, got married, had kids and then started riding again when my oldest daughter decided she wanted to get her MC license. We purchased a Ninja 500..she got her licence, wanted the ninja, so...I purchased my FZ6 in 2006.

I am the 3rd owner of my 2006 FZ6 although I bought it in 2006. It was traded in new by the first owner who won it at the Vancouver Motorcycle Show in 2006. It was purchased by a fellow who wanted to go on a ride with his Son to Calgary and back and I bought it from him thru the local dealer with 2200 kms on it. (now has 43200 km on it)

I do most of my own maintenance and really like the FZ6. Its bulletproof, gets good mileage (Ninja 500 got better mileage tho) and is cheap to maintain. Plenty of power, handles well and is a difficult bike to replace because of it versatility. Most of my riding is done solo and alone and I enjoy the freedom and interactiveness of riding my FZ6.

 

[CdnMedic]

I started riding toys (ATVs, snowmobiles etc.) at the age of 9.
When I was 14 I rebuilt a snowmobile motor on my own with help from a hayne's manual in the garage.
I grew up working on willy's jeeps and all sorts of off road trucks, derby cars etc. I was an auto body apprentice for a few years, but my main job there was mechanical repair. So drivelines, suspensions, interior work etc.
I perform all of my maintenance on all of my vehicles.
I race motocross and am constantly doing maintenance on my bikes, and have yet to have anything fail on me on the track since I keep everything running top notch.

Riding experience, I have been on everything a boy could dream of (even paid for my own pilot's license at 14). I was mainly an off road rider on snowmobiles, dirt bikes etc. I started racing motocross when I was 24 and have won a championship with that. When I was 25 I figured I was mature enough to be on the streets and bought my FZ6.

My current stable:
2004 YZ250F (lots of aftermarket stuff on it)
2010 YZ250F (lots of parts coming for it)
2005 FZ6 (again, lots of aftermarket stuff)
2004 Ski-doo MXZ X 800cc. So far it is basically stock aside from a clutch kit... It's fast enough!
2004 GMC Canyon 4x4 that I lifted 8" from stock.

I'm a well rounded mechanic, for never being licensed. I'll answer what I can if I know what I'm talking about, and if I'm not positive about an answer, I will tell you so.

 

[FinalImpact]

Re: Final Impact Rider Resume

Hello All,
I’m new to the asphalt but have been riding bikes all my life. At 11 I had Yamaha 125 with every mod you could imagine to help it ride better, make it lighter, and give it more torque. I learned to wrench on that bike porting it, carb, pipe, head, air box, ignition and suspension mods, blah blah. I’ve been turning wrench’s all my life making sand rails, fixing cars in every capacity; engine overhauls, manual and automatic transmission repairs (AAMCO trans for 5 years), differential rebuilds, brake upgrades, steering and suspension mods, electrical and computer mods, A frame shop for 5 years, Stripping cars and bikes of everything that comes off them for complete showroom restorations. As of this post 32 years of driving and I have never paid anyone a dime to make repairs on my cars! (Machine shop and painting services excluded of course)! I also ride stand up Jetski’s, quads, have ridden all kinds of street bikes but never owned one. The sand and dirt have been my mainstay except the 5 years I ran in the water. The last couple years I’ve been riding quads in the forest and sand and for the most part have never went down hard on anything. (X fingers). Although I recall some pretty funny accidents! lol On occasion have ridden in the snow just to check it out on my dirt bikes and sand rails. . . . Which is something I’ll never do on street bike, that’s for certain! lol
I bring a good deal of technical knowledge as I don’t pay other people to figure out what’s wrong so I’ll be chiming in on tech stuff as most of it is transferable.

Unfortunately I don’t bring much street expertise to the table but have driven some powerful machines on both water and land so I’m looking forward to being on the FZ! In the next few days I’ll have the Advanced Rider Training under my belt and start riding the 08 FZ6 more!

