Never owned a sportsbike.

[Gee68]

Following on from the naughty noughtie thread I’ve never,at the grand old age of 52 ever owned what would be considered aa a sports bike.
Bit of background first,when I was younger I couldn’t afford one,then came marriage and kids and a very long break from on road bikes.
Now I can afford one but bad back and other injuries puts me off.
I’m determined not to pop off without owning one so what are my options without crippling myself further.

I’m pretty sure the overwhelming answer is going to be Fireblade but I’m open to options.
Ideally something I can ride for an hour in some sort of comfort.

Budget,up to £5000.

[Kawasicki]

I’m not much younger than you. Last year I bought a Ducati 999. I ride it regularly, it’s fairly comfy... but compared to modern bikes it’s tricky to ride. Mess up a downshift and the rear wheel partially locks, which is interesting.

My advice...get the newest you can afford.

[Ilikemotorbikes]

Your height, weight, body shape (torso/leg length), flexibility and ability to take punishment, i.e. discomfort will all come into play.

Some older bikes such as 90s and 00s bikes tend to be a bit roomier. A 4xv R1 was pretty comfy for me and very roomy for a sportsbike really.

My current Aprilia RSVR 1000 is a torture chamber in comparison! It hurts my neck and I'm 28 and can take a bit of crippling..

Haven't ridden them but heard good things about both the 954 fireblade and GSXR1000 K5 for general roominess and comfort for a sports bike.

You could fit vario bars and rearsets to allow you to get more comfortable too.

[Stone Cold]

I’m 58 and 6’ 2” and I’ve been lucky enough to have had R1’s, an S1000RR and a few GSXR1000’s over the last 15 years and Ive always found the GSXR’s the most comfy, this summer I bought a GSXR1000R and for me it’s the best sportsbike I’ve owned and the newest, but in my experience you need to try them as they do vary a lot

[Gee68]

Sorry should have added that I’m 6ft,fairly fit,just a dodgy back.
In an ideal world,if I had to choose,it would be an early red and white R1or a fireblade,got to admit though that I hadn’t given the gixxer much thought.

[Triaguar]

This I am 52 am I too old for a sports bike is just a mind set. I am 64 I ride my Fireblade all over the country. I do a three week 9 hour day spanish tour every year... and believe me we really do not hang about. My riding mates are 66, 69 and 70 all on BMW 1000rr.

Just get one and stop messing about.

ENJOY!!

[Gee68]

Triaguar said:

This I am 52 am I too old for a sports bike is just a mind set. I am 64 I ride my Fireblade all over the country. I do a three week 9 hour day spanish tour every year... and believe me we really do not hang about. My riding mates are 66, 69 and 70 all on BMW 1000rr.

Just get one and stop messing about.

ENJOY!!

I’d love too but I really can only manage about an hour before I have to get off and stretch.

[Gee68]

Triaguar said:

This I am 52 am I too old for a sports bike is just a mind set. I am 64 I ride my Fireblade all over the country. I do a three week 9 hour day spanish tour every year... and believe me we really do not hang about. My riding mates are 66, 69 and 70 all on BMW 1000rr.

Just get one and stop messing about.

ENJOY!!

I had our best customer come into our warehouse a few weeks back,he’s 80 odd,big bike man.
He’s always had Fireblades,his latest being a 2017 SP but he couldn’t get on with it,said the riding position was to track oriented.
Made me feel like a proper soft lad.

[stang65]

Gee68 said:

In an ideal world,if I had to choose,it would be an early red and white R1or a fireblade.

Then get one of those then! If you buy something you really want you'll forgive it more. Will it be your only bike?

I have another bike but about 6 years ago I bought a Ducati 851. They're really uncomfortable, I'm too big at 6ft2, I have a dodgy back, they are quite hard to ride etc. etc. Basically, it was a stupid bike to buy. I loved it, I could ride about an hour before having to stop (I'd say uncomfortable after 30-40 minutes). But, it made me smile every time I rode it, looked amazing and ticked the Ducati thing off the bucket list. I sold it a couple of years ago as they don't like lack of use and circumstances meant I'd only done about 1,000 miles in 4 years. Now looking to buy something sporty and '90s but probably Japanese so it's lower maintenance.

[trickywoo]

The first version of the S1000RR was comfortable for me. Might have to stretch the budget a bit.

I reckon you’d find an early R1 a bit too uncompromising but I’ve not ridden one just seen how people look on them.

