Other riders on High end bikes

[Rich007]

Went for a 450 mile ride into the mountain yesterday and the best mountain roads I have ever been on that are too remote for the police or any other law enforcement to patrol. Best ride ever with some really good riders with a ton of turns that were low speed and high speed.
I hooked with with these other riders that I have never ridden with and they all had high end racer bikes. 2 of them were on really nice CRR 600's another guy was on a new CRB1000, there was also a really nice R6, R1 and a Ducati.

I am not a great rider by any means and spent the amount of money on a bike that I though matched my ability to ride so I ended up on my not so fancy 6R. I could have bought a new R6 or a new decked out CBR600 or even an R1. At the end of the day I really have nothing to prove to anyone so I stuck with the 6R. All or these guys that I rode with but the guy on the Ducati and the R1 I was faster on every corner. The guy on the CBR1000 even asked if he was going too slow and allowed me to pass him into the number 5 spot. A few turns later I was allowed to pass into the 4, then the 3 position is were I was comfortable behind the R1 and Ducati. Now these guys were walking away from me and we had a blast leaving the other riders in the dust. My bike may not have kept up in the straight but the corners were a different story. And again I am not a greatest rider at all, I ride to have fun.

So what I am getting at is these other guys that I walked away from spent too much money on the bike and gear to look pretty on there bikes with no ability to ride. I have never seen such a beautiful bunch of bikes in such an awesome place to ride as this with such lack of ability. I just want to ask, "what in the hell were you thinking"? Unfortuatly I didn't get htat chance because it would have been considered inappropriate.

Sorry, just had to vent that one out and I think I may just out grow this 6R by next year.

 

[bastage]

lol.. I was in the opposite spot a couple weeks ago.. 11 bikes in total on about a 150 mile mountain loop. The only other bike in the 600 range was a 2003 Kawasaki ZX6R 636 & everyone else was on liter bikes. I got left way behind everywhere due to my lack of cornering ability.. reading up on "twist of the wrist" now to see if I can learn anything since all my previous riding was city commuting & off road.

 

[JonKerr]

Yes, i tend to walk away from guys who are lesser riders on more expensive bikes. But theres no reason for them to not have those bikes if thats what they wanted to buy. No i dont think a brand new rider should be on an r1. But no reason for them to not be on an r6 or cbr600. If i didnt have such a royally screwed up neck, i would have started on a supersport for sure. They were riding at their pace instead of over their head which is very easy to do on those bikes. If anything id commend them for being able to do that and control themselves. If they want to spend their money on those bikes more power to them. I only have a problem when guys spent that much money on a bike like that and THINK they're better riders than they are and do stupid things on the road. But it sounds like the guys you were with had a level head and knew their limits and stayed within them. I've ridden with guys who look at my bike sideways like there's no way I'll keep up with them, and they would never just let me by like they did for you. I had to either stop and build a gap to prove my point or pass them on a straight if they weren't on the throttle. Needless to say, I don't ride with those guys anymore. If people only bought the bikes that matched their riding level, only pro racers would ever buy bikes like the R1. No weekend canyon rider could ever push a bike like that to it's limits, especially not on the street. Or they'd be the ones out there on the AMA grid making money racing.

Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Rich007]

There was another guy in the group on a 03 Ninja 500 with old 2006 tires that were fairly old looking, he couldn't do much more on that then go in a straight line, he said it felt loos in the corner.

I didn't even realize we had such great roads in Washington state till yesterday, the Dragon has nothing on these roads. Next time I go I'll have a new GoPro 3 and take some video and post it. I'll be a video whore with a GoPro.

 

[Alex6]

Wrong crowd? or work in progress?
Every time I had a chance to ride with the members of my local forum I am reminded of the significant gap in our riding abilities. I can see how the years of riding the track benefit these riders in every aspect of the street riding and the progress they made. And most of them use the SS on the street. The also started on SS as well, just old and beaten up, but that was mostly due to the financial reasons.

 

[crobih]

There was another guy in the group on a 03 Ninja 500 with old 2006 tires that were fairly old looking, he couldn't do much more on that then go in a straight line, he said it felt loos in the corner.

I didn't even realize we had such great roads in Washington state till yesterday, the Dragon has nothing on these roads. Next time I go I'll have a new GoPro 3 and take some video and post it. I'll be a video whore with a GoPro.