 

[viviifz6]

Well here is my short story...
I am just recently 22 and have been riding on 2 wheels since I was 18. I bought a 250CC moped for commuting around campus my freshman year in College. After some motor troubles on my cheap Chinese clone, I moved on to a 2002 Buell Blast my Sophmore year. I love that little bike, not a lot of top speed, but a lot of fun to cruise around on! Last fall I was shopping for a bigger bike and I settled on the FZ6. Found one online and as soon as I saw it in person I knew it was it. Also, last spring, I bought a Kawasaki kx250 dirt bike for those not so paved roads! I have always had an interest in bikes and other engines and have been working on them since I was 12.
Theres my story, and no one can take it away!:BLAA:

 

[Disco]

About time I shared.... Sorry this may get a little long!

Bikes are in my blood even if I only got my licence 3 years ago.

My dad & his brother owned & rode motorcycles in Northern Ireland. My mum used to be pillioned & taken in sidecars whilst they were 'courting' each other well before they emigrated to Australia in the 60's. Anyway enough of the walk down memory lane!

Ive ridden bicycles my whole life and always been around motorbikes. At about 13 years old had my 1st experience actually riding a Quad. Almost busted my foot & turned me off wanting to ride for a short while. Around 16 (1992) the ISDE was raced in the county NSW town I lived near, Cessnock. Seen the riders & what they could do, decided there & then that forget cars, I'm getting a bike! Mum & Dad gave me an ultimatum, if get a bike & bike licence, I will be moved out of home!

Stupid me gave in & forgot all about it because they bought me a car! Anyway around 17 I rode a friends twin shock Yamaha trials bike in some dreadful mud, first time on a 2 wheeler. Absolutely loved it, but I was still heavily into mountainbikes then and ultimately shyed away once again from going out & getting a motorbike.

Between 1999 to late 2007 a few times I'd been to bike shops to actually go through with it, but I still loved (still do) cycling that much that I could not justify buying a motorbike. I cycled pretty much everywhere! Now in late 2007 I finally had enough of Brisbane public transport that I did it! Yes now i'm onto the actual motorbike riding part!

Got my learners permit Jan 2008 & after 3 days of actual riding, got my full unrestricted licence. 1st bike I bought is my beloved 2008 FZ6N in midnight black. Since then added a 2010 VStrom 650 (Mrs Disco's bike) & 1997 XTZ660 Tenere.

Ive clocked up around 50,000km, unfortunately way too many of those k's are commuting. In the short time of riding, probably rode about 30 different bikes of varying sizes & styles of bikes. I bought the Tenere with the intention of learning to ride big bikes fast offroad before buying a new one. My dream is to one day (if the money ever allows, but at least have the Mrs permission :thumbup ride in the Dakar Rally & also have a go at the Baja 1000.

 

[REDHAWK22]

from REDHAWK22,

Well, this is mine. I recently (Feb. 22 2011) got a New Yamaha FZ6 (Dark Blue). I'm still in the process of learning and doing some seat time on this bike.

But let me take you back 32 years ago. My first Motorcycle was a Honda XL185S (4 stoke), I was 22 yo then. In less than a year, I sold it and got me a Yamaha DT 125 (2 stroke). I had this bike for almost 5 years & learned to strip this bike to the chassis and put it all back together. I meant, I did all the minor & major repairs on this bike, including all the modifications. I learned a lot of riding on this bike, dirt, trail riding, & motocross. And finally got me a Yamaha YZ125 (motocross Bike) and joined some races.
Approaching my 30's, I sold all my bikes, enduro & motocross bike, and got me an old (used) Honda CB550 street bike. Well, I didn't like it that much, being, it was heavy & I wasn't used to riding street bikes. So, I sold it.
Years passed & decided to ride again here in USA, 1995-1996, I bought a brand new Suzuki DR350S, It was a nice bike. But again, it got sold in about 2years. 1995 was the year that I got my M1 (motorcycle license), & no I didn't not take the MSF course. I didn't know that it ever existed.
Year 2010, I have that urge again to ride and was decided taht I wanted or needed a Street bike for freeways & touring, but nothing to heavy & big. The biggest I was going to get was a 750 cc bike, but couldn't decide. After searching, reviewing, reading and going to alot of dealerships (was going to finance the bike), I finally decided on either the FZ6R Yamaha or the Kawasaki 650R. I really felt that I wasn't really getting the best deal I can get, so I decided to just get all my gears first, Helmets, Shoes, Jackets, Gloves, Pants, Socks, etc.

