My Question: Driving a superbike? (the age old question)?

FAQ:

Driving a superbike? (the age old question)?

9 months ago I asked a question on Yahoo Answers (this one: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AsxCu_Nkg2C24Qy.bZHEMEPty6IX;_ylv=3?qid=20110115141833AA3xaT8 )

The basic gist was, “I’ve never driven a bike before, what are the chances of me surviving my first ride on a superbike (Yamaha R1/Suzuki Hyabusa)”

Well, today I drove a motorbike for the first time with no prior experience other than 3 years driving a car with manual transmission, and some 15 years driving bicycles.

The bike was a Hyosung 125cc naked bike with a manual transmission and a single cylinder air cooled engine. And my general impression is, that driving it was easy. The acceleration in 2nd gear was very quick (faster than my car, but not as smooth), and the handling was remarkably smooth – more so than a bicycle. What did surprise me a little at first was how touchy the throttle was in first gear, and how heavy the bike is – especially when it’s stopped and you’re balancing it on your legs and you let it tip over past a certain angle. And how bumpy the power delivery of the single cylinder engine was at low revs (below 2000rpm).

So my questions now are:
1. How much heavier/harder to handle would something like a hyabusa be compared to the bike I drove?
2. How much more sensitive would the throttle be? I mean, the one on this bike was sensitive, but I got the hang of it quite quickly and was able to drive smoothly after a while – but what about a superbike?
3. On any bike in general, how do you realise when the tyres are on the limit and about to lose traction, say during heavy braking, acceleration and cornering or on slippery roads? In the car I can feel it in the steering wheel and in the seat-of-my-pants (especially during skids). On the bike I felt strangely disconnected from the road (compared to a bicycle, not compared to a car) – and I wasn’t about to try any hard manoevers to find out… so can someone with more experience give me some pointers?

4. Finally, given my new level of experience, how likely am I to survive driving a superbike? Can I reasonably be expected to handle it – or should I get some practice on an interim sized bike (say a 650cc) first?
OK, ok. Let me clarify. It was touchy in first gear – meaning, moving the throttle a millimeter in either direction results in a jerk of acceleration or engine braking. After a few tries I had enough wrist practice to be able to move the throttle progressively to avoid jerks. My car is just as touchy in first gear. It weighs 10 times as much and only has 5 times the power. I was able to open up the bike’s throttle completely by third gear and it was quite comfortable for me to handle.

But wow, all that acceleration from just 15 hp? That’s incredible. Bikes are just awesome.

Answer by Bandit-05
As the old saying goes, you have to learn to walk before you can run…

Don’t be so quick to jump up to a super-bike. They are very unforgiving and you can quickly get over-your-head (both figuratively and literally) on a bike with that much power.

Start on something like a Kawasaki Ninja 250 and ride that for at least one year. If you want to move up from there, a 500 or 600 cc bike would be plenty.

For a more thorough explanation of why a sport bike is not a good starter bike, please read the link provided below:

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6 Responses to My Question: Driving a superbike? (the age old question)?

User1 says:

January 30, 2012 at 10:51 am

im in the same situation. im almost 16 and i would like to get my motorcycle license when im 16. i have talked to a lot of people about it. they all say you have to compare it to driving a fast car. they say that a normal bike is a toyota corolla and a hayabusa/R1 is a lamborghini. you have to be easy on the gas. also, the shifting will be harder because all the variables are at a faster speed. i have always received this advice: rent a small bike and then gradually increase. then when you are comfortable with a really fast bike, and you are sure that you will not crash, you can go and buy a hayabusa/R1. in my opinion, get a USED hayabusa and get it checked out by a motorcycle dealer because the hayabusas can be in pretty bad shape engine-wise because they are driven hard/people shift at really high rpms(just like with cars, if you buy a motorcycle new, you are getting ripped-off). they are very rare, and you will be able to say that you have the fastest production bike
Brad A. says:

January 30, 2012 at 11:16 am

Hayabusa – One of the fastest bikes on the planet.
Hyosung 125- Cheap chinese crap that will barely make the speed limit.

1- That little bike you thought was heavy to hold up (Weighs ~ 350lbs) The Hayabusa weighs about 600. Not to mention its riding position is a lot more aggressive and the bike is bigger in most ways.

That little Hyosung has around 15hp give or take, The Suzuki on the other hand has 197 hp. Thats 13 times more powerful.

2- If you think that was sensitive, a half turn of the throttle on the hayabusa would bring you to about 60mph in about 2 seconds and about 140 in 10. Its needlessly fast, thats for sure. Not meant to be raced around busy streets but for top speed.

3- Feedback through the seat and experience

4- A few minutes on a tiny bike doesn’t count as experience. Stick with that 125 for 2 seasons until you have some real experience. Then move up to a 250 and again, go for 2 seasons. By that time, you should have enough experience to move up to a larger bike if you really feel the need too. Just not a Hayabusa yet.
Cournel Sanders says:

January 30, 2012 at 11:52 am

” today I drove a motorbike for the first time ”

Never let your enthusiasm surpass your skill.

You still have no skills.
Jerico says:

January 30, 2012 at 12:41 pm

agree with brad a and bandit
Shell Back says:

January 30, 2012 at 12:51 pm

The bike you rode is a very easy bike to learn on and will turn and handle easily at lower speeds the as you put it superbikes do not handle as well at lower speeds.

I own a 1,000cc sport bike and let me tell you if you thought the throttle was touchy on a 125 you have no buisness even thinking about getting on a 600cc let alone a 1,000cc bike, tiny input equals large output on a big bike.

on a bike I feel more connected with the road and my surroundings than I do in a car so I am not sure why you felt disconnected, and you need not worry about taking the tires to the limit yet, and after a while and when you start getting braver and leaning harder/braking harder you will know or findout once or twice trust me.

Keep riding that 125 for a while before you step up to something larger, because if you went from that to a 1,000cc you won’t do well my friend. Even a 600cc would be too much for you right now.
James says:

January 30, 2012 at 1:27 pm

You found the throttle “touchy’ on a 125cdc bike that puts out perhaps 10 Hp at 10,000 rpm. Imagine how “touchy” the throttle on a 150 Hp bike would feel!

“Any power that one cannot control feels like too much.”–One of the things I tell my students.

On any super-sport, you would be SO over your head you wouldn’t even know that anything had gone wrong until you were picking yourself up off the asphalt.

Your “new level of experience” is STILL zero.