Test rode the 2007 R1 today at Paihia.

[Cr1MiNaL]

Well I thought Id head down to my friends at Henderson Motorcycles n try on the new 07 R1 they had there n take it for a blat today... First off just sittin on her I noticed how much longer she felt as compared to my 07 R6. Put her in 1st and twisted the throttle ... lol u shuda seen the managers face when it did nuthing but spin on the spot ¬¬ I gave him a sheepish smile n let go of the throttle... slowly out of the drive then headed towards Piahia for a nice blat (or so i thought). right let me tel u straight off it is freekin hard to keep this bike under 80 (virtually impossible and actually required emmense amount of skill to do so). The R1 was surprisingly smooth.. (stock suspension). and was so much heavier than my R6. around the twisties I noticed that I couldnt simply throw the bike from one corner to another .. there was this one scary moment when I tried to do just that and instead of banking left she kept goin stright.. im like wtf and had to use the foot rests to put pressure down on the side I wanted to go. The R6 on the other hand needs nuthing.. u can come out of a tight corner and immediately throw it into the next one doesnt stay straight for as long as the R1. But man the pickup on the R1 was absolutely insane... doing about 140 i just twisted the throttle on 2nd and she was airbound ... Im like fuck yeaaaaa... so easy to control as well... I was a bit skeptical at first about the cornering abilities but the R1 is easy enough to corner... but u must however not clip her straight out of the corner even if its a straight of at whatever speed and immeterial of the gear u will wheelspin. I also noticed the difference in braking on the front twin discs (upgraded to 6 pot callipers for the 07 R1). just need to tap the front breaks n ur into a stoppie! almost the same for my R6 but what really turned me on about the R1 was the smooth pickup and the lazy feel of the bike... I had her in 2nd almost all the time whether I was at 20 or 200 lol didnt feel the need for a gear change. This bike will give u a few bad habbits. It will also just as easily kill an amature .... so pls people dont buy one unless ur upgrding from a 600 or 750 atleast. Overall the R1 was everything I had hoped it to be and I confirm Rossis statement about it being the best litre track bike in the world. Anyhow id still rather have my R6 as its so much easier to ride and corner... also heaps of torque... well it was satisfying and i thought id share my moment with all u bike fanatics too

Peace
Raj.

[MVnut]

Say hi to Adam at Hsn M/c for me, missed him last time I was in Aucks he was in Aus. If you rude the thou more the power becomes addictive

[Deviant Esq]

Nice mate, sounds like you had an absolute blast! Not thinking about trading your R6 for it are ya?

[Cr1MiNaL]

Nice mate, sounds like you had an absolute blast! Not thinking about trading your R6 for it are ya?

No mate im gonna keep my R6 I feel at home on her and am able to keep upto the litre bikes I ride with, with the R1 I think Ill have to learn how to ride all over again.... massive 18" rear tire though




[quote]Say hi to Adam at Hsn M/c for me, missed him last time I was in Aucks he was in Aus. If you rude the thou more the power becomes addictive[quote]

I will say hi to Adam next time im in what was ur name mate? PS: I can tell why ud say that the power becomes addictive, its true. But Id need to be much much much much more skilled to successfully ride one of those 190 bhp maniacs legally Id give my licence 2 weeks with one of those. Atleast with a little restraint I can keep my R6 at 50.

[Nutter34]

massive 18" rear tire though

Um, no! 17"

[Cr1MiNaL]

No no im pretty sure it was 18 ! looked fatter than my 17

[R6_kid:Me]

ummm... the R1 has a 17inch rear. The current setup of race bikes around the world, and the availability of tyres in the 18inch size, especially for a modern one litre would make it a suicidal move if Yamaha put an 18 on the rear.

I would be interested to see how your view compares to a more experienced rider. I will be in at some stage to test ride the R6 they have just got in (if it doesnt sell before hand), which i may then follow up by test riding the big brother.

I would be suprised if it was actually wheel spinning in any gear, unless of course you were being ham-fisted with the throttle. I may be a good 30kg heavier than you, but even i couldnt get the GSXR1000k3 spinning it up in 2nd at full throttle, and with you being lighter i would have pictured it wheelying rather than spinning up, unless of course it was wet.

Just out interest, what roads did you ride it on?

Does it really take immense skill to ride it at under 80kmh? It should ride smoothly at 20kmh, getting down below 10kmh outside of a straight line might start to be challenging, but keeping a 1000cc bike under 80kmh in my books takes maturity - not skill

Oh well dude, glad you enjoyed it. It's good to see the bike is doing well in WSBK, although not as good as i would have hoped, that Ducati is still something to beat!

Just out of interest what other bikes have you owned/ridden previous to the R6?

[Karma]

But Id need to be much much much much more skilled to successfully ride one of those 190 bhp maniacs legally

190?? Where'd you pull that figure from?

[R6_kid:Me]

No no im pretty sure it was 18 ! looked fatter than my 17

ROFL... learn something dude. The 17 is the diameter of the wheel.

180/55/17 as it says on your R6 means 180mm wide, 55% height(aka profile) (correct me if im wrong), and 17 inch rim.

