I have a confession to make: I’m lusting after a bigger bike.
My wife and I bought our first bike late last year – an '83 Honda Nighthawk 450. It has served us well, with its primary use being for me to commute back and forth between home and the train station every day. It has experienced a little bit of recreational riding as well, although not a ton. We both have our licenses, but there’s just the one bike in the house. It has been a wonderful bike to learn on. It’s light and fairly nimble, and certainly not overpowered.
This past weekend, I had occasion to visit a friend in Maryland. Not only did I come back with my first tattoo (because I’m just that much of a badass), but I got a chance to ride her bike – an '07 Kawasaki Vulcan Mean Streak. There was a moment when I first got on it that I thought I wouldn’t be able to handle that much power (I believe it’s about a 1550cc), but after riding it a few times, including having my first two-up ride ever, I really got comfortable with it and enjoyed it immensely. Of course, now that I’ve come home, our bike feels small and wimpy.
Personally, even if I had the money to go out and buy a new bike today, I don’t know what I’d get. Despite the fun I had on my friend’s bike, I don’t know that I’d choose a true cruiser like that. My biggest complaint is that I really didn’t like the extreme (to me) forward positioning of the foot pegs/brake/gear shift. Another friend is planning to loan us his '98 Kawasaki Concours so that the three of us can ride together and so that I can get another shot at a bigger bike. We’ll see what I think of the sport touring style.
Now I’m usually fairly realistic, so I admit up front that we’re not about to get another bike in the house. It’s just not financially feasible right now, and certainly isn’t necessary as we have plenty of other transportation options. But there’s no law against day-dreaming, and I figured I’d help fuel that by asking you guys what you moved on to when you upgraded from you first bike.
Kawasaki Vulcan 900 Custom, after moving on from a Suzuki 250GZ. The 250 was a great bike to learn on, but couldn’t keep up on freeways, plus it looked small.
But the 900 Customer has a much larger engine and a “big bike” look that looks totally badass imo. Couldn’t be happier with it.
My second was still a learner bike, and so was my third (Honda CB125J->Honda CB250K4->Suzuki GSX250), dictated by what I could afford at the time. Once I had the money and the licence, I upgraded to a BMW R65 (650cc flat-twin) as a good practical roadster. It was not too expensive to run and could crack 100mph with a bit to spare, and I liked the build quality and appearance. They long since stopped making them, though.
I still own my second motorcycle, a Kawasaki Concours. I think that if you have enough experience a bike that size will not be hard to ride, but the bitch is heavy and prone to falling over. I’ve owned mine for eight years now and over 100k and I dropped it last weekend.
You have to remember though that the actuall CCs means little, you wouldn’t want a 1400cc sport bike, while a 1500 cruiser probably will not get away from you. The Connie might be enough to get away from you at first, but it only took me a few days to get used to it.
I’m starting to think about my third bike now. After dropping the Connie and breaking the plastic I think it might be time. I’m planning on fixing it up and deciding from there. I’m thinking on going for a V-Strom.
My first ‘bike’ was a Taco 44 minibike. The second one was a Bonanza minibike. My first motorcycle was a Yamaha LT2 100 Enduro. It was going to be an 80cc, but the 80s were smaller than dad’s well-used '64 Yamaha 80 I learned on. The 100 was too big for me, but I quickly grew into it. My second motorcycle was a Yamaha DT1 250 Enduro.
#3 was a '79 Honda CX500 I bought from a coworker for a dollar. Then a new '94 Yamaha XJ600 Seca II that I still own, and a new '02 Yamaha YZF-R1 1000cc. Funny that for someone who’s been riding for so long I’ve only had five motorcycles. But I tend to hold onto them for a while.
My first bike was a '75 Suzuki Titan. An old, big-bore 500cc two stroke. I converted it into a cafe racer. Definitely not a beginner bike and was(is) quite a handful to handle. Its fast, heavy and has DRUM brakes front and rear. It was not the bike that I learned to RIDE on, that was my girlfriend’s (now wife) '87 Honda VTR250 Interceptor.
