Bought my first motorcycle....holy crap!

[84LX89GT]

This wednesday i decided i'd go and purchase my dream bike, before i say what it is here's a little background history.
I had a mid 80's RM250 with no title, i rode it twice, it was falling apart. I rode my friend ricky's Yamaha V-star around the block and had a great time, easy to ride it. Then i went and road tested a Suzuki Katana 750, it was fun and fast - but i wanted something faster. These are ALL the times i've ridden motorcycles - 4 times.

So I went and bought my dream bike a 2005 Suzuki Hayabusa
I rode it 400 miles in the last 2 days, that thing is INSANE! I absolutely love it, and unfortunately my cobra and GT just don't look the same to me....they're awesome and you can't beat a V8's rumble, but when your vision blurs and it feels like your face is peeling away from your skull that's an UNBELIEVABLE feeling. So anyway, it might be a good idea for you guys to take out a life insurance policy on me, lol.

Actually i haven't screwed around on it too much, it gets 42.4 mpg (has a display), is very predictable and pretty much you can ride in 6th gear and have TONS of power and the torque is unbelievable for a bike, the KATANA i rode was dead under 6,000 rpm.

anyway, that's my lame story, i've attached an image the dealership took of it......I LOVE MY BIKE!!!!

Who else here has a bike?

here's some info about these bikes to give people reference who don't know about it:
It's the world's fastest production motorcycle, many motorcycle mags can hit low 10 or high 9 second 1/4 mile times in the 140 ish mile per hour range.
0-60 in 2.8 seconds
I was able to buy it for $9,400 with some haggling, they wanted $10,399. It was a used bike with 1460 miles.

[bmxmon]

Thats cool man, those things are nuts i've heard. Whats the insurance run on that?

[rwhite65]

the bike looks great, but your defensive driving skills have got to be awesome now. I ride a cr250 because I dont wanna get hit by another car....just be carefull.
Ryan

[Hethj7]

Awesome bike, but I'd be lying if I said it doesn't scare me when someone with limited riding experience buys a bike like that. Just be careful and keep the rubber side down. Oh, and have fun

[Unit 5302]

The Hayabusa definitely has love it/hate it styling (I'm the latter ) but you can't argue it's performance.

It's a lot longer than the 1000cc bikes, which makes it a little more docile while maintaining insane acceleration. The extra length also makes them more comfortable to ride.

Make sure you keep your head in the game though, the bike CAN do a roll on wheelie at 100mph+. For those of you not familiar with the term, it means you're just on the throttle. No clutch dropping or anything fancy. The front wheel just starts coming up off the ground. I ride pretty close up to the tank (more comfortable for me) on my 2 600s, and I've only encountered the roll on a couple times. It's actually a little distressing when the front wheel starts coming up when you're not expecting it, lol. The first time on the FZR was while I was coming out of a hard right hander (while I was still turning) and the second time was just after a dip on after crossing some railroad tracks.

The advice I can give.

Respect the bike, but trust it. You've chosen one of the quickest and most powerful motorcycles in the world as your starter street bike (usually a very poor choice), and having a motorcycle with the kind of power yours has can get you into deadly trouble in just a couple seconds. Make sure you still trust it though, they're more stable and sticky than you might think, and extreme maneuvers when unecessary can get you into as much trouble as pushing the envelope.

Ride within your limits because just when you think you know how far you can take things, something unexpected happens.

Get ALL the protective gear and WEAR it. I use the Phoenix set from Joe Rocket because I want something to keep me cool, was quick to put on, comfortable, and relatively inexpensive. I wear a full face helmet, jacket, pants, gloves, and boots that cover my ankles in addition to the pants which also cover them. Roethisberger would have walked away from his accident in all likelyhood if he had been wearing a full face. Protective gear not only saves lives, but faces and jobs. You might live after sliding along the pavement at 50mph with no gear, but you might rather you didn't.

Take a riding course. You might be a natural, but thoughts are a low slower than trained instincts.

Keep the shiny side up.

[silver_pilate]

I echo Unit's post. WEAR A HELMET at the very least.

I seen plenty of patients come through the clinic from motorcycle accidents. The smart ones were wearing helmets and just need to learn how to walk again or less, but the dumb (and sometimes the just plain unlucky) ones need to learn how to think, talk, and eat again.

