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OB_IXLR8

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Hi everyone! I'm just getting started in motorcycling (still have to take the safety course), and I was wondering if the 1300R would be too powerful for a beginning rider.

I've heard that it is really stable, and that would make me feel (mentally) more confident while on the bike. I'm 5' 8'' and 160 pounds; will it be too big for me?

My big fear is that the bike will wheelie and flip over if I accidentally apply too much throttle. Really great things have been said about this bike, and I'd love to join in on the fun. I'd like to hear some opinions from you guys and girls out there. Thanks!
 
Yes,Yes,Yes.....................................................................................

The 1300 is way way too much bike for a new beginner regardless or height and weight.

It is a matter of experience. You need to build up to this level. The rider safty course is great for learning the basics and providing the fundemental tools, but there is no substitute for experience. Ask the other guys on the board how many of them have never had an accident, and I am sure you will see the only ones that answer are the ones that started last week. Fact is, you will crash. Do you want to do it on a 1300 at 170mph or on a nice learner bike at lower speeds.

The Hayabusa is a very civilized and forgiving bike, but a new rider could easily cross the line with her and then she will bite you.

I am sure most of the guys out there will tell you about how many years they rode on how many different bikes before they bought a busa. That is the way it is suppose to be. If you are a quick learner, and spend the thousands of hours yearly on a learner bike, you could possibly feel ready for a 1300 in a reasonable amount of time, and still be around to make the transition.

Besides, some of my happiest memories of riding were on a 84 GPZ750 that I bought wrecked for 600.00 I rode that thing everywhere, put 113,000 miles on it in 7 years and then moved on, and even then I did not jump to anything near Hayabusa power.

I have been riding for 18 years in some form or anouther and I crashed my busa last november. Broke 3 ribs, tore tendons in my arm, fractured my wrist, and 19 stiches in my leg.

Go ahead and give it a shot if you must, and I wish you all the safety in the world, and all the luck as well. Just be very carefull and never leave 3rd gear and you might be ok.

Remember, there are only 2 kinds or riders. Those who have crashed and those who will crash, and most riders are both.

Sorry to rant and rave at you.
918
 
Well said 918.I've been riding for 17 years and my busa still scared the hell out of me when i pulled out of the dealers lot.Take your time IXLR8, if you start out an one of the many great smaller bikes and get the feel for motorcycling, it will all be worth the wait when you finally strap on a busa.Be safe my friend.
 
I think you'll get a lot of good advice from this forum as there's a wealth of experience among members.

The MSF course is extremely valuable for a beginner and is really a must.

Is the Busa too powerful for a beginner? Well, you could say all modern sport bikes are too powerful for beginners. It's a matter of learning to control the power and you get that from experience. Mistakes in managing that power can be lethal.

Is the Hayabusa too big for you? Not necessarily. Although it is 50-100 lbs heavier than most sport bikes, the weight is easily managed. And the seat height is normal and shouldn't be a problem for your size. It is a very stable ride, perhaps more so because of the added weight. But, any modern sport bike is more than enough stable.

Not everyone would agree that it's OK to start out on the fastest production bike on the planet, but it might be more practical(and safer)to invest in a beater bike to learn on and then graduate on to the Busa or whatever. If you do make a mistake and crash (and most of us do at one time or another), you won't feel so bad.

If you're looking for something to read, try Keith Code's, "Twist of the Wrist, Vol II."

Congratulations on choosing this sport! It easily becomes a passion.
 
YES IT IS TO POWERFULL TO START LEARNING ON I JUST BOUGHT A KAL. NINJA 250 FOR MY 21 YEAR OLD SON HES BEEN RIDING FOR ABOUT 1 YEAR ON DIRT BIKE BUT I WOULD NEVER EVER LET HIM NEAR A BIG POWERFULL SPORTBIKE LIKE THIS BUSA I WOULDN'T EVEN BUY A 600 SPORT TO MUCH POWER & I AGREE WITH EVERYONE ELSE YOU WILL CRASH SOONER OR LATER EVERYONE DOES. I HAVE BEEN DOWN ON A 100CC, A 450CC, 750CC I TOTALED, & DID A LOT OF DAMAGE TO MY 1000 HONDA. I GOT BUT I HAVE ABOUT 30 YEARS OF RIDING MOTORCYCLES. EVERY TIME I SEE SOME YOUNG KID OR BEGINER ON A 600 SPORT BIKE I USALLY HEAR REAL SOON THAT THEY CRASH SO BE CAREFULL OUT THERE DON'T BUY A BUSA AS YOUR FRIST SPORT BIKE
MY TWO CENTS WORTH
SONNY
 
If you look around you'll find that this issue has been heavily debated.

