Which bike would be a good first sport bike. Looking at CBR1000/600's and also the yamaha R1/R6?

I don't know much about the differences, I know some people are all for Suzuki, Yamaha, Honda, of Kawasaki. Seems that whatever bike someone has, they say its the best. I wish I could just ride all of them and see for myself.

Tampa, FL
Sam

This is a very strong market segment, we sometimes call them 'supersports'. Every Japanese mfgr makes a hot sport bike in 600 and 1000cc sizes, because those are standard track categories. They are very competitive, so they all upgrade their entries every year or two to add another 5 hp and shave off another 10 lbs. They compete more or less head-to-head.

So the CBR, GSX-R, R1/R6 and Ninja ZX are all roughly equivalent. The differences between them really only come down to style, and the skill of the rider. The CBR is said to be the least extreme, the R1/R6 are the most 'sophisticated', the GSX-R is the most popular.

They are all wonderful bikes for what they are, marvels of modern engineering. But they're not for everyone. In fact, I think a lot of guys get them just for the style, and then have to live with the quirkiness of what is really a track bike with license plates.

And yes, whichever one you have, you'll think it's best. Not many people have ridden all four of these, and even if so you couldn't trust what they said because they have their preferences and priorities and yours are probably different. If you really want a supersport, you'd be happy with any of these.

How many years road riding experience do you have?

Are you confident/comfortable enough to handle a 100-160hp supersport?

Sounds like you haven't ridden before.

Why not at least take an MSF class and llearn how to ride first?

Sounds like you are young as well, have you got an insurance quote for a 600-1000cc sport bike yet? Might have some sticker shock when you find out that insurance costs more a month than the bike.

If you want fast and comfortable, you should look more at the high end standard sports or sport touring type bikes.

The reason 600's and 1000's are so popular is because they look cool and people don't know any better. For whatever reason, they believe a track ready bike is the best thing to cruise around campus. After about 20min, your wrists will hurt. So you will shift back and bend your back a little to relieve the strain. Now your back and wrists will hurt and you haven't even reached 20 miles yet.

For whatever reason, people seem to overlook the CB1000 and Ninja 1000. While they both have powerhouse engines, they do not have the aggressive stance that other super sports have. They have a stance similar to your 250R, 500R, 650R, etc, yet the power of a 900-1000cc super sport. Basically said? Slap some saddle bags on it, raise the wind screen, and you got a super sport touring machine. Take off the bags, lower the screen, and now you got a sleak street machine.

True sport touring bikes like the Concours are fantastic too, but they are a little "too" touring, and can't really revert back into sport bikes if you wanted.

It isn't a shock that the 2014 Ninja 1000 was named the bike of the year by many people. It hits the needs of so many people and is a technology marvel. I certainly love mine. Very comfortable, very fast, can race, can tour, and is all around fun.

Have a look at Triumph and never look back.