Respect that bike and be aware that there are too many idiots out there to let your guard down. And the vast majority of serious accidents I have seen come from just plain stupidity. For instance, I saw a patient who was traveling down a major city street at night at 150mph. A car pulled out in front of him and he was able to slow down to 85 before laying the bike over. The bike missed the car, but he wasn't so lucky. He hit the drivers door, his right leg came up by his ear and he went under the car in a vertical split position. Seperated the halves of his pelvis completely and broke his femur. On top of that, massive internal injuries. He coded 4 times on the way to the hospital and spent a month in ICU. If he wasn't wearing a helmet, he'd be dead. As it is, he'll live a pretty normal life following his long stay in rehab.

Anyway, I'm preachin to the choir here, but don't get on that bike without a helmet. NOT cool.

--nathan

[84LX89GT]

yeah i hear you guys on the safety thing, i have a proper riding jacket, helmet and boots. I'm going to buy some pants soon, but my budget was already completely busted. I ALWAYS wear a helmet on a bike and ALWAYS wear a seat belt in a car....there's absolutely no reason not too.
Hey Unit thanks for the awesome advice (name is Kell right???), anyway yeah a guy at my work races bikes, i let him ride it and he said he wasn't able to go full throttle until 4th gear and he hit 160......jesus, that's way too fast i had no idea he'd go that fast. Luckily nothing bad happened. I'm too scared to try full throttle on the bike....there's no need to, it's WAY too fast anyway at 1/2 to 3/4 throttle.
I love it so far, it's very predictable, sturdy, and handles bumps very well.
It's actually pretty good for cruising because it has so much torque it just cruises along with very little effort, it's comfortable and handles bumps very well. I want to learn more about riding and i have ZERO interest in doing wheelies, burnouts or hauling butt around corners.
The reason i bought it, not only because i thought it was a work of mechanical/visual art was because i want to learn how to drag race it (track only of course)...but that will take time.
I'm going to take a riding course when i get a chance, i feel a bond with this bike and i want to learn how to respect it, ride it and work on it.

[84LX89GT]

Originally Posted by bmxmon

Whats the insurance run on that?

I haven't bought insurance on it yet, i bought it with a credit card (i have great rates and i pay them off quickly) so i didn't need it yet. I have theft coverage on it, and i'm going to shop around for a good insurance quote - meanwhile it's hanging out on my back patio in visible view.

[Unit 5302]

Unfortunately, I expect full coverage will be pretty astronomical. When I was first shopping for my bikes, full coverage was almost as expensive as the bike itself in only a year.

Expect your rates to drop after a few renewal periods without any accidents. I use Progressive for both my auto and motorcycle insurance.

[RBatson]

Congrats on the new bike! There is nothing like riding a bike. I looked at the Busa at one time, I liked the ZX-12 better but ended up with another VFR. Busa for a first bike?? Yikes!! That's alot of bike brother! So far I've had 2 interceptors and a V-Max. I went about 12 yrs without riding after getting hit by a mustang of all cars. Just always respect the bike.. that's the best advice.

Nowadays I ride a Harley. I wish I had gotten on one back in my early 20s. After riding a Harley the sportbikes just feel awkward. Here's a pic of my 2004 DWG. The picture is with the bike fully loaded, the way I rode it last summer to Sturgis. I recently added saddlebags. Have fun!

Oh yeah, I've done alot of shopping around and ended up with Progressive bike insurance as well. I get a better deal on the cars with Farm Bureau.

[84LX89GT]

Hey Rbatson, that's a sweet looking bike. i actually was very tempted to buy a cruiser (harley) or the Yamaha warrior (especially midnight warrior), Those would be a much better choice for long cruising. I rode the bike already for 2+ hours straight and i can tell you that i felt like i was breaking when i got off the bike. I'm still waiting on tabs for my bike now that they've expired. one thing that i'm trying to do is not overestimate my riding skills (which i have none) and to respect how quickly i could kill myself on this thing, one twist and a few seconds later i'm doing 100+. I still need to talk to my insurance company and see what other companies are going for.
Well to all, have a happy and safe 4th of july and i hope all you bike riders out there get to enjoy your toys as much as i do mine!

[RBatson]

I really like the Warrior but I try to buy American when ever possible. I almost bought a Victory Vegas (Victory is the only bike made 100% in the USofA) but the DWG was a perfect fit. The Big Dogs are nice too.

