My friend traded his stryker for an R1, I took it for a ride...

[BoneJj]

Yeah, so my friend just traded in his yamaha stryker for a 2011 r1 (left over model) and damn... that thing is crazy powerful, I mean crazy powerful!

I must have brought the front wheel up a good 6-7 times without even trying to and I only put 20 miles on it, well maybe 30... lol

I couldn't believe how wicked fast that damn thing is, 3rd gear and it's just loving every bit of 120mph... Just sick.

I had to be really careful and basically once I hit 2nd I had to slow it down and just skip to 6th because I was already doing 60mph or better, I think it's rated at like 2.7 second 0-60 or something like that.

I was also surprised at how comfortable it was for me to ride with the way the handle bars are positioned. I never thought I'd be able to ride a SS style bike again with the damage to my wrist (20 fractures in Right forearm/wrist as a result of my time in the military). I'm actually thinking about getting one now instead of the FZ1 or the ninja 1k but I think I might still just get one of those 2 just because they are really comfortable bikes.

that r1 just dumps a ton of heat onto the rider it's ridiculous!

 

[Detrich]

How did it feel weight-wise compared to the 6R? Lighter & more nimble or just faster?

 

[JSP]

Yeah, so my friend just traded in his yamaha stryker for a 2011 r1 (left over model) and damn... that thing is crazy powerful, I mean crazy powerful!

I must have brought the front wheel up a good 6-7 times without even trying to and I only put 20 miles on it, well maybe 30... lol

I couldn't believe how wicked fast that damn thing is, 3rd gear and it's just loving every bit of 120mph... Just sick.

I had to be really careful and basically once I hit 2nd I had to slow it down and just skip to 6th because I was already doing 60mph or better, I think it's rated at like 2.7 second 0-60 or something like that.

I was also surprised at how comfortable it was for me to ride with the way the handle bars are positioned. I never thought I'd be able to ride a SS style bike again with the damage to my wrist (20 fractures in Right forearm/wrist as a result of my time in the military). I'm actually thinking about getting one now instead of the FZ1 or the ninja 1k but I think I might still just get one of those 2 just because they are really comfortable bikes.

that r1 just dumps a ton of heat onto the rider it's ridiculous!

Its a mean machine, thats for sure! I rode my buddies R1 and its like warp speed fast haha. Crazy. I settled for the R6 lol. The R1 is just way too powerful for what you could ever need (safely) on the street.

 

[Rookasaki]

Its a mean machine, thats for sure! I rode my buddies R1 and its like warp speed fast haha. Crazy. I settled for the R6 lol. The R1 is just way too powerful for what you could ever need (safely) on the street.

I would agree. I took out a ZX-10 once. That thing was just stupid fast! I now understand why insurance rates are so high.

 

[CrazyCawi]

that says it all...you get first gear and 6th gear.....what a waste....
a bike like that isnt even worth it for a street rider. But so many have em its just plain stupid IMO lol but hey to each their own. I was going to trade for a tuono 1000....bot its top speed is 139...its designed for the canyon and city riding

 

[Rookasaki]

that says it all...you get first gear and 6th gear.....what a waste....
a bike like that isnt even worth it for a street rider. But so many have em its just plain stupid IMO lol but hey to each their own. I was going to trade for a tuono 1000....bot its top speed is 139...its designed for the canyon and city riding

Yeah... A R1 is a amazing machine, but my God it has power... It's almost too much. I would be afraid of giving it to much throttle in a corner and... Whoop! highside!

 

[BoneJj]

Its a mean machine, thats for sure! I rode my buddies R1 and its like warp speed fast haha. Crazy. I settled for the R6 lol. The R1 is just way too powerful for what you could ever need (safely) on the street.

The big thing for me though with that bike is that I much more prefer the seat on it.... It's got a nice wide comfortable seat and after my 20 minute ride on it I found it still enjoyable to sit on, not uncomfortable at all. Though I wish it had some air that was able to get around that seat though, my nuts were getting cooked with the amount of heat it drops on the rider. It has a temp reading on it and when I came up to a light I saw it hit 230 for a little bit and then it started to drop back down.

I would love for them to make with a little smaller engine like an 800 or even a 600 because the 600 bikes are just way too small for me. That's why I got my Vulcan 900, it was small in CC but not small in frame. On all the other smaller bikes I was hitting my knees with the bars or just felt cramped. I don't fit on those little bikes.

