Beer Baron wrote: In reply to alex: I live on HWY1 several hours north of San Francisco. Its all twisty roads within at least 1.5 hours range. You have to hunt to find strait ones.
Yeah, fine. Rub it in. Only one of my favorite areas on Earth. No big deal.
Beer Baron wrote:alex wrote: . And the Street Triple R is probably the best sport streetbike available right now. I'll take mine with the proper dual round headlights, please.Exactly what Im thinking. Not too tough to find on CL for around $7k. I just want a decent option for wind deflection.Do flyscreens or sport style deflectors make a significant impact? I can find those easy. Andor suck it up and deal with wind blast for the sake of such a perfect bike?
I have the flyscreen on my Speed Triple and no it doesn't do much at all. I also prefer the Speed Triple over the Street....much broader powerband, but neither are beginner bikes.
alex wrote:Beer Baron wrote: In reply to alex: I live on HWY1 several hours north of San Francisco. Its all twisty roads within at least 1.5 hours range. You have to hunt to find strait ones.Yeah, fine. Rub it in. Only one of my favorite areas on Earth. No big deal.
This is just what it's like for me to take a short ride. 
Color me jelly 
Cotton wrote: I have the flyscreen on my Speed Triple and no it doesn't do much at all. I also prefer the Speed Triple over the Street....much broader powerband, but neither are beginner bikes.
I read a lot of mixed reviews on the Striple as to whether or not its good for "beginners". I'm riding already, but haven't been for long. So I'm looking for something like a first-and-a-half bike. I do love an adrenaline rush, but I'm also relatively cautious and really good at smooth, progressive control inputs.
Also kicking around the idea of Yamaha FZ6 as another good option.
In reply to Beer Baron:
I NEED to take a trip back out there and spend some time. Last place I got to spend any time with both my grandfathers before they passed.
The first four cylinder bike I rode was a Honda F4. Very smooth, and seeing as how it was right after I got my license, I managed to not kill myself.
Just remember that the GSXR750 has over 120 hp in a very small package. I remember the first time I was on an abandoned road and accelerated full-throttle. Unlike a car, where you get pushed back into a seat, on a bike, you are quite literally holding on for life.
I have been down twice in two years. Once was the very first night I had it. Rode it 50 miles, and dumped it when I gave it too much throttle after stalling, and target fixated right into a curb.
Spinout007 wrote: In reply to Beer Baron: I NEED to take a trip back out there and spend some time. Last place I got to spend any time with both my grandfathers before they passed.
We have a guest room if people come out to take a ride around. I can also recommend good B&B's in the area.
In reply to Beer Baron:
I'll keep that in mind, though I'll probably retrace the route we took, camping and hiking for a couple of weeks through the redwoods. Great America still operating out there? 
Beer Baron wrote:Cotton wrote: I have the flyscreen on my Speed Triple and no it doesn't do much at all. I also prefer the Speed Triple over the Street....much broader powerband, but neither are beginner bikes.I read a lot of mixed reviews on the Striple as to whether or not its good for "beginners". I'm riding already, but haven't been for long. So I'm looking for something like a first-and-a-half bike. I do love an adrenaline rush, but I'm also relatively cautious and really good at smooth, progressive control inputs. Also kicking around the idea of Yamaha FZ6 as another good option.
The Triumphs are very short lengthwise and somewhat tall, combine that with the power (all 600s ARE NOT created equal, even the Street Triple is a wild ride, the Speed is crazy) and you get a wheelie machine with somewhat twitchy handling. They are one of the worst bikes for a beginner I could think of. The FZ6 is a much better option and still a quick bike. If you want a little bit more wind protection look at the late 90s early 2000s yzf 600. I put over 50k miles on it and love that bike. It was my daily driver for a few years, I road tripped on it, and drag raced it in the street bike class. It was also decent for two up riding.
just as a comparison my modified k1200s has probably 50HP on the Speed and it a good bit faster, but MUCH easier to control.....also cheaper to insure.
Spinout007 wrote: In reply to Beer Baron: I'll keep that in mind, though I'll probably retrace the route we took, camping and hiking for a couple of weeks through the redwoods. Great America still operating out there?
To the best of my knowledge. It's not exactly local to me though.
Cotton wrote: The Triumphs are very short lengthwise and somewhat tall, combine that with the power (all 600s ARE NOT created equal, even the Street Triple is a wild ride, the Speed is crazy) and you get a wheelie machine with somewhat twitchy handling. They are one of the worst bikes for a beginner I could think of. The FZ6 is a much better option and still a quick bike. If you want a little bit more wind protection look at the late 90s early 2000s yzf 600. I put over 50k miles on it and love that bike. It was my daily driver for a few years, I road tripped on it, and drag raced it in the street bike class. It was also decent for two up riding.
Twitchy handling is something I would be concerned about for myself more than power. My training is to progressively roll on power slowly, rather than snap controls to full open. Handling that is a bit more forgiving while offering the flexibility to adjust my lines (this is the land of blind turns) is really appealing. I know there is a fine line between being nimble and being a handful.
Beyond that, I want something I can slap some modest side bags on to carry my lunch bag to work and a 6-pack home.