Which road u take? Mt rainier is a twistie heaven as well as st. Helens. *** hurts at the end of the day but its some of the best roads.If u want to hit som e twisties and practice , the mercer island loop is close by and has nice twisties to develop a decent skill
And the 6r can keeep up with the best of them on twisties its just that eventually if u get into the biker lifestyle and you are younger you will see a crapload of ss bikes and going to any function your bike will be solo and u will outgrow it . I put 15 k miles on my 6r and I live in king county and It was done in less then a year. But everyone I rode with had ss and going to bike events I had to keeep up and was pushing the 6r hard, but I bought it because it was my first bike and I wanted to learn.honestly the r1 in twisties feels like a 6r. I'm even getting ballsier because of the tc. As far as ss riders go, I think half really enjoy it for the riding the other half would rather ride to "alki" and park their shiny bike.

 

[MistahT]

I'm doing more and more group riding these days, I'm seeing skill levels not matched to bike levels. Some people want a big bike for the power, look, sound, or reputation. Fine for them. If I had the $$ I'd probably be on a bigger bike too, and my skills definitely don't call for a bigger bike yet.

When the roads are open I can go pretty quickly. When we get into some backroads with heavy trees and I can't even see to the apex of my next turn, I slow down and don't take the chance. In the groups I ride with, I'm usually one of the fastest, but those types of roads usually land me almost dead last. Overly cautious? Probably. But everyone rides where they're comfortable. Maybe those SS guys just weren't as comfortable on those roads or with their bikes.

 

[jearnshaw]

Yes, i tend to walk away from guys who are lesser riders on more expensive bikes. But theres no reason for them to not have those bikes if thats what they wanted to buy. No i dont think a brand new rider should be on an r1. But no reason for them to not be on an r6 or cbr600. If i didnt have such a royally screwed up neck, i would have started on a supersport for sure. They were riding at their pace instead of over their head which is very easy to do on those bikes. If anything id commend them for being able to do that and control themselves. If they want to spend their money on those bikes more power to them. I only have a problem when guys spent that much money on a bike like that and THINK they're better riders than they are and do stupid things on the road. But it sounds like the guys you were with had a level head and knew their limits and stayed within them. I've ridden with guys who look at my bike sideways like there's no way I'll keep up with them, and they would never just let me by like they did for you. I had to either stop and build a gap to prove my point or pass them on a straight if they weren't on the throttle. Needless to say, I don't ride with those guys anymore. If people only bought the bikes that matched their riding level, only pro racers would ever buy bikes like the R1. No weekend canyon rider could ever push a bike like that to it's limits, especially not on the street. Or they'd be the ones out there on the AMA grid making money racing.

Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2

I am right there with you, I have 2 possibly 3 discs in my neck that will be needing attention in the future. If it wasn't for that I would be on a ss tomorrow, I know I personaly could never take a ss to its fullest but my commute home would be more interesting.

 

[Fizzer6R]

a very fast friend once told me, it's a lot more fun to ride a slow bike fast, than it is a fast bike slow

long as they aren't a-holes, just accept ppl for who they are and respect what they ride. they picked their bike for them, just like you did.

how many times do you see very fast cars just putting along the roads...

 

[Rich007]

a very fast friend once told me, it's a lot more fun to ride a slow bike fast, than it is a fast bike slow

long as they aren't a-holes, just accept ppl for who they are and respect what they ride. they picked their bike for them, just like you did.

how many times do you see very fast cars just putting along the roads...

That a good quote. I had a have a blast revving the crap out of my 6R trying to keep up with faster bikes. I couldn't even count how many times I redline shifted my bike yesterday trying to keep up with the guy on the CBR1000, he was surprised I caught him in the corners and was hugging his back tire.

 

[RoadTrip]

That a good quote. I had a have a blast revving the crap out of my 6R trying to keep up with faster bikes. I couldn't even count how many times I redline shifted my bike yesterday trying to keep up with the guy on the CBR1000, he was surprised I caught him in the corners and was hugging his back tire.

Well, sounds like your doing well on the 6R, and I can identify with your competetive impulse, the same thing has happened to me when I have encountered other SS's out there. But, in the end safety comes first, and if you start feeling uncomfortable, that's your survival system telling you to back down a bit. In the end there will always be faster riders than you and I, its fun to challenge them, but let them win if gets too far outside your comfort zone, that's how you get home alive.

 

[Grumpy]

I just tell people.. "I'm old and slow but the bike is fast."