Generally a Busa is NOT even close to being a beginner bike. It's heavy and way too overpowered to be safe with an unskilled throttle hand. Simply dropping the bike trashes roughly $1100 worth of parts. You will not enjoy the bike riding around scared sh!tless wondering when it's going to waste you.

If it were me I would;
1. Get the best helmet money can buy. (Arai or Shoei full face)
2. Get a good full suit of leathers. Good racing gloves and boots too.
3. Take the MSF course.
4. Buy a very used Yammie R6 or Honda F4. You WILL do something dumb and wreck it.
5. Ride a minimum of 1 full year (4000 miles).
6. Then and only then consider a Busa. Who knows what great bikes will be available in a year.

There is no question that the Busa is a fine machine but it is definitely no beginner bike.
 
If you got money to burn and you really want the bike,first have the dealer deliever the bike to your house,when you get it at your house lock the bike up and put a front a rear lock on the bike and a note on it saying to be riden after my safety training motorcycle class and two/three months of daily riding on my junker 250cc motorcycle training bike that I bought.Make sure to ride daily to get the feel of the bike,road conditions,traffic/idiot drivers,and use of clutch/brake/counter steering before advancing to the big ONE.Now when your confident is up take the big one out to a big parking lot,like a mall or shopping center and practice on the Hayabusa and learn the handling of your new bike.Don't forget to use those front brakes,they are about 75/85% of your stopping power.If this is not followed correctly you will meet GOD or the DEVIL alot sooner than you think.Ride safe
 
I would recommend you evaluate yourself as honestly as possible in your driving skills. I know that driving a car isn't much like riding a motorcycle, but I think you can determine some of the risk you'll be taking based on how you drive your car. What kind of car do you drive? Do you drive aggresively or defensively? How many years have you been driving and in what kinds of road conditions? Have you had (m)any accidents? Do you allways signal a turn or lane change? Do you always watch the road and check your mirrors? Do you like to speed in heavy, slower traffic? Driving a sports car with a big, powerful motor gives you the opportunity to drive more aggressively. Similarly, riding a sports bike, like the Hayabusa, will make it easier to ride aggressively.

Riding a motorcycle must be done with the utmost caution. You must ride defensively or you and/or your bike will be killed, maimed or badly damaged. Anytime you ignore this and ride aggressively you will have to rely on your experience and reaction time to save you. Most sports bikes today are so easy to ride that they seduce most riders into an agressive riding style.

Having said all this, I'm going to admit that I jumped onto a sports bike (YZF-R1) soon after I started riding (waaayyy back in 1998). My first bike was a BMW F650 that I chose based on my need to ride on dirt roads on occasion. I bought the bike and took the MSF course before I rode it. I had an experienced friend ride it home from the dealership. The MSF coarse was great and I'd definetly recommend it before riding any motorcycle.

I took my F650 to a nearby parking lot after getting a motorcycle endorsement of my license. I practiced in the parking lot for a while before moving into heavy traffic. It was a couple of weeks before I rode on the freeway. I dropped the bike once in the parking lot on the first day. The F650 was fine, but a Hayabusa wouldn't have been. I had a few close calls with over shooting a couple of turns and almost hitting a parked car.

The F650 is a great bike, but I was tempted into buying an R1 after reading all the hype. I bought one a few months after I bought my F650. It was a blast to ride. A twist of the wrist brought me to any speed I wanted to go in very little time. There were a few times I'm surprised I didn't highside or flip the bike as I had some unintentional wheelies and one or two small stoppies. However, it was a rare thing for me to explore the upper ranges of the powerband. I kept tight control on my urge to open the throttle all the way. Regardless, I count myself lucky that I haven't been in an accident (knock wood). I just try to remember that I'm an inexperienced squid and try to limit my riding appropriately.
 
Don't do it.

Start on something you won't mind and can afford to drop, several times, while learning. When you get to the point where you don't enjoy riding it any more because it lacks power/handling/etc then think about going bigger. Personally, I went from 8 years of riding 600's to my busa. I sometimes wish I hadn't when I really get on the throttle, my eyes are watering so badly I can barely see (despite the Shoei full face helmet), my head is shaking violently from the wind, and I pull a groin muscle trying to grip the thing.

Well, having said that...NO, I would never give it up, but that's because I'm a lunatic who learned how to ride safely on smaller bikes. Get your basics down first otherwise your ego will get you hurt and poor, or worse.
 
