Size DOES matter...(longish)

Since the Z750 is a sleeved-down Z1000 with cheaper suspension
components and the same frame, it's a great ride for the price. I ride
one most days and I'm not complaining, but the unfaired design compared
to a GPX might be an issue.

 

lol - well, i do try to compartmentalise, ha ha ha.

Ok, being serious for a moment.... the decision to learn to ride was long
overdue. I wanted to do it 20-odd years ago, but couldn't.... bloody
circumstances.....

When I finally took the plunge last year it was such a massive departure
from anything I've ever done before - and nobody I knew did that sort of
thing, so I really was all on my own... Little Me went out on a limb, hee
hee hee, and had a shitful time of it. Crashed, bruised, got expelled from
Stay Upright (I'm so bloody unco and unconfident) on my first go, and spent
the equivalent of Eritrea's GDP on private lessons just so I could do the L
course again...

I am one of the most determined (read: stubborn) riders in the universe. One
day I will be a good rider, too! Getting my L's was the hardest thing I have
ever done - and I think that's why I am so in love with getting out on my
bike. It was so hard just to get to the starting line...

There are other things that press my buttons lol.... but outdoors, there's
no competition.

betty

 

snip...........want a cool bike but they are all too tall..................

Alo Betty

Quickly on the Daytonas - 955i is old (as in the original design) and the
675 is all new. probably expect the 07 or 08 955i to be a 1050 with a lot of
675 styling characteristics.....

Anyhoo,

My better half is/was in the same position as you.

She had a CBR400RR for about 5 years and had a bit of a dilemma choosing
which 600 was going to suit.

Something you (and most people) have left out out of the equation is how
wide the seat and back end of the tank are - it makes a huge difference.

With the budget that we had for a newer bike for her, last year we were
looking at 2000/01 models.

The GSXR (still the older style) had a way wide seat so she could not touch
the ground at all.
The CBR600F and F4I had a lower seat but again too wide
The ZX6, well, she just didn't even look at it.
The R6 was higher than the CBR and I think maybe the GSXR, but it is really
narrow at the seat/tank junction and allowed her extra leg reach toward the
ground and therefore won out.

It also felt for her that it had a better stationary balance and felt
lighter.

After buying the bike we took it to Terry Hay who then lowered it around 25
mm front and rear using internal spacers. This kept the geometry the same
for the most part and the bike handles really well.

2 things to be aware of -

You can't just drop the triple clamp through the forks as far as you want -
unless you want your front wheel in your radiator..........hence the use of
internal spacers.

The bike will stand more vertical on the sidestand - we have purchased a
second sidestand from the wreckers and took a couple of mm out of it to
correct the problem. It was a bit of a pain on uneven ground.

The whole operation is easily reversed to make the bike original again.

ck

 

Hmmmph, I do NOT own a VFR thanks very much

JL
(or did you mean YOUR letterbox from MY home ?)

 

The right. The right femur is a half inch shorter than the left thanks
to crashing the CM250 at age 16 near Long Flat and turning about 3inches
of it into shards.

JL

 

That's the one !

I got your point. The problem is, oh long legged one, you don't get the
issue. When a bike is medium weight and very tall (as the y2k+ Daytona
is) it's a much bigger drama than if the seat's lower to the ground, and
the weight is lower. The point of the post you objected to was that it's
too heavy and tall (combination), if it was very light and tall that's
not so bad, if it's heavier and lower that's not so bad. But quite
honestly in stock form the Daytona is pretty much the embodiment of what
to avoid in a bike for a shortarse. The seat is high and wide and the
weight is up high. On the other hand it's an excellent bike for those
long of limb, which as I understand it, is something that's not
particularly well catered for.

No bike can be everything to everyone, 955's just aren't shortarse bikes.

Sure,and I can tell you exactly what needs to be done too, and even
where to get the suspension parts to do it...but in the end I couldn't
justify the costs to modify it, the R1 was more bangs for bucks, and
quite rideable for a shortarse bog stock. The lighter weight and
narrower seat (despite being theoretically the same seat height), and
softer rear spring (better suited to my lighter weight than the stock
Daytona spring setup for the heftier big boys it was designed for) meant
it was rideable off the shelf. The 955 would have been a carpark
dropsie looking for a location unmodified for me.

Sure, it's quite do-able, hell you can do nearly anything you want if
you're willing to throw enough money at it.

<shrug> while undoubtably true, rather irrelevant to a discussion of
bikes for shortarses. No ?

I agree, given a solid footing you can carefully prevent a very heavy
bike getting far enough off vertical that even a weakling can manage a
behemoth. Which is exactly why I said a 300Kg cruiser is less of an
issue than a 220Kg bike with an 830or 840 mm seat height.

 

I was just giving you ammunition for your argument with Johno JL.

 

Oh, ta.

Naah - GS is the bike slut, I'm the...[pause]..let me rephrase that !!

I must confess I would like several additional bikes in the shed, but a
VFR isn't likely to hit the list - it does pretty much the same job as
the Raptor - sporty-ish, comfy enough to tour on, and fine two up for
shorter trips. I seriously want to buy a litre class SBK, pref the 06
GSXR1000 at the moment but its not likely to happen unless I sell the
raptor, and *that* AIN'T going to happen

JL

 

People get EXPELLED from Stay Upright?!?!?

It's been a long time...

 

I thought it was just the company name but maybe it's actually a rule.

 

Poetic licence <grin>. I wasn't allowed to continue the course - but
expelled sounds much more dramatic.... They let me back though -
eventually... One of the instructors made the comment that I own the most
expensive L-plates in history - which is why I've kept them for so long, hee
hee - gotta get my money's worth...

betty

 

OK, JL / Clem - whats ya fucken problem with V4 vfr's? - they do
everything great - good tourer, can do a fair bit of scratching on
them, they are reliable, well finished, and resonably cheap to run.
They have the best cam drive in the business - and sound great with or
without a zorst on them!

AND THEY do get past the letterbox! - fuggya's!

Johno

Beer u two?

 

"YOU VILL STAY UPRIGHT OR I VILL EAT YOUR CHILDREN!"

All of a sudden I'm thinking of the child catcher in "Chitty Chitty Bang
Bang"

Or maybe it's the Baron...

 

You ride a VTR250. What would you know?

 

You're just lucky it happened near Long Flat, not Steep Drop-Off.

 

I know you are, I know you are.

Over 300 kg dry must really blow your mind.

Hammo

Ps wrapping n00b (sic) in cotton wool now?

 

Too many cylinders.

Theo

 

Still got the Z-six then?

Theo

 

I thought you had shaved Johno's back for the engagement party?

Surely nothing could compete with that ultimate experience?

JD

 

Therein lies the problem.

It is a very tightly specified sausage machine and, if someone fails to
achieve a competancy, they can't really continue.

Especially if someone drops a motorcycle, the instructor has extra
paperwork, which chews up time, and the schedule is so tight that there
isn't much leeway to catch up.

I can see how that might happen. I'd be surprised if SU didn't suggest
some course of individual lessons or some such.

Probably lucky. If all the others in the class had been riding since
they were four years old, then the instructor might have been able to
devote a wee bit more time to your lady.

There is a varience between instructors, but the schools are all
operating in the same, tightly structured environment.

regards,
CrazyCam