rnickymouse failure Mulholland fest

The bike won't respect you back. It will kick your ass.

I never ask it or expect it to. It's an inanimate thing. It only does what the rider tells it to. You respect the potential.

I agree, because I know how to ride. Some Greehorn kid won't know how to respect a liter bikes potential, and won't have the self control to not whack the throttle, and likely kill himself, or worse.

I think something that's being overlooked here is that sportbikes are very unforgiving by (their racing) nature.
You can make a reasonably big mistake on a dirtbike and depending on the situation you have a decent chance to save it. On a sportbike, a very small mistake become amplified VERY quickly and makes a small mistake into a huge one VERY quickly.

I had an SV1000 for a few years and every time I took it out, I was surprised at how much fun it was and how unforgiving it was..... and those are pretty tame on the scale of sportbikes.

Despite the fact that it's not the best idea to put a beginner on a 1000rr, it will happend, just so they can tell their mate's, i've got a 1000rr. There has been few threads about the 'noob on a powerfull whatever', with opinion's ranging from, instant death, to a probably ok if they take it easy. I know when i was 18 or a bit, and had gotten my hand's on something like the 1000rr, the first time out, i would've said to myself, let's see what thing can do.....

Look what can happen on the Mighty SV 650!

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/pXfM4tbx9nY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Reminds me of the first and only time my older brother rode a motorcycle. My new Yamaha LT2, 100 cc of heart pounding excitement . He knew how to ride a bicycle. He knew how to operate a manual transmission car. What could go wrong? Crazy high revs, a popped clutch, and a wheelie back flip in the 1st 20 ft, that's what can go wrong.:eek1

It's amazing how much power sportsbikes have. Which reminds me, has anyone ever heard this story?

It's not just power. A focused sports bike is excellent at doing one thing -- doing exactly what the rider tells it to, immediately, even if that input is "crash, right now!" Obviously, I'm paraphrasing a bit, but the point is that they react very quickly and with authority. Somebody who has not learned proper control skills on an easier bike will be in over their head quickly. Consider a total n00b toodling along at 30 MPH on the S1000RR. Said n00b hits a pothole or piece of road debris that was obscured by the bus in front of him (problem 1...no experience riding in traffic, no expectation that the two-track vehicles often straddle debris). Due to the impact, n00b cracks the throttle a bit and the bike suddenly rockets forward from 30 to 50 MPH in a short burst. (problem 2....no throttle control, probably also gripping the bars too tightly). N00b further tightens death grip on the bars and target fixates on the back end of that bus looming ahead. (problem 3...no experience overcoming target fixation). Noob panics and, instead of squeezing the clutch (problem 4...no muscle memory that the clutch is the fastest, safest way to cut power to the wheel) GRABS the front brake (Probelm 5...no muscle memory for proper braking skills...squeeeeze) and activates the ABS that will supposedly save his ass. The ABS kicks in, but n00b still has death grip on the bars and tries to muscle the bars to the side. The bike pitches forward, n00b slides up to the tank and then the bike lofts the rear wheel, pitching the n00b into traffic where he is promptly run over by a lifted diesel pickup truck.

There was a thread here recently along the same lines. A H-D was going 130 mph off a freeway when the rider hit a barrier. The bike kept on going accelerating a bit as it went for a long ways before tipping over.

205 mph Honda? It must have been the 110, because the 90's top out at 186.

Have you ridden the bike?

It has a mode that all but neuters the thing. That is why some of the rider schools use them.

Not the MSF though, I'll bet!

NO, Not the MSF. If the MSF used them I would move to a different state and become an instructor.

Track Schools.

Me too! Imagine the carnage!!!

Um, yeah. I've owned one for years.

It has four modes:

Rain mode cuts HP to 163 (at the crank), puts traction control and ABS on max intervention.
Sport mode has full HP and allows slight rear wheel slip and wheel lift.
Race has full HP, more agressive mapping of the fly by wire throtte, allows more rear wheel slip and more front wheel lift.
Slick mode allows wheelies (unless you're at significant lean angle).

So, you think 163 HP with traction control and ABS is "neutered"? In Rain mode it has far more acceleration and and raw power than my wife's ZX6. I wouldn't describe it as tame even in Rain mode.

EVERYONE I know that rides one runs it in Race mode for the street almost always (they may put it in Rain when the roads are slippery).

California Superbike School uses them instead of the previous litre bikes they used. Not sure I'd call them a "rider school". Does that mean you think the ZX10's they used before were also good beginner bikes?

amazing isnt it that a brand new rider can loop dammed near anything?

and again, the SV that I had made, what? 100 hp at best? and I dont care who you are, that thing was fast.

He's just practicing his target fixation.

Looks like he has it down pretty well.

Did the ZX10 have four performance modes and ABS brakes?

Easily solved by Randy Mamola, that special GP Ducati with a passenger seat, and some rubber-lined leathers. OK kid, this is what an eight year old bike with a passenger can do- you just bought one that's faster. (pull trigger, wheelie down pit lane). (two laps later) Any questions? Good- now go hose out those leathers. WHO'S NEXT?

I'm pretty sure they used ZX-6R's before the BMWs.

"Damned near"? I've seen a n00b wheelie a GN125. Repeatedly.