Are You Nuts...............
I have a 2000 Kawasaki Ninja ZX6. Every now and then I get on it......Enough power for me. My Husband has a Hyabusa and its nice to look at, but one accidental twist of the throttle...........BOOM. A smaller cc bike is alot more forgiving when it comes to the beginner mistakes that everyone makes. Plus, a 600 is just fun to ride.
I started with a 1985 ninja ZX600R (my first crash, burn and learn bike) and sure enough - I dropped it twice. Once I was comfortable (about a year) then I bought my brand new Ninja ZX6. Trust me - You have to start on a cheap Crash, Burn and Learn Bike....

KZZ1's Wife,
Angi
 
Doc,
Some specific answers to your questions.
No, the bike is not too big for you.
No, the bike is not likely to wheelie or flip over if you apply too much throttle. It has a fairly long wheelbase for a sport bike, and does not come up as easily as many other bikes in it's class.
Yes, it is really stable.
Yes, it is easy to drive at low speed, and the immense amount of torque means you don't have to keep running up and down through the gears to stay in the power band.
Yes, if you get out of control you will fall over, or worse; and it could be expensive in more ways than one. But that's true of any bike.
It's more about the rider than the bike. A good friend has an ischial pin from a fall off a Yamaha 125. Another buddy got tagged on the freeway and dumped his VFR800 walking away without a scratch.
Yes, you can handle this if you choose to.
"Physician know thyself."
EZ
 
IXLR8,

After looking over all the comments so far, I would be interested in hearing what you think and, if you've decided, what you plan to do.
 
Something around a 600cc is a great learner bike and something you want grow out of in a year.
Look at a yamaha R6 or a suzuki GSXR 600; there light, fast, easy to learn on, and not something you will be unhappy with after you get miles under your belt.

and by the way...don't let the statement you will eventually crash scare you away from the sport of motorcycling..Its a matter of respect for what your sitting on (and its power); if you forget to respect your bike it will remind you!

Good luck..you will love motorcycling...
 
Only part of learning how to ride a motorcycle is actually learning how to ride the motorcycle itself. A big part is learning how to fit the motorcycle into traffic and onto the pavement and into the weather. It's nothing like driving a car, or riding a bicycle. There are a huge number of distractions out there and what you really don't need while you're learning all that stuff is a bike that'll kill you if you don't pay it the attention required. Panic acceleration or panic stops on the Busa can be fatal. It is a wonderful bike for riders who are really comfortable with all the externals involved in riding and have learned finesse, lots and lots of finesse.

So do yourself a huge favor. Buy the Busa because in the future maybe only detuned, speed-limited versions will be available. Park it in your living room and admire the hell out of it.

Also spend about $1,500 for a decent used standard, like a Honda Nighthawk. It's not sexy and its not hard to ride. When you can go riding on it without any nagging little fears in the pit of your stomach or wherever they hang out, it'll be time to fire up the Busa.

Someone mentioned Keith Code's Twist of the Wrist II. Get the video instead of or in addition to the book and watch it. Code does a wonderful job of explaining how hard it is to learn riding (mostly race track riding in this case, but its just as true for the street).

By the way, I spent a lot of time teaching someone how to ride a couple years ago. After nearly 40 years riding myself, it was big eye-opener learning how to see the traffic and roads as she saw them and figuring out how to ratchet up the difficulty in increments without scaring or hurting her. She graduated the MSI course, but learned mostly theory that needed hours of practice on streets and highways to make sense. Low-speed handling on a little bike in a parking lot around cones is not really what riding is like, but it is important to learn. Now, on a good day, she stays with me coming down Angeles Crest Highway on her little GS500 Suzuki. Going up is a different story, of course.
 
I say if he's bound and determined, and has the balls, by all means step right up.
 
That's a wise plan, IXLR8. Now I'll share with you this little tidbit. The dealer I bought from did sell a newbie rider a Hayabusa last fall. The fella managed to ride it away from the store after they got it out to the street for him. He called back after he got it home to say that he could only turn right on it, not left. The last time I checked he had learned to turn both directions, and had not yet crashed.

That contrasted with the experienced rider who bought one from the same dealer and got tangled up a car 10 miles later. He lived. And some $5,000 in insurance dollars later, so did his Busa.

Then there was the fellow who bought the Honda CBR-1000F that I traded on my Busa. I had put 33,000 miles on it in eight years with nary a problem. He totaled it in less than a month and abandoned it at the tow storage lot. I think that was a collision with a truck. Undoubtedly the car drivers were at fault in both of these incidents, but so what. The real secret of riding bikes safely is anticipating when drivers are going to do something stupid and making sure you're not there at the same time.
 
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