If you have the luxury of being able to go fast most of the time nearly every sports bike will feel ok, it’s having to go less than say 50 mph where they can start to hurt in my experience.

[Gee68]

stang65 said:

Then get one of those then! If you buy something you really want you'll forgive it more. Will it be your only bike?

I have another bike but about 6 years ago I bought a Ducati 851. They're really uncomfortable, I'm too big at 6ft2, I have a dodgy back, they are quite hard to ride etc. etc. Basically, it was a stupid bike to buy. I loved it, I could ride about an hour before having to stop (I'd say uncomfortable after 30-40 minutes). But, it made me smile every time I rode it, looked amazing and ticked the Ducati thing off the bucket list. I sold it a couple of years ago as they don't like lack of use and circumstances meant I'd only done about 1,000 miles in 4 years. Now looking to buy something sporty and '90s but probably Japanese so it's lower maintenance.

This all day long.
I love the looks of the old R1,it’s just one of those bikes I could just sit in my garage and look at,pretty gutting if I can’t get a couple miles down the road on though.
I suppose I’ve answered my own question really,never going to lose any money and what’s a bit of discomfort now and again.

[Gee68]

trickywoo said:

The first version of the S1000RR was comfortable for me. Might have to stretch the budget a bit.

I reckon you’d find an early R1 a bit too uncompromising but I’ve not ridden one just seen how people look on them.

If you have the luxury of being able to go fast most of the time nearly every sports bike will feel ok, it’s having to go less than say 50 mph where they can start to hurt in my experience.

I do like he BM and supposedly for a sports bike they’re meant to be comfy.
I think the reason I haven’t really looked into them is all the horror stories you read on here about getting rid of BMW’s as soon as the three year warranties up.

[kingb]

My KTM RC8 is very adjustable - raise the subframe, drop the pegs - I’m 6,4 but find it’s comfy for me.

Might not do much for you with the looks and the v-twin motor. I’m also guilty of recommending my own bike!

But they are good and 5k will get you a nice early bike. Mine was that money with 5k miles.

Worth a look

[Gee68]

Not given the KTM any thought at all,good shout.

However,after crawling out of bed on my hands and knees this morning due to back pain maybe I’m just kidding myself.

[Dr Jekyll]

I have to stop after an hour to stretch my legs, and I ride a GS1200. Sports bikes are definitely not for me.

[Rushjob]

Kawasicki said:

I’m not much younger than you. Last year I bought a Ducati 999. I ride it regularly, it’s fairly comfy... but compared to modern bikes it’s tricky to ride. Mess up a downshift and the rear wheel partially locks, which is interesting.

My advice...get the newest you can afford.

Fit a slipper.....

[Triaguar]

Gee68 said:

Triaguar said:

This I am 52 am I too old for a sports bike is just a mind set. I am 64 I ride my Fireblade all over the country. I do a three week 9 hour day spanish tour every year... and believe me we really do not hang about. My riding mates are 66, 69 and 70 all on BMW 1000rr.

Just get one and stop messing about.

ENJOY!!

I’d love too but I really can only manage about an hour before I have to get off and stretch.

In all seriousness that is what would happen. But next time it would be 1 hour 30 minutes then 2 hours etc etc. Regular use makes your body fit the bike. It will be a couple of months now before mine comes out again and the first few trips out will be a little uncomfortable but then muscle memory kicks in and off we go again. I just adore sports bikes and as my mentality is now if I had to stop on those I think that would be me finished with motorbikes. The KTM option is a good call the most comfortable sports bike I have ever been on, just not a fan of twins. Go and find one see what you think. At your budget if it goes wrong sell it and lose a few hundred quid. Whats not to like. Hope you get sorted

[Esceptico]

I’ve found that if bikes are uncomfortable I just need to get out on them more. Also there may be exercises you could do to strengthen your back. I’m older than you and have been doing 7 to 8 hour rides recently - okay I currently have a Tuono but that only replaced a GSXR 750 a few months back and I’ve got the Tuono because it is simply a better road bike than the RSV4 (and much better value).

[jjones]

gsxr1000 k1/k2/k3/k4 are really roomy but a bit down on power compared to more modern stuff.

[trickywoo]

jjones said:

gsxr1000 k1/k2/k3/k4 are really roomy but a bit down on power compared to more modern stuff.

Yeah. Those early k series 1000s are dog slow.