Is a litre bike too fast AND quick for the street?

[avgas]

Yes litre bikes are too fast for the street...
......but you dont see me complaining.

Just like V contains too much sugar and caffine, two stroke smokes too much, concerts are too loud for the average ear.........all good points - but i dont give a shit if it feels good

[avgas]

The question then would be is a 1500 cc plus bike too fat and quirky for the street

Not really, cos i still want my munch mammut. Its like the animal equivalent of a rhino. Not slow, not small, not easily stopped

[jade]

How nice to come back from holiday and find this argument, Ive been wanting to discuss this issue for a while now,
Motorcycles are my complete passion, i love them, I want to be good at riding them and am constantly trying to learn more
Ive had about 9 crashes I reckon - (ranging from 30kph lowsides to a 60kph impact with a car to overshooting a corner at 110
those are from the age 18 to today (my 21st birthday)
Having 3 2 stroke bikes may have contributed to this number but in any case I feel that ive now used my 9 lives and as I go up to bigger faster bikes there isnt going to be a tenth.
Crashing should not be a part of motorcycling, my biggest fear is another impact and im going to do everything in my power to prevent it
My goal is to never crash again !
My RS250 by most boy racers can be considered fucking quick and by litre bike riders - quick through the twisties
but like most people have said it comes down to self control and I am constantly drilling this into myself everytime I ride my bike now,
Most of my riding is done on the north shore, I know hundreds of these roads everywhere and I am out there alot - there is so much going on - its dangerous out there and it is war with these incompetent cage drivers.
Sometimes,if the conditions are right (empty fastlane on the motorway) then yes I will occasionally push the tempo toward 200 but it is only now that I am teaching myself the self control needed for 50 k zones because when I move up through the ranks I need to stay at the same speed,
I seem to be riding to the rule that my speed in the fifties is ok - 60 and above is not
I cant imagine the power of a 1000, but I imagine that its more than I and most people will ever need in our lifetimes, however I see what you are saying about it being easier to ride, and I think I will one day own one.
Im on the fence about my next bike as I wonder if I will get bored
Its between an 05/6 zx6r or or a k6 750
All I know is im not upgrading to nada until I feel I have mastered self control
and I think Ill probably go the 636.

Sorry to rant so much but to summarise I guess Im saying that a litre bike is not too much power in the right hands, but like anything its fucking lethal in the wrong hands.
I like our graduate system for the capacity of motorcycles and I think Its all about self control
Until you master this you cannot go onto a 600 let alone a 1000

ps. it is judgement over skill.

[mynameis]

What's wrong with riding a big bike like a pussy on the roads???

There's nothing wrong in riding around like a pussy on a big bike, I mean hey we all gotta stick to speed limits aye! What I meant was if and when you get a "big bike" which probably has more than 150 hp then you should also have the ability to handle it as well if in case you do get closer to using all that power and hey if in the wrong hands it's like a weapon.

And for those who are still on 250's and smaller, how the fuck can you express an opinion when you've never experienced riding a bigger bike, specially those knocking them! If you all think a thou is bad, I'd suggest you examine your riding habits and self control...

Assumption is the mother of all fuck ups and makes an ass of you and me. Maybe these 250 riders who have made comments on litre bikes have ridden them and hence made comments and perhaps they wouldn't if they haven't.

I think there's a fine balance between two things here. Saftey balance control suspension brakes are better on the litre (which is an advantage)where as you have those extra hps which can make it dangerous and on the other hand the smaller bikes have less of those above i.e. braking suspension ect..which can be some what of a disadvantage but again you don't have those extra hp to make it as lethal as a thou.

And I am sure vice versa can be argued as well but oh well. Just my little opinion

mynameis

[beyond]

I am against all legislation that determines what we can and can't buy so I am not against large bikes. Hell, I just love my 1.4 litres worth

What's the difference between a professional hunter creeping around the bush with a 30.06 and the same gun in the hands of crim creeping around your neighbourhood at night, on P with an itchy trigger finger. Same gun, one's responsible, the others downright dangerous.

You cannot ride a litre bike to it's limit on the road "for long." No matter how good a rider you are, one day there will be a patch of gravel on the corner you are taking at 250+ or a stray cow, a tractor pulling out of a farm gate a camper van taking the corner wide, a car full of P addicts on your side of the road on a blind corner etc etc.

However, you can't ride "most" bikes to the limit on our roads for too long, but there are times when you can. Very few between mind you. The ZX14 I tested, bounced off the rev limiter in first at 185kmh!!!! Too fast? Yeah.
Fun? Oh yeah!!! Would I do it again? Oh yeah!!!!!!

The facts are, if you've got power between your knees, you will use it. It might be once, it might be many times. Most blokes like to know that the top speed posted for their bike, is what they can get out of it too.

I say again and again. Do not test the limits on your bike until you have covered at least 5,000kms, preferably 10,000kms, be careful where you do it and watch the road for morons. Everyones out to get you.

Having said that, powerful bikes are loads of fun, safe as a 125 in experienced hands but of course they are too fast for the road and that's why we buy them.

[scracha]

Agree with Beyond about the legislation thing. Litre + bikes are a complete cock extension on the road and utterly pointless. They're just not happy at 100kmph and pootling about at legal speeds doesn't do them any good.

