Welcome to the forum Jenny Busa and Howard Morris.
Howard, my wife still thinks I'm riding the 2012 gixxer (blue) I took in trade for a muscle car project. I think if she saw my black beauty, how much bigger she is and how much more power she has, she'd be even less "tickled" than your Mrs. So I'll wait until she notices it's not blue and I'll take it from there...
Sheesh, just 'cause we're 60+, do they want us to stop having fun??!!
Jenny, I agree... age does not matter. But, on Sunday I did my first ride on my 2016 busa. What was supposed to be a short one hour "get to know her" ride turned into over 3 hours on back roads for a total of 88 miles! I just couldn't stop! However, I am paying the price. Not because she's a Busa (although hanging on certainly tired my arms out a bit as I gained confidence)..... what really hurt were the muscles in my calves responsible for shifting and applying the rear brake! Later that night, I could barely get out of the recliner due to the soreness of those muscle groups. Three days later, there is some residual soreness, but I'm ready for my second ride. Of course, being on vacation, it's gonna rain the next 2 days.
After 88 miles, I am just in awe... so much power, even in mode C. (started in mode C and it felt like my old Kawi ZRX1200R with 112 hp), but when I shut her off then restarted her at my daughters house, I forgot a restart puts you back in mode A. Wow! Rolling on the throttle just rockets you forward. Definitely need to use caution in the lower gears. The other revelation was how smoooooth she rides. Like a Cadillac of the sport bike world. But she is NOT a boat. While a bit heavy, center of gravity is fairly low (c/g much lower than the kawi, which weighed about the same). I'm a kinda big guy (6'2"/220lbs) so I had no problem countersteering and leaning the big girl. She's certainly no gixxer, but she's exactly what I wanted. looks, style, power, comfort, reliability..
Also, due to my height, I was concerned about wind buffeting. But for some reason, even at a bit more
than legal speeds, the wind wasn't buffeting at all. Just a steady blast. Dropping down below the Wind screen a bit helps if I feel the need for quiet, but it wasn't that bad. I'd guess that on warmer days, the wind will be welcome. For the record, I do have a quality Shoei helmet, an RF1100, so that may have contributed to the relative quiet at speed, although a set of earplugs certainly would be a good move for lengthy rides at highway speeds, which I don't really plan on doing.
Bottom line: I'm very happy with my purchase. I expect many miles of smiles. I'm sure Newbies like myself Jenny and Howard will experience the same. btw: we need pics!
I attached a couple of pics of her out in the real world. I was at a Dunkin donuts and under a shady tree, so the paint doesn't quite pop like it does in the sun, but you can still see she's a beauty....Mods consist of only a Yoshimura fender eliminator and a Puig hugger rear fender. Right now, I don't feel the need (or to spend the $) for an aftermarket exhaust. I can hear the intake noise, which is quite cool, when I roll on the throttle. Don't really need to hear the exhaust. But that may change when I recover from the payout and as time goes by.
Not to be disrespectful to a fellow 'Busa owner, but I would have to get it pretty cheap to take the chance. Otherwise I would just buy a new one, but no sense having yours just sitting in a closet not being enjoyed. I may just put it on the 'Busa first and test it... then will do the work to make it pretty if it works the way I need it to. Let me know what you'd let 'er go for including shipping to 06331, and we'll go from there. Not sure if the PM system works with this forum (some don't) but if you'd like to keep our negotiations private, feel free to PM me or use my gmail address. I don't mind either way.