That Busa should be a comfortable bike, its a sport touring bike. I contemplated the ZX12(over the busa) because it was more comfortable to me(I liked the way it looked too btw). I still wouldn't completely rule out getting one if I decided I wanted another sportbike. I'm afraid you may have gotten the wrong bike friend. Did you go and sit on all the bikes to see which was the most comfortable? I've seen bikes that I absolutely loved the looks of but would make my legs cramp as soon as I put my foot on the pegs.

As far as the insurance, I always tried to pay cash or pay with a credit card so I wouldn't have to carry full coverage. Liability is almost nothing, its the collision and comp that cost ya.

Originally Posted by 84LX89GT

one thing that i'm trying to do is not overestimate my riding skills (which i have none) and to respect how quickly i could kill myself on this thing, one twist and a few seconds later i'm doing 100+.

Please be careful brother.

[RBatson]

Originally Posted by 84LX89GT

Hey Rbatson, that's a sweet looking bike.

Thanks! I rode it this morning, I don't feel quite as bad about selling the Mach now. I got the wheels at 5k miles and plan on custom paint at 20k. A tad over 6k miles to go.

BTW, Nice colors on your bike, much better than most Busas I've seen.

[84LX89GT]

thanks for that, I actually visited the dealership's website and saw this exact bike on display and i had to have it with these colors.
I cramp up real easy on anything including in cars, so i knew it would happen on a bike. I fit the bike perfectly, i actually think it was designed based off of someone who was 5'9" tall....i don't think it would be very comfortable for anyone over 6' unless they liked bending the heck out of their legs. My legs aren't the things that cramp up though, it's usually my back and arms.....but i'm sure that would happen on any crotch rocket.
I think motorcycles are artwork, that's especially why I bought this thing, i actually can't wait to start maintaining/working on it!
what kind of paint job are you going to get on your bike?
After buying this bike, unfortunately i don't have the same speed satisfaction out of my mustangs as i used to.....but i still love the V8 rumble and torque.

[RBatson]

I noticed the Busa is short, the ZX12 sits alittle higher. Busa is alittle faster but I doubt I would notice the difference, I doubt I'd push 190mph myself. Bikes are beautiful, I agree.. so do alot of folks.

As far as the paint, I saw a bike in Fla a couple years ago(I think it was a Deuce) that was black with chains painted on it. I loved it but wasn't willing to part with $20k+ for a used bike. As much as I loved the paint on that bike, I'd hate to steal someone else's paint scheme. I was thinking of black with maybe barbed wire or something of that nature or possibly... http://www.badasspaint.com/DiabloBlvd.htm (in red) or maybe http://www.badasspaint.com/images/grimreaper112.jpg

I would consider a Harley paint job but I rather have custom.. Harley's paint would be less expensive and a semi-local dealer doesn't require you to exchange your metal(about $650 for my bike). Custom paint jobs can get quite pricey but.. it would be 'custom'.

I'm still looking around.

[racerboy88]

bikes are nice, I've got two myself. When the weather gets colder, it's nice to be in the cage

[1965GTO]

ZX14 Kawasaki is the new king, long live the king. Hayabusa's are nice.

[808foxtang]

84LX89GT,

I have been riding a motorcycle for many years now. I started with a '84 Honda 750 Interceptor. Sold it and purchased an '87 Suzuki GSXR 1100. I had that bike for 9 years until I retired it to my non-riding collection. Now I ride a '01 Suzuki GSXR 1000. I get the same feeling when I pin the throttle on my liter bike. However, due to my experience, I never ride without a helmet. Have you ever seen any motocycle racer ride without one? As you know, my gixxer lives at 6000 rpm. Ride fast or stay home is what i always say.

[84LX89GT]

Yeah i actually saw a ZX14 at the place that i bought my bike....they had to steal the crown didn't they
they hayabusa is too fast for me anyway, so there's no way i feel a need to buy that. plus i think the ZX14 looks kinda like a bike version of the 80's ferrari testarossa, i like the hayabusa's looks better.
Rbatson - those definately look sweet, i'm sure you'll find something killer.
foxstang - a guy at my work just bought an '06 GSXR-1000 in the same colors as my bike. it looks ALOT lighter and is really cool looking. i really like suzuki bikes.
i can tell you guys i have no intention of ever not wearing a helmet on this thing.....just look at ben roethlisburger....ironically it was on a hayabusa.