A question for the Sportsbike owners.

Originally Posted by tricky

After hooning round Donnington on one of Ron Haslam's CBR600RR's yesterday, the lure of the darkside is getting ever stronger.

However, I have started to a bit of touring on the SV which I really enjoy and would like to be able to do this still on any future bike I purchase.

So has anyone done any serious touring on a sports bike ?

How much discomfort am I likely to be in after say 300 miles in one day ?

I am 5' 8" and I thought the riding position on the CBR600 was ok. (I was expecting it to be more extreme)

what about the CBR600F ?

No probs on the Trumpet

Originally Posted by tricky

After hooning round Donnington on one of Ron Haslam's CBR600RR's yesterday, the lure of the darkside is getting ever stronger.

However, I have started to a bit of touring on the SV which I really enjoy and would like to be able to do this still on any future bike I purchase.

So has anyone done any serious touring on a sports bike ?

How much discomfort am I likely to be in after say 300 miles in one day ?

I am 5' 8" and I thought the riding position on the CBR600 was ok. (I was expecting it to be more extreme)

I'm a couple of inches taller than you but have just done over 3000 miles in two weeks round Europe on an '04 spec R6.

The R6 in particular has a slightly more upright position than some supersports, and I think the SV (curvy, faired) I had before was actually a longer reach to the bars. On the other hand, the pegs are a good deal higher and I did suffer from aching knees on this trip, more so than when I took the bike (R6 again) to Morocco the year before.

All in all I find it pretty comfortable on long trips; you can back off the damping to soften the suspension a bit, and the extra weight of all the luggage (two full panniers, a tent across the pillion seat, and a tankbag) makes the ride much softer than an R6 you might try at a dealers or mates house. I've fitted a double-bubble screen but apart from that it's all standard.

Certainly it's do-able... but if you're prone to knee pain, or lower back pain, then you might find it quite hard work at first. The wrist pain issue isn't a problem when touring, as generally you're not working the levers constantly and the wind lifts you up a little and takes some of the weight.

[jambo]

Happy with my 2001 ZX6R, tank range is good (get 160+ miles to reserve as sooon as you get out of town) Riding position's ok for me (over 6ft) though a little more crampd than a tourer bike it suits me, think nothing of doing 200 miles in a day and would be quite happy putting more on but don't often have to, I use it for commuting in london 5 days a week.


In short diferent sports bikes are diferent, as are different riders, try a few and see what you think

I moved from a K4 GSXR 600 to a 2003 FireBlade because the Gixer was causing me a few problems with my back (I've suffered with back problems for a while and the GSXR just made it worse). The FireBlade has slightly lower pegs and the seat is further forward so you stretch less. I've done 13 hour (600 mile) days without a problem.

The seat's a bit hard though....

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