That's why I'm going between the fz1 and ninja 1k as it's a full size bike with plenty of power but they have the fairings and so on that I like and the right size bike with the right size seat for my butt. The 6r just has way too small of a seat. (btw, if I get a fz1 i'm also ordering the side fairings for it the same week. I can't go without those, not for the commuting that I like to do.

If the R1 didn't dump loads of heat on the rider like it does I would probably be seriously considering it as it was actually the most comfortable I've ever been on a Super Sport bike ever.

 

[Detrich]

I've heard different things. I have 2 friends who both ride R1's, but they use it for commuting mostly. And, they both mentioned loving the R1's power but sometimes missing the light weight of the R6.

I've never tried an R1, but my guess is it's got the low end torque that the R6 lacks. And, that makes it easier to ride. With the R6, you always have to keep it in high rev, which i can see getting tiring if your commuting. At high revs the frame also vibrates more, which I'm sure is fine on the track, but again not ideal for commuting.

For those of us used to 475 lb weight of the 6R, I'm guessing the 450 lb weight of the R1 is no big deal. And, if anything it would make the R1 seem like the natural place to go.

Just my guess...

 

[miketriebsch]

Your making me want a 1000. Lol

 

[Fizzer6R]

Your making me want a 1000. Lol

dude you gotta get one! - power wheelies in 3rd gear :rockon:

in response to the too much power for the street; to me it just makes it that much easier to ride not having to change gears so much, so you can concentrate on other things, like corner entry, braking, hitting the apex etc...

my only major gripe about liter bikes is the slow turn in from the big 190 tire, 180 feels a lot better w/quicker turns

 

[swatguy]

Yea the R1 is wicked. I was torn between heading to the R1or the R6. What did it fir me was maintenance. The R1 will be double from what I could gather as it eats up tires chains and sprockets much quicker.


On a side note ever take his Stryker out? I almost picked that up as it was a sharp bike, just wasn't ready to jump to a cruiser just yet, nut curious on input if u had a chance to ride it. I just couldn't pass up the R6 tho.

 

[Nastybutler]

With the R6, you always have to keep it in high rev, which i can see getting tiring if your commuting. At high revs the frame also vibrates more, which I'm sure is fine on the track, but again not ideal for commuting.

That's the big knock on the R6 as anything other than a track bike. It's also one of the reasons the Daytona 675, GXR and CBR beat it in the shootouts year after year. No one wants to run it in the higher RPMs all the time, but if you don't, you're not getting what you paid for. It's the reason I personally would never consider an R6. I don't have access to a track and need a more usable power band.

 

[Detrich]

^ yep. all the power on the R6 starts at 8k rpm. the engine just wakes up at 8k and starts making a sweet howling sound. u never even need to look at the tach to know when you're within range cuz u hear it and also feel it (vibrations). lucky for me, i only ride weekends. but, i could see it being a difficult bike to commute with.

 

[danieljardim]

The big thing for me though with that bike is that I much more prefer the seat on it.... It's got a nice wide comfortable seat and after my 20 minute ride on it I found it still enjoyable to sit on, not uncomfortable at all. Though I wish it had some air that was able to get around that seat though, my nuts were getting cooked with the amount of heat it drops on the rider. It has a temp reading on it and when I came up to a light I saw it hit 230 for a little bit and then it started to drop back down.

I would love for them to make with a little smaller engine like an 800 or even a 600 because the 600 bikes are just way too small for me. That's why I got my Vulcan 900, it was small in CC but not small in frame. On all the other smaller bikes I was hitting my knees with the bars or just felt cramped. I don't fit on those little bikes.

That's why I'm going between the fz1 and ninja 1k as it's a full size bike with plenty of power but they have the fairings and so on that I like and the right size bike with the right size seat for my butt. The 6r just has way too small of a seat. (btw, if I get a fz1 i'm also ordering the side fairings for it the same week. I can't go without those, not for the commuting that I like to do.

If the R1 didn't dump loads of heat on the rider like it does I would probably be seriously considering it as it was actually the most comfortable I've ever been on a Super Sport bike ever.

How big are you? I'm 6'1" 350 lbs. I do look like a circus bear on a little motorcycle but, I feel very confortable when riding my fz6r

 

[Uno979]

I've heard different things. I have 2 friends who both ride R1's, but they use it for commuting mostly. And, they both mentioned loving the R1's power but sometimes missing the light weight of the R6.

