Scary!

[Biggles]

Had my first flat tyre on a bike, ever.  2" nail.  Put a rope plug in, but it leaked so took the bike to Mick's Tyres for a mushroom plug.  Took along a magazine to read, but he said it would be more than an hour before he could get to it, so he offered his Blackbird as a loaner.   



I've never ridden a sportsbike.  The clutch engaged early, so I was on my way before I was really ready.  Next, I needed the customary second gear.  Feet coming up off the concrete...  coming up... where's the pegs??  Oh, here they are, under my armpit.   

Into second, a bit of rev and clutch out and up comes the front wheel.  Whoa!!  That wasn't on the list at this early stage in my newfound hoon career.

So I'm at home.  So far so good.  Just got to get it back to him now...

Impressions?  There's a very distinct power band, far moreso than our torquey V4s.  There's no windscreen to speak of, so it's breezy.  All your weight is on your wrists, so it's going to be tiring compared with the sit-up-and-beg ST13.

Would I buy one?  Too expensive to have two bikes at once, but if money wasn't the issue, it would be fun to have one in the shed for a change of pace sometimes.  But this grandpa likes his comfort too much to leave the ST.  When I'm really old I'll get a 'wing. 

[StinkyPete]

I know how you feel.  I get to ride my son's VFR800 from time to time.   Far too much weight on the wrists, and having my knees above my elbows (while motorcycling) is not for me.   However, at 120km the wind on my body takes the weight from the wrists, and it feels a lot better, but around town its a shocker.    He's always happy to get his rocketship back, and I'm always happy to get back on my ST armchair.

I toured Tassie some years ago, with a couple riding two-up on a Blackbird, and they managed very well, probably 'cause they were around 20 years younger than me.   

[Brian]

Don't leave it too late Bill......The schWINGS a heavy beast

[Biggles]

Don't leave it too late Bill......The schWINGS a heavy beast

The 'Bird seems to lay over on the sidestand just a tad more than the ST and it feels almost as heavy as the ST to get upright.  I know it's only 2/3rds the weight, but it's still hefty.

[TAZZIEBAZ]

Bugger......I've always wanted to have a ride on a B/Bird but I've never had the opportunity.......lucky you!!   I know it's possible to get handle bar risers for them as I thought seriously about buying one a few years ago (pre ST that is) I think it was about 2006/7 or 2008, anyway it was the final model being released and they had them going at a very good price, but I had my Yamaha XVS 1100 at the time and I was pretty happy with it so decided against it....but, I've always had a bit of a "thing" about the B/Bird!

[Biggles]

I only found out today when I looked up its stats that it was named after the Lockheed SR-71, the fastest plane ever to fly.
Sadly for the CBR1100XX it was trumped in the fastest production bike stakes by the 'Busa (312 kph).  I knew that last factoid before.  I've only ridden it around town, getting up to 80 on the appropriate road, and I can't imagine how windy it must be at 287.3 kph.  Maybe the vestigial screen builds up some sort of "air dam" approaching supersonic speeds.
This particular one has one tooth less on the front and 2 more on the back, so it's all about acceleration.  At 75 kph in 5th the revs are the same as the ST13 at 100 kph.  I keep feeling for the next gear.  But smooth!!  Purrs like a kitten.  Smoother than the ST13, though I hate to admit it.  The Yoshimuru doesn't do any harm to the sound, either!

[Old Steve]

You do know that "Hyabusa" is Japanese for falcon - which preys on blackbirds!