The R1 would be running a 190/50/17 standard I think, I personally preferred the 190/55 that The Stranger has on his GSXR1000K3 at present, gives it a much quicker tip in (compared to squared off shinko that's not saying much!).

[R6_kid:Me]

190?? Where'd you pull that figure from?

the crank? i think most shops are quoting it at 185bhp, maybe a tad more with ram-air

[Cr1MiNaL]

ummm... the R1 has a 17inch rear. The current setup of race bikes around the world, and the availability of tyres in the 18inch size, especially for a modern one litre would make it a suicidal move if Yamaha put an 18 on the rear.

I would be interested to see how your view compares to a more experienced rider. I will be in at some stage to test ride the R6 they have just got in (if it doesnt sell before hand), which i may then follow up by test riding the big brother.

I would be suprised if it was actually wheel spinning in any gear, unless of course you were being ham-fisted with the throttle. I may be a good 30kg heavier than you, but even i couldnt get the GSXR1000k3 spinning it up in 2nd at full throttle, and with you being lighter i would have pictured it wheelying rather than spinning up, unless of course it was wet.

Just out interest, what roads did you ride it on?

Does it really take immense skill to ride it at under 80kmh? It should ride smoothly at 20kmh, getting down below 10kmh outside of a straight line might start to be challenging, but keeping a 1000cc bike under 80kmh in my books takes maturity - not skill

Oh well dude, glad you enjoyed it. It's good to see the bike is doing well in WSBK, although not as good as i would have hoped, that Ducati is still something to beat!

Just out of interest what other bikes have you owned/ridden previous to the R6?

Hey !! i didnt no it had a 17 inch rear as it looked bigger than mine maybe because it was new and the rubber was more curvy? I just presumed. I was being ham fisted with the throttle as i wanted to see what she could do and she was all over the place but it wasnt scary as while spinnin it was still moving ... and the roads were mossy ( u know the roads leading up to piahia comin from henderson? those roads some of them were green with moss.) also man ducatis in my books are just lookers ... well most of them anyhow they dont have what it takes to excite for sure... and ive ridden the 999s i think thats the best of them. Ive ridden many bikes over the last few yrs but owned the comet 250 the bajaj pulsar, Honda CBZ ( theyre foreign bikes so u wudnt no them) and the cbr 400rr and now the R6. as for a more experienced rider ... Rossi seems to agree that the R1 is the perfect track bike also the R1 to the best of my knowledge has a little over 185 bhp no? so 190 would not be wrong with air induced intake?

[R6_kid:Me]

Haha, a little bit of knowledge never goes too far astray mate. And i think you mean PIHA, so we're talking scenic drive, which would be quite damp and slippery.

Scenic drive wouldn't be my pick to test the R1 but it's where i will most likely end up riding it myself. The Piha Road would be better suited, atleast at the inland end, the tighter stuff may get tricky.

Ducati just lookers... check the latest in MotoGP and WSBK and see what bike is at the front last year, and also at the moment. Ducati's aren't just lookers mate, they have awesome handling and brakes. I dont think you got to ride a top of the line Ducati 999... cant remember if it is the S or the R, but it would have blown your mind if you did ride it.

Rossi works for Yamaha... need I say more. He used to sell Honda's too, when he raced for Honda. In a similar way that Troy Bayliss sells Ducatis (they sell themselves too), etc etc

The more unbiased journo's (people like me and you, but with more skill) rate the CBR600RR and Triumph 675 as the best all round mid sized bikes. Unfortunately they also seem to agree that the GSXR1000K7 is the one to beat, though WSBK will prove that right or wrong at the end of the season.

185hp at the crank is what Yamaha claims, that puts at around 170 at the wheel, check the interenet for stats though. Ram-air adds around 4-8hp at top speed (proven in testing) but you need to be doing over 150kmh for that to really come into effect.

Im a Yamaha fan, no lie there, but to say it is the best litre bike in world you would have had to have ridden the GSXR1000k7, CBR1000RR, ZX10R, Ducati 1098, the R1, and lets not forget MV's new Agusta 312. Not saying you are wrong... in your mind it is the best in the world, but its the only one you've ridden. And you've only ridden it on wet, mossy NZ road's with presumably new tyres!

[Karma]

The more unbiased journo's (people like me and you, but with more skill) rate the CBR600RR and Triumph 675 as the best all round mid sized bikes.

I'd go for either of those, but I'm not a mid-sized person

Can I get that super-sized, with a diet coke

[boomer]

my k7 thou span up in first and ending up going full lock, left, right, left before straightening out again... those horses on the new thous are something else Gareth mate... i was friggen scared! although im sure most thous young or old are just as bloody stoopid fast

i'd be a bit worried about you saying it didn't like to corner though... they're supposed to have esp and know exactly where to go before you even do!


damn sexy lookin bikes tho.. but i hear they're not the best at handling.

[Cr1MiNaL]

he he yes I agree I quite like the MV Agustas but who has 40 k ? I can get the same feeling with half that ... its all about the feeling in the end aye... after why do we all ride bikes? feeeeels gooooooood *sigh* lovely lovely bikes them MV's....