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I don't know where you could ever ride one of these superbikes to "full potential" anyway, depending upon what is meant by that. Top speed? Acceleration? Cornering? Road Atlanta or Barber's maybe. Maybe not too many have even ridden their airhead to F.P. but to do so would, I think, be more in the realm of possibility for the vast majority of riders than on a liter superbike, like the S1000RR. It's not only the sheer capabilities of these things but, to me, the sheer speed at which (I can only imagine) things happen. Still, I'd like to at least try one in the proper venue sometime before I'm eating potroast through a straw.

A guy that used to work for me got back into motorcycling a few years ago and bought a new Suzuki 600 something or other. He hooked up with one of the sportbike clubs in Atlanta and, shortly after, proudly told me that he had traded the 600 on a new Hayabusa. At that, the alarms in my head started to go off but all I could really do was to tell him to wear the gear and ride safely. He wasn't just thinking about a new Hayabusa. He had actually bought it already. He was dead within two months. While exiting an interstate, he ran it off the road in a curve, slammed the guard rail with his chest, and was dead on the scene. That really hurt and I've wondered ever since if I should have done more because I had such a bad feeling when he bought that bike.

I've ridden some of the new liter bikes. They are safer than our old bikes. The newest ones, like the BMW have ABS, traction control, stability control and who knows what else. The racing bikes are competing more on electronic capability than engine and chassis design. They are making them idiot proof. Expect more idiots on motorcycles. But probably less mortality. Also expect to be recycling them way more often. Into the bin and buy a new one is the way of progress.

Zombie Master wrote:Into the bin and buy a new one is the way of progress.

I'll be waiting in the bin.

dougie wrote:

Zombie Master wrote:Into the bin and buy a new one is the way of progress.

I'll be waiting in the bin.

I've bin there.

justoneoftheguys wrote:In 1978 I bought a Yamaha XS750. That was the first time I tried 100 MPH. Very cool. Especially how quickly one passed the cars and how quickly they disappeared in the mirrors.

I doubt if I went more than 5 or 10 miles at that speed, though. I seem to attract cops like flies to shit.

That was the most powerful bike I've ever owned. I would take a FJ1100 in a heartbeat, just for the lovely styling.
KiO knows what I'm talking about.

I bought the last of that breed:

For clarification, I want to do 200 but would not do it where I thought it would be any risk to others. In addition, I would not do it where I thought it would be risky to me. I realize that part of what is attractive about speed is the dangerous aspect of it but I would want to live to bask in the after glow.

And 220? I have heard that that is much harder to achieve. It could be that I'd be addicted to it, but 200 seems like a good round number.

I have a saying I made up about vintage bikes: "Vintage, where the ton is still fun." On a modern bike, it feels like 60.

Chuey