Then, one day it happened, I was playing a penny machine slots somewhere in Placerville, Ca., and hit a jackpot of almost $8000.00. The first thing that I thought about was, now I can pay cash for a bike. I went back looking for the FZ6R & the 650R the next day, but the dealer was asking too much for either bikes, so I left.
Went to the closest Dealer to my house & behold, the bike was sitting infront of the door, a new 2009 Yamaha FZ6, sat on it, it felt good, made an offer, and the deal was closed, picked up the following day.

 

[Randomchaos]

My resume, heh heh.

Well I have been riding motorcycles since I was 13. I am now about to turn 26. My father has been riding motorcycles for years. Now, my entire family rides.

My first bike that I learned to ride on in my parents front yard was a little Yamaha Special 50cc street bike. Had my dad teach me the ropes, run me through some figure 8s, and tight circles, clutch control, all that jazz. Pretty good teachings actually. A few months later, I turned 14, and got my motorcycle license. I stuck to just riding the lil 50 around the neighborhood until I was 18.

After graduating from High School, my grandfather decided he didnt want his Virago 535 anymore, so he gave it to me. Before My mother would let me ride it on the street though, I had to take the MSF class. It was alot of fun, and I am looking into taking it again as a refresher. Aced both written and ridden parts of the test, and so I was on my way to zipping around town on that Virago. I still remember tearing up backroads, ripping it down straights at full throttle, and grinding the ever loving crap out of the pegs.

After about a year of dropping it a few times, grinding the pegs, and about 2,000 miles, I got to looking around at sportbikes. I was just about to turn 19, and was so set on getting a Ninja ZX-6R. My parents though, the smart ones, told me that would be way too much bike for me, and found me a nice little 2003 Ninja 250. So, I sold the Virago to my brother in law for $2000, and bought the used little ninja for that $2000. I do not remember exactly how long I was riding it for, had to of been maybe around 2 1/2 - 3 years. Had ridden and trailered the lil 250 to east TN a few times, and even trailered it all the way to Sturgis. Thats right, I rode a green Kawasaki Ninja 250 around Sturgis, and lived to tell about it. Hell, even went up pikes peak on it while we were heading home! I had one accident on the 250, a labor day weekend. Used to ride the bike around my town like I was a racer. At an intersection, I was making a right hand turn, gave it too much rear brake on some sand/dirt, and lowsided it. Tore my knee up pretty good, and scratched up the bike, but other than a bent handlebar and my pride, everything was good, rode the bike home.

After doing about 12,000 miles on the lil 250, and a few times of taking my new G/F out on it, I decided I had enough money and experience to buy a larger bike, and needed one if I was going to be toting my G/F around on the back all the time. So comes my first FZ6, 2004, silver, low miles, absolutely gorgeous, flawless condition. Come to think of it now, I was 21 when I got it. Anywho, I bought it from the local motorcycle shop used for around $4500. For the next couple of years, I took the bike to East TN, and down to Florida for a bike rally, and a trackday at Jennings FL, awesome track btw. After doing some modding, trying R6S forks, fitting a nice carbon fiber Leo Vince exhaust, the bike developed a side to side oscillation. After delaing with it for a good half a year, I finnally took it to a local repair shop to see what they could do with it. So begins, the epic saga of the totaled FZ6....