I've never tried an R1, but my guess is it's got the low end torque that the R6 lacks. And, that makes it easier to ride. With the R6, you always have to keep it in high rev, which i can see getting tiring if your commuting. At high revs the frame also vibrates more, which I'm sure is fine on the track, but again not ideal for commuting.

For those of us used to 475 lb weight of the 6R, I'm guessing the 450 lb weight of the R1 is no big deal. And, if anything it would make the R1 seem like the natural place to go.

Just my guess...

TBH the weight is unrecognizable. To me the R6 seems heavier up top and the R1's weight is a lower center of gravity. very noticeable difference coming off a 675R to an R6 to an R1 over am afternoon. That was crazy to see how they different they all were. I hated the R6 but that is my opinion. the 675R was heavier but not as much as our bikes and the R1 was a wet dream..

Oh the R1 I rode is a 2012 model with the trac-control.. That made it even more fun!

 

[RoadTrip]

The 1000 vs 600 debate will always continue, however I will likely move to a liter on my next bike. A 600 has plenty of power, and I have yet to really live above 10K on any regular basis, so I am not really using all the power I have now. However, like the comments on the R6, above 10K (on the gixxer as well), it becomes a frenetic experience with heavy engine braking and snatchy throttle response, you have to be very smooth and focused when riding in this part of the powerband (mistakes are ammmmplified). On a liter, I suspect, you can kind of pick any gear at any RPM and find all the power you need/want at much lower RPMs; e.g. you could just leave it in 5-6th gear and have no reason to ever down shift, and like the other poster said, you can simply focus on cornering lines and other aspects of your riding.

On the gixsix I am finding that 5-6th is just a bit weak at sane street speeds, and am now starting to explore 4th gear for backroad twisty action, but it gets real racey and puts you on edge a bit, cause you are above 10K RPM a good part of the time, and the power is kind of explosive.

 

[WhiteFZ]

IMO, if you are gonna commute on a SS, a liter bike is the way to go. RPM's are calmer on the highway, and torque is good. I love love love commuting on my decade old liter bike, when I hop on my wife's FZ6R, I just go so slow because I can't take the 7000-8000 cruising rpms.

 

[Marthy]

Agree with that. My 6R has plenty of power to get me in trouble but not enough to get too stupid. Good thing for me... The only thing is cruising at 7-8K get old sometime and that would be the only reason why I will most than likely hop on a liter bike in the future.

 

[MustGoFaster]

The 1000 vs 600 debate will always continue, however I will likely move to a liter on my next bike. A 600 has plenty of power, and I have yet to really live above 10K on any regular basis, so I am not really using all the power I have now. However, like the comments on the R6, above 10K (on the gixxer as well), it becomes a frenetic experience with heavy engine braking and snatchy throttle response, you have to be very smooth and focused when riding in this part of the powerband (mistakes are ammmmplified). On a liter, I suspect, you can kind of pick any gear at any RPM and find all the power you need/want at much lower RPMs; e.g. you could just leave it in 5-6th gear and have no reason to ever down shift, and like the other poster said, you can simply focus on cornering lines and other aspects of your riding.

On the gixsix I am finding that 5-6th is just a bit weak at sane street speeds, and am now starting to explore 4th gear for backroad twisty action, but it gets real racey and puts you on edge a bit, cause you are above 10K RPM a good part of the time, and the power is kind of explosive.

Hmmmm... Some very interesting opinions here. Wish I had the chance to ride a liter. I went with the FZ6R because my only riding experience was on an 85 Honda Shadow (500), so I figured jumping anything higher might end poorly. :zombie: At the time I bought it, Hayabusa's were on sale, too. (Which has been my dream bike for some time.) Prolly would be dead by now had I gone that route, heh. (check my forum name for more information on my need to zoom)

Our bikes are often referred to as "for beginners", but I think they make excellent intermediate bikes as well. There's *plenty* of power there, and they can fly through traffic or canyons well enough. 2 up riding could be better. My wife's pretty light, but I still feel her being there sucking up power.

Mebbe one day I'll get to test-ride something bigger... :drool:

 

[KeysRider3]

Glad you had the chance to get on the R1. The rider heat problem has been an issue for quite a few years, but Yamaha's not changed anything. I love the way the bike looks, and the cross-plane engine, but that much engine/exhaust heat on the underside, and South Florida Sun on the topside would make riding more than a little uncomfortable.