My second (and current) bike is a Honda CBR-600F4i. I also race a Suzuki SV650R. My wife and I switch bikes all of the time and her second was a SV-650S. She sold it to buy the racebike and now owns a souped up Kawasaki Ninja 250 with engine and suspension upgrades. I’ve taken that bike out on the track and can easily keep up with much bigger bikes, it’s a blast!
My first bike was a Suzuki GS450 (I think I have the nomenclature right - it’s been a while…). It was a good learner’s bike, but I couldn’t get it past 50 on a freeway hill, so I needed an upgrade.
Second bike was a 1984 Kawasaki KZ-700. My goodness, what a bike that was. Fast, great handling, and loads of fun. Chain drive, as well.
I haven’t made it to my second bike yet, but I do have my first on the market now as my wife wants me to get something bigger to help her comfort when she rides with me.
I have a 2005 Yamaha V-Star 1100 Silverado. To make her happy, I’ll probably be looking at something like the Royal Star Venture or a Honda Goldwing when we get serious about making the switch.
I almost went with a smaller bike when I bought my V-Star, but I had some friends who encouraged me to go for the 1100 as my starter bike. I’m really glad I did, because the additional power has been nice.
I had a KZ1000, which went bye-bye because I worked too much to ride/enjoy it.
Last year I picked up a new '07 KLR650 in Aztec Red, just to see if I still wanted to ride.
What a hoot this thing is! Because it’s a dual sport, it doesn’t do either road or off-road exceedingly well, but the thing is a tank, and it hauls me about at WAY better gas mileage than my 5.9L Dodge truck, so win-win
Still though, I think my next bike will be bigger; Either a BMW GS1200 Adventure or a Honda VTX 1800. They’re two different bikes to be sure, but I’m thinking I could get into either pretty well (or both if I feel like it). I like the multi-season part of the BMW and I’d love a cruiser, but there’s no way in hell I’m overpaying for the HD tag.
At the time, I moved back to Los Angeles, and didn’t feel safe riding on the Los Angeles freeway system. I know lots of people do it, but I didn’t feel safe, and that decided it for me.
Why not now? I remarried 6 years ago and that’s a non-negotiable with my wife. No bikes. It’s only fair because I have a few non-negotiable items with her as well.
My first bike was the Yamaha Fazer. That was back in the late 80’s. I fell in love with that bike,but sold it.
My second bike is the exact same yr and model. A good one came up for sale like 4yrs ago and it’s still running strong.
Yes, it’s very top heavy. It has a 7.5 gallon tank and when it’s full it’s very heavy. I got used to it, but I’ve dropped it a time or two. The worst is that the pegs tend to break and the plastic does as well. I have to go out tonight and pick up some bond to fix what I broke this past weekend. I like the bike, but there are those kinds of things to worry about. I knew about them when I bought the bike though. I’m less then 5k from putting 100k on the bike personally and I want to make the 100k. Otherwise I think I would be getting rid of it now.
My first bike was the same as yours, except I’m not sure what year. I bought it used/non running off a friend and got it fixed up cheaply to see if I’d like riding. That was '87.
In '91 I decided to upgrade and bought a Honda Hawk GT 650. Awesome bike, very small and light with great gas mileage and great styling.
In '97 I moved to Cali and left my baby behind, intending to buy a new bike out here. I wound up with a CBR 600 F3, my first true sport bike. I loved that bike a lot, but decided I need to upgrade to something more “touring-y”.
Last summer I bought a used 04 Honda VFR 800 with the hardbags for touring. Still sporty enough to occaisionally head up to the Crest, but I added a trunk and took it up to Yellowstone this past summer. 7 Days on the road and best trip of my life. Awesome bike.
Does ancient history count? My first motorcycle (if it counts) was a Yamaha Riva 125. One those Tupperware scooters that were the thing in the mid 80s. After 9mos riding experience, I bought a 78 Honda Nighthawk 650 from a guy at work. I was still in High School. But I passed the test on the Riva, so I had a ‘motorcycle’ endorsement. It’s a wonder I lived.
I had mine for about two years, and I don’t think I ever saw the engine.
Ironically, I had my worst accident, and shattered my elbow on the Riva, not the Nighthawk (which I had sold to a friend on a handshake and was never paid for.).