About 1 1/2 weeks after I dropped the bike off, I get a call on my cell really early from the shop. I missed the call, and all the voicemail said was to call them back urgently, it was about my bike. Come to find out, the mechanic who was working on my bike, took it out for a "test ride", which involved riding with a local bike group, and doing wheelies down the interstate, as well as exceeding speeds of 120mph. Yes, the mechanic admitted all of this to me. What ended up happening, he told me, was he was doing a wheelie, and it start to wobble on him,so he sat it down between 2 semis, and slammed the side of one of them. It managed to bend the frame slider back against the frame, and cracked it. That was the only damage to the bike... at that time. After a bit of chatting, and having my insurance quote the repair work, me and the bike shop agreed to them just buying the bike from me. After a few months of back and forth, trying to get them to pay up to the agreed price, getting nothing out of them, I decided to go with my insurance and have the repairs done. I go to pick up the bike, and low and behold, the same mechanic as wrecked the bike... again... wheeling it. He managed to 12 o'clock it, and totaled the bike out completely now. Insurance settled up on it for me, and took them to court, since their shop was not insured. Note to self, never take a bike to First Kick again! So with a fresh check from my insurance, I went to the local Harley dealership, and bought a used 2004 Buell Firebolt I had been drooling over for the past month. Goodbye to my lovely 2004 FZ6, I had put about 8000 miles on her. Hello Buell

Me and the Firebolt had a decent run. Bought her with about 2400 miles on the clock. Put maybe 6000 miles on her, 2 accidents. The first accident, my 2nd one on a motorcycles, I was on a group ride. Was going through a left hand blind turn, when midway through I see a guy on a cruiser coming head on at me, with his rear tire locked up. I get hard on the front brakes, feel the back end lift off the ground, squeeze past his front tire and the edge of the road, sit the back end down, and immediately go into a slow speed tank slapper and hit the dirt hard. Damage wasn't too bad, traded insurance information, rode the bike home, had it fixed a few months later and was back on the road. Only damage to me was a bruised hip. Go go riding gear! A little less than a year later, I had another accident, this time a bit worse, and my own fault.

I was doing some "spirited" riding, running through the same turn over and over with my G/F taking pictures and a video. It was a fairly technical, double apex, blind corner, which made it fun to me. It tightened up real good at the exit when going one direction on it. After several passes, leaning more and more, and finnally feeling my knee touch down, I hit the 2nd apex, saw the exit of the corner, and aww balls gravel was all over the road now. A car I saw pass by going the other direction must have dropped a tire onto the shoulder. This was pretty decent sized chunks of gravel. I panicked, thinking oh god I don't want to hit that leaned over, and stood the bike up, hitting the brakes hard. I was doing about 55-60 when I left the pavement. Was running parallel to the pavement on the shoulder, now off the brakes, trying to get the bike back on the pavement. Too late for that though, the shoulder dropped off as an embankment, and the front-end of the bike washed out. The next thing I know, all I hear is the sound of my plastic helmet grinding on the pavement as I hit shoulder/head first, then sky ground sky ground sky ground as I half cart wheeled and rolled down the road. The bike ended up being totaled out, and I was one lucky SOB. Only injuries to me was a sprained ankle, severely sprained thumb, and a few scratches on my arm from the initial impact pulling my leathers across my skin. Was fully suited up, race boots, gloves, 1 piece leathers, and back protector. After this accident, I decided to calm down on my riding habits, and bought a Buell CityX setup for touring.

It was a good little bike, had some huge ass hard bags on it. Bought it with 24000 miles on the clock. Previous owner had ridden it from NJ to the grand canyon, and a few other long distance rides. I ended up putting around 6000 miles on it myself, only one decent length trip down to the barber museum. After about 1 1/2 years of owning it, Buell getting axed, and growing tired of that Harley motor, I sold it just a week ago today, and am picking up my new to me 2007 Red FZ6 tomorrow.

I am totally stoked. Loved the 2007 model when it first released, especially in the red color :BLAA:

 

[lomax]

I will make this as short and ugly as I can.