 

[abyss1406]

I like the painted picture you gave us to imagine, but how about some pictures please! other than that, the 6r is more than capable of handling anything

 

[Pinarello Rider]

I find the premise of the thread to be disconcerting. A rider is criticizing the rides of other bikers because they spent more than their ability. Really? They don't deserve fast bikes because they don't ride them fast enough? Seriouly? If that's the case, lets ban everything but the Cavaliers and the Camrys OR we can stone everyone in a fastish car.

Come one guys. There could be any number of reasons why they were riding that pace OTHER than because their pockets were deeper than the ability on display that day.

 

[abyss1406]

I find the premise of the thread to be disconcerting. A rider is criticizing the rides of other bikers because they spent more than their ability. Really? They don't deserve fast bikes because they don't ride them fast enough? Seriouly? If that's the case, lets ban everything but the Cavaliers and the Camrys OR we can stone everyone in a fastish car.

Come one guys. There could be any number of reasons why they were riding that pace OTHER than because their pockets were deeper than the ability on display that day.

I think the OP was just suprised the 6r did well thats all. kinda like finding a ten dollar bill in your pocket, didnt know it was there, just added to the experience

 

[Grumpy]

I can see where the OP sounds condescending too the other riders.
You can run into a pack of SS riders who aren't riding like it is the Isle of Man. Sometimes you will meet groups that are skilled but care to leave those for track days.

Ya, I don't ride my CBR into the ground, but I have no need to. Can I ride it fast, yes. Am I skilled, a bit. Do I need to flex my ability on the open road, no. I'm just enjoying the ride and the bike. Two each their own.

Cheers!

 

[Pinarello Rider]

So what I am getting at is these other guys that I walked away from spent too much money on the bike and gear to look pretty on there bikes with no ability to ride. I have never seen such a beautiful bunch of bikes in such an awesome place to ride as this with such lack of ability. I just want to ask, "what in the hell were you thinking"? Unfortuatly I didn't get htat chance because it would have been considered inappropriate.

Sorry, just had to vent that one out and I think I may just out grow this 6R by next year.

I think the OP was just suprised the 6r did well thats all. kinda like finding a ten dollar bill in your pocket, didnt know it was there, just added to the experience

Abyss - I'm not sure how you reached that conclusion with the paragraph I qouted. OP stated specifically what he was "getting at". I could be wrong, Lord knows it's happened before.

 

[Alex6]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rich007

So what I am getting at is these other guys that I walked away from spent too much money on the bike and gear to look pretty on there bikes with no ability to ride. I have never seen such a beautiful bunch of bikes in such an awesome place to ride as this with such lack of ability. I just want to ask, "what in the hell were you thinking"? Unfortuatly I didn't get htat chance because it would have been considered inappropriate.

Sorry, just had to vent that one out and I think I may just out grow this 6R by next year.

Quote:
Originally Posted by abyss1406
I think the OP was just suprised the 6r did well thats all. kinda like finding a ten dollar bill in your pocket, didnt know it was there, just added to the experience

Abyss - I'm not sure how you reached that conclusion with the paragraph I qouted. OP stated specifically what he was "getting at". I could be wrong, Lord knows it's happened before.

Abyss - I'm not sure how you reached that conclusion with the paragraph I qouted. OP stated specifically what he was "getting at". I could be wrong, Lord knows it's happened before.

I think you are absolutely right Pinarello Rider, the OP was going to become an a$$, but "didn't get that chance"...

 

[RoadTrip]

Well, we have a really special site here, where the members actually treat each other with respect. The OP may have come on a bit strong, but in some ways he may have a point concerning new riders on SS's, many new riders should have started on a less powerful bike but were too worried about their image.

If one of these new riders he encountered came on to this site before purchasing their first bike, and asked whether he should get a SS or FZ6R, pretty sure we would all tell him the wise choice would be the FZ6R, and could likely be the only bike he would ever need as well, which is kinda what the OP is saying.

I started on the FZ6R, and still regard it as 'plenty fast', in fact I don't ride all that much faster now than I did back on the FZ6R, and pretty sure JohnKerr could still whip me in corners on his 6R vs my gixxer. But, I wanted a SS since I was a kid, and I made the prudent choice and started on the FZ6R before jumping on a SS. In the end, though, this is America and if someone wants to start on a 600SS, its not so nuts after all; many people do it and go on to become competent riders, they just may look a little nooby stuggling on their new SS on their first trip into the mountains.

 

[Grumpy]

Tell ya what, regardless of what bike I'm on. If it was my first trip in the mountains, I'm going to learn that road before trying to be a hero.