As for the "they go as fast as your wrist argument".....Maybe 1 in 50 riders have the self control not to go bansai with them once in a while and I'm not one of them.

[Jantar]

They're just not happy at 100kmph and pootling about at legal speeds doesn't do them any good.

Utter rot. My 1 litre bike will sit at 100 kmh in 5th gear quite happily, and it doesn't suffer any harm at that.

[XP@]

Yeh, for sure they are overkill for most uses, as Hitcher says it is the monkey behind the bars...

Even my ponsy 650 Transalp can become a heat seeking missile of doom when I put my brain in a jar on the shelf in the garage next to the wd-40. Even without going stupid I have to hold back every day to stop the tax inspectors taking an interest in my licence.

For me the real kick i get from the Transalp, is that i can really ride it (anywhere)!
That is travelling with the throttle open for a good amount of time. I dunno about you but having the throttle open is good and closed is, well, just not the same. Riding faster bikes it seems that you spend most of the time slowing down or watching for the cops, or both and just not enough time riding.

Has anyone got a bike i can borrow for the sprints in feb? or the next BMW adventure? Nope, ah well, I'll just use my bike, I won't be winning anything but I can still have a lot of fun doing the ride.

[SPman]

After the, customary, 2 GSXR 1000's,..... which seemed all about total iron controlled throttle discipline on most roads, I dropped back? to a ZX9R. It was so much FUN after the 1000. I could get on the throttle earlier, concentrate on going quicker when I wanted to, not when the bike wanted to. It didn't seem quite so much of an effort to keep the speeds reasonable. It felt like the old 750SP - more input into the actual riding of the bike, without the feeling it was going to kill you, if you made just one little mistake. (although, no doubt, it would)

Part of this is being an old prick, who would like to get even older, whose reaction times are just a tad slower than they used to be.

The fun is even better now, with the 1300 - just like the old days, considering every bumpy corner as a challenge....."will this twisting, gyrating heavy pile of metal get around this corner without tying itself in knots and tossing me off? Lets see now.....squirm, gyrate, wiggle....yeeha!" Well - it'll stick with 996 Ducs up our local twisty bit of road up to 160 kph with luggage on.........and thats more than enough to get into deep poo!

I find it interesting that most bike testers over 30, consider litre sportbikes extreme overkill for public roads. Enjoyable - oh yes indeedy, but, riders not being able to use anywhere near their full potential on the road and expect to stay alive, long.

With a disciplined experienced rider on board - they are fine. With someone who thinks they are shit hot or with no discipline, like all bikes, they are an accident waiting to happen - only usually, harder and faster.

Me - that Cagiva Mito 500 is looking very appealing..

[NinjaNanna]

One small point, I'M TOO TALL FOR A 600!!!!

My ZX-9R fits nicely and I'm sure a 1000 would be fine.

Plus I fully fit with the guys that like to cruise with torque rather than jamming it up and down through the gears. I doubt I'd ever be happy on a 600

My 2c

NN

[idleidolidyll]

A mate of mine, an ex top notch overseas racer, tells me often that all you need on the road is 50BHP.
For most people he's probably right but that's not the issue.
It's about choice. Do we want restricted HP bikes in NZ like in Europe had? (they had a 100BHP rule).

IMO a bike is only as quick as the rider and how fast they twist the throttle and how fast they can corner. It's about as easy to die on the roads on a gutless 50cc as on a 160BHP superbike.

Even a 600cc bike can do more than double the speed limit on the open road: are ya gonna talk banning all bikes that can do more than say 120kph?

What about young hoons in 250BHP Subarus etc? Should these cars be taken off the road along with all Ferraris and Porches?

[mstriumph]

............................ Well - it'll stick with 996 Ducs up our local twisty bit of road up to 160 kph with luggage on...................

yeah - i was bringing up the rear of the bunch, enjoying the unfolding scenario ............

.............and i have to tell you, peoples - those Duc guys kept glancing back, horrified, at this retro bike piled high with luggage just cruissssssing up/down/thru the twisty bit after them ......

.....seemingly effortlessly keeping pace [well, as some of u know, this guy looks disGUStingly laidback while he's riding ... ... sooooooo relaxed ]

- then they'd return to the job in hand and, increasingly desperate, attempt to pile on a few more revs [riding getting ragged, some of em] glance back again triumphantly and ........

THERE HE STILL WAS

they seemed very young .......musta been a nightmare for em

bloody good laff

[Whynot]

What about young hoons in 250BHP Subarus etc? Should these cars be taken off the road along with all Ferraris and Porches?

just leave it for a few years .... the subarus will get themselves off the road pretty quickly

[_intense_]

the old saying -with powere come great responsability rings true.
im working up the ranks myself, i dont considermyself ready for an inline4 litrebike, im still shit scared of the thought of THAT much power, have almost been on the cbr600 for a year, and its got more than anough to scare me shitless. The only truely safe setting for that sort of a display of power is a racetrack.

[Mr. Peanut]

Manufacturers should not be burdened with imposed limits, the technology that goes into flagship 1000s filters down into other bikes.

I can see myself using a 1000 quite sensibly.

Though it is obvious that you don't need that kind of power for the street, do you need bikes at all? Go buy a corolla...