I was anticipating a good tax return and being able to get a bike again. My riding style pointed me towards a sport tourer: I liked to take six hour rides, but I liked to play in the corners. A decent rear seat and lower rear pegs were also important, since I'd be putting my 11 year old son there a lot.
Weight wise, I'm pretty light at about 5'9" and 140lbs. I feel I need to be able to put my feet on the ground and back a bike when necessary. I also like to shift, because I like the interaction with the machine. So I didn't want something that would wind to 70mph in first gear. I know I tend to push a little beyond my actual riding ability, sometimes. A big bike would make that rather nasty habit all the more dangerous. So I figured I wanted something around the 600cc range.
Now I'm looking for a middleweight sport tourer. I was sick and tired of the carbs on my '82 CB900F. I wanted fuel injection. At about this time in my decision process, I figured my budget to be about 5k.
So. I wanted a relatively late model, 600cc sport tourer for under 5k. I just spent years with a "quirky" bike with personality. I was seriously tired of spending my riding time working on a bike, and having to trailer it home when I did get to take it out. I also wanted to be able to commute with my new bike. I wanted bullet-proof reliability.
Of the major manufacturers, only the Yamaha FZ6R, Kawasaki Ninja 650R and Suzuki GSX650F seemed to fit my criteria.
After tons of research, everything I read had the FZ6R coming out on top. When I got my refund, I started looking in earnest for an FZ6R. I loved the copper/black but couldn't get one in my price range. I found a yellow, a blue and a black. All used, so within my budget. All were within a few hours driving. I said I'd never own a yellow vehicle, but the more I looked at the other colors, the more the yellow bike called out to me. Plus it only had 1433 miles on it, and had been kept in climate-controlled storage.
So I got a ride up to Charlotte, NC, test drove it, fell in love with it and bought it. Then I rode it home. I'm always going to want bigger, better, faster. But I have not one regret purchasing this bike. It is perfect for me.
Weight wise, I'm pretty light at about 5'9" and 140lbs. I feel I need to be able to put my feet on the ground and back a bike when necessary. I also like to shift, because I like the interaction with the machine. So I didn't want something that would wind to 70mph in first gear. I know I tend to push a little beyond my actual riding ability, sometimes. A big bike would make that rather nasty habit all the more dangerous. So I figured I wanted something around the 600cc range.
Now I'm looking for a middleweight sport tourer. I was sick and tired of the carbs on my '82 CB900F. I wanted fuel injection. At about this time in my decision process, I figured my budget to be about 5k.
So. I wanted a relatively late model, 600cc sport tourer for under 5k. I just spent years with a "quirky" bike with personality. I was seriously tired of spending my riding time working on a bike, and having to trailer it home when I did get to take it out. I also wanted to be able to commute with my new bike. I wanted bullet-proof reliability.
Of the major manufacturers, only the Yamaha FZ6R, Kawasaki Ninja 650R and Suzuki GSX650F seemed to fit my criteria.
After tons of research, everything I read had the FZ6R coming out on top. When I got my refund, I started looking in earnest for an FZ6R. I loved the copper/black but couldn't get one in my price range. I found a yellow, a blue and a black. All used, so within my budget. All were within a few hours driving. I said I'd never own a yellow vehicle, but the more I looked at the other colors, the more the yellow bike called out to me. Plus it only had 1433 miles on it, and had been kept in climate-controlled storage.
So I got a ride up to Charlotte, NC, test drove it, fell in love with it and bought it. Then I rode it home. I'm always going to want bigger, better, faster. But I have not one regret purchasing this bike. It is perfect for me.