I just know that every review of the triple that I have read says it is head and shoulders above everything else in its class.
Probably too late to the party, since this board specializes in enabling. 
I had a bike for a couple years in college. First year, I rode it like crazy, pretty much everywhere I went if it wasn't raining. Second year, 300 miles total, sold it in the fall. In the beginning of the second year a blue-haired old bag in giant white Olds pulls out in front of me. After locking up the brakes and sliding to a stop literally four feet from her door, she just continues to leisurely make her turn, totally oblivious to the fact she almost killed me. Riding wasn't so much fun thereafter. The stark realization that you are dependent on other drivers being alert takes some of the luster off owning a bike. Since then, I've been on a bike all of a half dozen times. I still keep my endorsement, but its never been as much fun after the near miss. The guitar analogy on page one or two is a good one. Buy something cheap. Don't spend a bunch of money until you've had your first close call. If you still enjoy it after that, its probably something you'll stick with for life.
In reply to Beer Baron:
They are great bikes, but it is a handful all the way around. Under hard braking it gets squirlly too mainly due to the length....nothing you can't get used to, but it's just so much easier to hone your skills on a more forgiving bike. The best of both worlds would be to have a Triple as a second bike, which is how mine is now. The k1200s is my commuter, trip bike, etc and the Triumph is my "this bike is just too damn good looking to sell" bike lol. Of course it's also a lot of fun to ride.
I had soft bags on my yzf600. Between those and a backpack strapped to the back seat I had enough capacity to go on week long rides/vacations.
kazoospec wrote: Probably too late to the party, since this board specializes in enabling.
This is a very good point. I've had several accidents over 20 plus years of street riding (got my license at 14), which included hitting a car. In my case I got over the fear, apprehension, etc. Sure, I was tense on the bike, especially after the wreck that got me hospitalized, but I got back on and am still riding all these years later, but some very close friends were totally done with it after the first wreck or close call. You really never know where you'll land in that grouping until it happens.
a speed trip is not fast in the land of liter bikes. a gsxr 750 with a pipe will be a riders race
How can I forget the car passing in the opposite direction on a two lane road without enough room while I had a passenger? Thankfully I slowed way down, and this road had a bike lane that I could veer into.
I'd read this earlier today and thought I'd chime in. I've been riding since 1976. I road raced bikes before switching to cars, mostly on 125 Honda GP bike, some vintage and a couple of rides on a TZ250U.
For reference if you not familiar with GP bikes, 125 (30hp 160lbs) lap times are similar to 600cc street bike lap times and the TZ250 (235lbs about 75hp at the wheel) roughly similar lap times to 1000cc street bike. Vintage bikes while not hugely fast are great fun as they slide around like mad.
These days I ride a Beta 525RS (Fancy Italian street legal dirt race bike), I do a couple of vintage MX events on my old Yamaha and a desert race each year on a YZ125.
Play riding on a 10 horsepower 200lbs Kawi and going a 100 hp bike, obviously, is a huge jump. If you'd been riding on a 125 motocross bike (same weight but close to 40 hp) that would be different. The play bike is not without merit, mini flat tracking in a field teaches you to be comfortable sliding the front and back tires regular
Cotton brings up a good point, it's not so much the power but sport bikes tend to be short wheel base, which on track is what you want but caught off guard on the street it's an issue for newer riders. The other issue is braking, watch some videos of guys running down into hairpins, are you comfortable with the back end snaking around at 75-80 mph. These are just a couple of the reasons why most long time riders don't recommend sport bikes for new riders. 600CC bikes have become incredible but they are not as user friendly as a standard.
Another factor to consider is you're weight, I'm 140lbs with all the gear on and usually have issues with bigger bikes, not because of their power or weight but mine. The bigger sport bikes springing and damping is to stiff so they tend to slide the front end waaay early even on the street. On a the standards it's not as much an issue.
One thing that wasn't really mentioned consider a proper dual sport bike; KTM, Husky, Beta and a few others make real dirt bikes that are street legal. I mentioned earlier I have a Beta 520RS, 265lbs 50HP, proper off road suspension great brakes and 45-50 MPG on the road (I have a heavy throttle hand) You can also fit them with Super Moto wheels (sticky street tires) although be forewarned the super moto set up does tend to lend itself to holligan antics.
With all that said I would buy a cheap used bike ride it for 6 months and then start looking for what you want.............what you want will likely change after you ride for the 6 months.
My .02
Tom
Cotton wrote: The best of both worlds would be to have a Triple as a second bike, which is how mine is now. The k1200s is my commuter, trip bike, etc and the Triumph is my "this bike is just too damn good looking to sell" bike lol. Of course it's also a lot of fun to ride.
I like this particular insanity. It is not the cheapest mania though.
I suspect the plan will change as SWMBO starts to ride. She takes her written tomorrow and we plan to play around in a parking lot this weekenf. If she dislikes the ninja I will probably grab something like a rebel 250 for her. If she is cool taking hand me downs I might grab a solid and affordable intermediate like an SV650 and pass that to her in 6 months when she is ready to step up from the ninja. Then I can get a Triple or whatever tickles my fancy then.
Out of my price range unless financed.
http://stlouis.craigslist.org/mcy/3597101600.html
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