I started riding when I was 4 on a Cushman scooter down on the farm. I was not tall enough to sit on the seat and reach the handle bars so I would lay down on the seat and reach up over my hear to the bars. My brother would give me a push off and then run out and catch me when I was done riding. Yea I know. :thumbup:

But it stuck with me and I have never been without some type of bike for the last 54 years.

I got my license at 14, when you could still do that here in Colorado, and have been riding ever since.

I still ride the street and in the dirt and could not even think of life without a bike under me.

So there are my two cents for the forum.

Marc

 

[foxbass]

My first rides were all on borrowed bikes in my late teens. A family friend said I could ride their Puch Maxi moped (50cc) and I was smitten. Really helped to put that one in an early grave. Didn't crash it but tore the engine up good. We graduated to a Honda 90 with knee guards and tall screen. That lasted a little longer though I crashed and bent the forks, so we ended up on some kind of trials bike which would be called a dirt bike today. It was a Suzuki 175, don't recall the model but it was 1975. I really loved that bike - though again not mine - and took my GF everywhere on it. By then we had laws about what size bike you could ride on a car license so if you had L plates - no pillion! So I made up some patches to cover up the plates that were stuck round the forks and rode 2-up. Dunno how I wasn't stopped but the Nazis didn't rule the streets back then. I also got to ride a mate's Triumph Bonnie around '77. That was so cool!
About this time I got a company van and was given a 2CV Citroen. Shame really as I never looked back and became a cager for the next 30yrs.
Around late '06 I borrowed a mate's brand new Chinese import scoot (He'd bought 6 on fleabay the idiot!). Threw a lid on and went for a blast. Jeez, I'd forgotten how much fun it had been all those years ago!!
Bought myself a Piaggio 125 and soon after was thrashing across London to see the latest GF. She persuaded me to buy a brand new Gilera Runner which did look quite cool but I was already thinking bigger. Kept it for a year then found the amazing Honda Varadero 125 which saved my spine from the potholes that have bred like rabbits. By now I knew I was on a journey upwards as the GF (by now a 'keeper'!) wanted to ride. We went out on it few times not legally, but it convinced me that I'd found a biking soul mate so we should progress.
Last year I finally took my full test, the Direct Access which now allows me to ride any damn thing I want. Woohoo!:BLAA:
Never been a fan of sports bikes. They're for folks who like to think they're on a race track. Or actually do track days of course!
Me, I need a good all-rounder, she wants to go touring a bit so the logical choice was made - it was between the BMW F800 and the FZ6 - and the fizzer won on price. Plus it appeals to the closet hooligan in me!
I'm a design engineer so like to fettle/service where I can. Just put on a new C/S set, heated grips, top box and fixed up the fairing 'ear' where a previous owner had dropped it while manoeuvring.
Right now I use any excuse I can to get on and ride!
Its good to be back.

 

[dxh24]

Not quite sure how i missed this thread for about 3 weeks now, but here goes. Currently im a street noob (on my permit) but ive come from dirt. Street bikes i've ridden: Kawi concours 1000 Kawi ZZR 1200 Honda CBR 250 (plan on taking my road test on this)... Like i said i was raised in the world of dirt, i've got probably 10 years of dirt racing experience in Western NY. First "bike" was a Benelli minibike 50cc that i got when i was probably 8ish (what worries me is that that bike has indicators and spots for plates, not sure what the rules are over in italy...lol) My second offroader was a yamaha ttr-125, then owned a kx 125 (beast for a 125) and now run a yz 426f...I've ridden a kx250 a crf150f crf 450 (bored out to 500), a suzuki 125 and a ttr-125 le (liked mine better). I plan on getting my license this spring/summer as soon as skill/finances tell me im ready i've looked into quite a few bikes as my first street bike, test ridden a few, googled around and came across the FZ6, sounded like my kind of bike- good for commutes or the occasional (yeah right) joy ride when the moment feels right. i went and checked one out at a dealer, sat on a black 07' and thought, yep this is gonna be my bike. The sales guy (manager of the place) came over and asked me if i wanted a test ride, i told him i was only on my permit and he said, "no problem, if you want, you can tour the parking lot" (mind you this parkinglot was the size of a mall parking lot) so i went for my little test drive and since then nothing else i've found or tried out can compare, i know that the fz6 will be my first street bike!

