Dilema

[Alphamazing]

So I've been looking into upgrading to something like a Speed Triple or a Z1000 recently. I was planning on riding another year on the GS gaining a total of 20,000+ miles under my belt before upgrading, but have been considering upgrading more recently as I've put on over 10,000 miles in the year I've had it.

My father is the one who got me into riding, and he has been riding for over 40 years now so I value and respect his opinion. He's seen me ride and saw me at my last track day and said he was impressed with my riding, but is still aprehensive about me getting a "big" bike. He is suggesting I get something like an SV650 and ride that for another year before upgrading to the Z1000/Speed Triple.

I could probably get a decent 1st gen SV (despite the evils of carbs) for $2000-$2500, less than what my GS is worth. But then there is the instant investment of correcting the suspension on the SV (probably $300-$500, which would be covered by the left over I had from selling the GS).

So should I just say, "Screw you pops!" and get the big bike, or take into consideration what he's saying and try the SV out for a year or so?

Thoughts? Opinions?

[The Buddha]

You should always get the biggest bike your credit card can afford. Even if you dont know what a clutch is ... that will be coolest.
Having said that ... the SV felt a little flimsy to me. I think I'd get an old school GSXR pre water cooled if you can ... 1100 or 750 ... What is now known as the L frame.
Cool.
Srinath.

[Onlypastrana199]

I'm not trying to put the SV down..so all you SV lovers out there please dont get mad.  I respect the GS and SV. BUT I think for BRIAN and BRIAN ONLY...you will be disappointed with the SV. I've ridden them..and I'm not particularly impressed with them its a bigger gs...personally i love the speed triple. I've never ridden a z1000..only sat on one..but the speed triple was a lot of fun and still flickable enough.




This is a shot out there...but maybe a mid sized monster? The older ones are cheaper but the parts are expensive...maybe?   Maybe try looking at some other midsized bikes that arent I4s? i think doubling your cc's is scary..especially for a dad to watch...so i understand what hes saying

[NiceGuysFinishLast]

Daytona 675! WOOWOO!!!

[s4gs]

Listen to your dad.
He can see your enthusiasm and skill but understands that there is still more
that you need to learn.

[porsche4786]

I would think you might want something a little more than the SV, unless you got an SV1000. 20,000 miles will be a lot, I think you'd be ready for just about anything.

[scratch]

I'm not trying to put the SV down...so all you SV lovers out there please dont get mad.  I respect the GS and SV.  BUT I think for BRIAN and BRIAN ONLY...you will be disappointed with the SV.  I've ridden them...and I'm not particularly impressed with them; it's a bigger gs.

That's what I thought!

I was going to say to keep the GS another year and then get the big bike, because when I think of the SV, I just think of the small gain in hp, but it is a larger jump in torque.  I would defer to the SV owners on this site, though.

For Brian's and my experiance, I think a larger bike would be better.

[Alphamazing]

I talked to my dad about another option...

The Ducati Monster M900

It weighs 403 dry (4 more than the GSF) and puts down about 75 HP to the wheel and has excellent suspension right out of the box.

He said it sounded like a good idea, an excellent compromise provided I can afford the maintenance. Funny thing is, since I'd do all the maintenance myself I'd save a bunch of costs, and valve adjustments are even longer than the GS.

Turd is going to laugh his ass off when he reads this one.

[jbeaber]

You have to think about what you want to use the bike for, what you expect from it...  I went from a GS to a Daytona 675.  I'm overjoyed with it because it fulfills all the requirements I had...  Good low end torque, still light weight, fully faired.  Yeah, it also has double the horsepower of the GS and takes off like a MoFo.  Now, when I ride my wife's SV, it feels very slow and sluggish, the suspension feels soft and squishy.  It is a great bike (her's is a gen 1).  The Triumph speed triple is just an incredible looking bike, as are the Monsters.  The reliability of Ducati has improved so much, and the only bizarre maintenance is the valve adjustments, which are getting further and further apart.... 
Think about what you want out of your next bike.  Think about what characteristics are your priorities and choose the ride that suits you best, not the one that suits someone else...  you have to pay for and ride the damn thing...

[Turd Ferguson]

STOP TRYING TO BE ME!

Dude, I love my Monsta' 900 and would reccomend it to ANYONE.  The bike feels great in the twisties and is just an overall HOOT to ride.  The power is a pretty big jump over the baby GS, but I seriously don't feel like it is unreasonable or unmanageable.  Its no slouch though...61 ft*lbs of torque packs a pretty serious punch.

Plus...honestly...people dig the Duck's.  I just rode through campus after a football game got out and the Monsta' got quite a bit of attention.  The lopey deep burble through the exhaust gets peoples' attention pretty quickly.

God I'm a squid.

-Turd.

[Turd Ferguson]

You have to think about what you want to use the bike for, what you expect from it...  I went from a GS to a Daytona 675.  I'm overjoyed with it because it fulfills all the requirements I had...  Good low end torque, still light weight, fully faired.  Yeah, it also has double the horsepower of the GS and takes off like a MoFo.  Now, when I ride my wife's SV, it feels very slow and sluggish, the suspension feels soft and squishy.  It is a great bike (her's is a gen 1).  The Triumph speed triple is just an incredible looking bike, as are the Monsters.  The reliability of Ducati has improved so much, and the only bizarre maintenance is the valve adjustments, which are getting further and further apart.... 
Think about what you want out of your next bike.  Think about what characteristics are your priorities and choose the ride that suits you best, not the one that suits someone else...  you have to pay for and ride the damn thing...

I deffinately agree.  Well...except...Ducati's certianly have their "issues" and they honestly do require a bit more attention (even late-model Duc's).  I call their shortcomings "character".  Most Ducati's have so much character that they ooze it from every gasket on the engine.   

-Turd.

[Turd Ferguson]

I can't stop replying to a post that is so bitchin!  Dude, the Monster is a freakin blank canvas as far as mods go.  Head over to the www.ducatimonster.org forums and see some of the great stuff people are doing with Monsters.  No way am I going to be able to leave this bike alone for long.

These are not my bikes, but Monster 900's that inspire me to do stupid things to my perfectly nice bike:






-Turd.

[Kasumi]

Personally i think you have an incredibly level head to put off getting your dream bike because you want to make sure your ready. A level head is what you need. So long as your not jumping onto a bike which is huge in comparison to the 500 (physically) and weighty then i think you should go for the Z1000 or the triple. The bike will only perform as much as you let it. So long as your slow and careful with your right hand and spend time just getting used to it then i think you will be fine. I don't believe you would jump streight on and first thing you would do is go and rag it to see what it could do.

I went from doing 9k miles on my first ever bike 50cc Rieju streight onto a 400 restricted to 33bhp which is a huge power upgrade respectivly and i just made sure i took it slow - always rode with my dad for d first few weeks and once i got used to it which didnt take too long i was fine - it was just riding again but der is more power. If your carefull when you start you will soon adapt.

[blue05twin]

I'm sure you thought of this but what about a speed 4?

[Alphamazing]

I'm sure you thought of this but what about a speed 4?

It seems like it is just too much of a wannabe Speed 3, without the awesome engine. Also, they are extremely hard to come by and are typically extremely overpriced when you do.

I do respect the opinion of my father and am probably going to end up with a lesser powered bike than the Z/S3. It couldn't hurt getting more experience on another bike with slightly more power.

I want the bike for my everything bike. Commuting, sport riding, the occasional track day, sorta-touring (I sorta-tour on the GS afterall), everything.

Personally, I know that I'd want to ride the bike to its potential occasionaly, even on the track. I know I'd ride agressively, so more throttle control practice on a different bike could never hurt.