And how did you find the ride? (maybe post something in the "review" section)
Too lazy to start a new thread lol. The ride was fine. My group size was approx 8 riders including leader and sweeper. Pace was legal with a couple of brief opportunities to squirt the throttle past 80 km/h. Mostly straight roads but they did take us on one fairly windy road that was over far too quickly. Don't remember the route we took though, sorry.
As for the FZ-07, I liked it a lot! I've only owned 600cc bikes so this will be my first foray into a comfy "standard" motorcycle. My thoughts:
- First thing I noticed when I sat on it was that the foot pegs hit my legs. A little annoying but not a biggie.
- The next thing I noticed was the throttle felt a bit choppy. I found it difficult to be smooth at lower RPMs. However, it might just be a matter of getting used to the bike and adjusting the throttle cable the way I like it.
- The tank is skinny. This is good for shorter riders as it improves the reach to the ground. But I found it a little awkward while riding because I had no natural place to anchor my knees. Squeezing the tank felt like an exercise in cracking a walnut with my legs.
- The seat is surprisingly uncomfortable. It's better than my 600RR but it's still fairly thin and the shape feels weird on the buttocks.
- Yes, there are some positives! Low end torque feels great! Cracking the throttle open results in a surge of fun =) It doesn't feel fast per se like my 600RR feels but it feels very lively.
- Seating position is awesome! I could ride it all day.
- Suspension soaks up bumps nicely although this is probably not so great when attacking corners. At the pace we were riding it felt great though. Which leads me to...
- Handling. Felt immediately comfortable. Coming from a sport bike I really felt I was riding IN the machine rather than on top of it. Funny because I thought the same thing about my current bike when comparing it to a R6. The difference in this case was dramatic.
- No issues riding without a windscreen but at 80 km/h or less why would there be.
Overall, I have to say that the appeal of the FZ-07 is its fun factor. I know pretty much every review says the same thing but I have to agree with them. The comfy ergonomics, torque-y motor, playful chassis/suspension and price combination is what sold me. Now I just need to sell my bike...