 

[bjorn240]

Got my license in 1997. Have now done just over 100,000 miles on five primary bikes.

 

[armstrong89z]

I always wanted a motorcycle when i was young but i lived on the water and dirt bikes was all that i pretty much could get. We moved when i was 12 and my dad bought 2 enduros, a 2005 Suzuki dr200 (just sold that a month ago had 120miles on it ) and a 2006 Kawasaki KLX250s (love that bike). I didn't ride them as much as i planned. When i turned 17 in may i got my license and in July i got my motorcycle endorsement. I took my test on a Vespa scooter lx150 (pretty easy to ride :thumbup Then i drove the Kawasaki around for a little then my dad let me use one of his Harley's, a Dyna low rider (awesome totally custom). Then came the fall and i stopped riding. About a month ago i bought a 2000 Suzuki intruder vs800. Barely drove it as i really wanted a upright sport bike. I originally was looking for a Ninja EX500 but didn't like the seating position. I then somehow found this forum and i liked the FZ6. I drove to the local Yamaha dealership and sat on a FZ8 and FZ1 but they were out of my price range. I liked the seating position. I then found an 2008 FZ6 on the for sale section of this forum and drove 7 hours just to look at it and i ended up taking it home :rockon: Ever since i loved the bike it had 202 miles on it when i got it and i now have 597. Time for the first scheduled maintenance!!! I love the bike and when i walk into a motorcycle shop i have no urge to see any bikes!!

 

[ebk02]

Okay... Where to begin this saga....
I got my MC license and rode my first bike at 18 - a Triumph 250 Cub - in 1968, so I have been riding for 43 years. I have never been down, which means either I am extremely lucky, have developed some measure of skill, or someone is watching over me. I have had more bikes than I can count, from 80 cc to 1500 cc. Everything from dirt bikes, old Honda "classics", big cruisers, and sport.
I cannot specify how many miles I have logged, I did have a Kawasaki KZ 750 that I put 40,000 miles on. I would suppose I have averaged over 5000 miles a year for 43 years. Now I am riding about 7 ~ 9 K annually.
I have done all my maintenance and repairs in that time. I have not done complete engine rebuilds, but I have a lot of experience with general maintenance, fuel and exhaust mods for performance, etc.
As to riding skills/level, I am not a track guy, nor an extreme rider. I feel I handle the bike well, and can stay fairly close to the other riders. I enjoy riding, and do not want to contemplate going down or wearing all the armor, so I do not ride to the max.
The things most important to keep in mind are that your machine is in proper condition, and you ride only within your limits / road conditions.

 

[FZ6 in Gresham]

I took the Oregon training in the beginning of 2008 and passed. With that I went to the DMV and got the endorsement.

As soon as I got that out of the way I bought and rode a 1983 CB550 for around 3000mi in the first few months. I dropped it a few times getting use to the weight.

After that I got a good deal on my 2007 FZ6 because of light shipping damage. That was around June of 2008. I've put 33,500 miles on it since then.

I've also got a Yamaha Vino 125 I've put about 3000 miles on.

My riding is 80% commuting in Portland traffic to and from work and 20% touring and fun riding. I commute year round except for the few days the roads are icy. I've toured up and down the west coast and out in eastern Oregon and Washington.

I've had one accident that resulted in hand contusions. I was following a van too close in a left hand turn when someone ran the red light. The van stopped to avoid the car and, while in the lean, I hit the brakes and went down.

Only have a couple years of auto shop in high school for mechanical experience.