TRUE RIDER ABILITY: VFR vs. Busa

Yep, the 'Busa can beat a VFR in a straight line.

I don't care.

Yep, the 'Busa has more HP than the VFR.

I don't care.

Yep, chicks dig the 'Busa & probably have never heard of the VFR.

I don't care.

Yep, the 'Busa makes you think you have a large penis, cures bad breath, reduces pollution, restores wetlands, protects animals on the endagered species list, cures diseases, negotiates treaties between war fighting countries, etc...

Jimmy Crack Corn & I Don't Care.


As I've said many times, it matters not how much power, how fast or how nice looking your bike is. The SINGLE ONLY THING that matters is the skill of the Cro Magnon chimp holding onto the grips. You put a MotoGP world champ on a CBR600RR & he will masacre a squid on a Ducati 1098S, every time, all day, every day. When I teach the sport bike classes on KWRI & I regularly see better riders on lesser bikes outriding lesser riders on better bikes. As with most anything in life, it's all about skill.

KC-10 FE out...
lane: :usa2:

 

+1 to everything Steve said, the Busa does what it was designed to do very well, on the ride to meet Reg in 2007 I got a chance to switch bikes with my buddy and wind his Busa out through a couple of stretches in Oregon, my final impression that day was the engine is buttery smooth and handled much better than I though it would, plus the fact that 160 felt like 90 :thumbsup:

 

wow !!!! a 1300cc machine was faster then an 800cc machine....:crazy: I can't believe it.. why don't they have a contest who can take off back wheel faster??:tongue: after seeing the tricked out busa video:biggrin: I don't think I will ever consider that bike as one I would own,seems alot of owners of them want it to look like a cartoon motorcycle. To each their own.. I still love my vfr and he was doing about 150 an looked like a pretty heavy dude so kudos vfr not to bad...:thumbsup:

 

Come to Reggies I'll show ya what a big whale of a bike can do...

Unless there's some people here who can tell you that 6'8" and 285lbs does on a BMW K1200S

 

In terms of what?

 

In terms of seeing that big bikes CAN turn...

Anyone can be fast in a str8 line !

 

Agreed, I actually like the 'Busa, that and the Blackbird were my reason to start riding again at the end of '02 and were to be my next logical step ZZR250 to SV650S to VFR800 but the VFR has been such a perfect machine for all my requirments can't see me ever changeing or careing a tinkers cuss what bikes faster.

Its not the 'Busa itself or even video that that causes unrest it's the way " shaynej " words the Thread Title and starting comment shows he's either fishing for fun or a if he's just being a troll and VFR hater then have to agree " derstuckas " initial assesment correct. :wink:

 

K1200's better suited for it than the Hayabusa. Wouldn't you agree? K1200s more of a show AND go package. But again, apples to apples, is your k1200 going to be able to take a turn at the same speed at the same or less angle than a full-on track bike? Is it going to require more effort/input to make it make that turn than a dedicated track bike? Given the k1200's rake and wheelbase, I would imagine it can be ridden to match whatever you're doing, but how easily it can do it would make it fall short compared to a bike meant for it. A Hayabusa at let's say 150MPH at maximum lean angle VS a RSV4 at maximum lean angle.... which one's going to be turning a shorter a radius?

 

My point is u were saying a Busa can't turn..
I have two bikes that are as big....
XX and K12S
Since I'm not your average sized bear the XX IS my track bike. Full set up.
It's mostly rider... NOT bike. I can beat GSXR1000's and I can get beat by 600rr's 80% rider 10% bike 10% balls.

 

You have to understand I'm not bashing any bike, I'm just saying that for a given utility, there's bikes that are far less 'meant' for that utility than others. You figure on a twisty mountain curve, bike A is at maximum lean angle, bike B which is 100 pounds heavier, has a 4 inch longer wheelbase and more sloped rake isn't going to be able to take that same turn at the same speed, everything else equal (we're going to ignore peg clearance and hard parts for the sake of argument and just say that max lean angle is the the threshold of before the tire breaks loose). Bike B CAN make the turn; it'll require more effort one way or another (leverage via wider bars, more press), can't go as fast through the turn and it will certainly not flick as quickly/easily (laws of physics). If the two bikes were competing, bike B would probably have to make use a higher Power/Weight ratio and/or aerodynamics during straights and long sweeping curves to remain competitive and CAN be competitive; however I'd still say it turns like a whale in comparison to bike A depending on the level difference in cornering performance.

I'd say Hayabusa VS ~435 pound GSXR600 in turns, with the same rider the winner is clear. If the two bikes were racing it'd all be about the track, not the riders or the bike in that case, everything else equal.

 

I couldn't have said it better! Funny thing is I see way more guys on Busas that are wearing no gloves and shorts. Busa riders are also exponentially more likely to get a Darwin Award than a VFR rider.

 

You're both right, see below Vid where a VFR is following a Superblackbird through twisties both are excellent riders, the blackbird rider is the larger and they are quite close when racing each other on track days on 1000cc track bikes.

Check out some of belows '06 vid of the VFR following a Blackbird, note even though the Blackbird has been shimmed higher for ground clearance there are no supprises the VFR closes up in the tighter twisities and when the road opens the XX pulls a gap either way it is a better representation of the VFR's capabilities. :thumbsup:

Note VFR following Blackbird Vid is viewed best with Google vid screen sized down:


VFR follows Blackbird through twisties


_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

back in the day, I rode a 250cc Ninja. One day at a stop light a dude on Blackbird pulls up and comments how hard he had to push just to keep up. I had no idea he was following. He invited me to ride with some of his buddies, all of which had 600+cc bikes. From every stop, each one would take off with the front wheel in the air leaving the little inline twin in their dust. But in the corners I was on their tails and sometimes tucking in to force a pass. I have always preferred a nimble vehicle over a clumsy brute.

I'm new to the VFR, but all the raves and reviews I've read or heard over the years are proving to be true. Smooth and nimble for a larger bike.... plus relative comfort.

 

Part of the issue is we Americans like fast machines, but more in the context of muscle cars and going fast in a straight line.

The Busa and Gixxer 600/750/1000’s are all really nice bikes. The problem is they attract the squids in a really bad way. Therefore, they have a negative image. How many people in this thread have commented the Busa riders they see wear sandels, shorts, t-shirts when riding? I can tell you in Delaware, outside of my friend Jeff, that is the same uniform they wear here too.

Unfortunately, a seemingly large number of riders are way more concerned with having a fast bike, than actually obtaining and practicing the skills to be fast themselves.

This same thing pops up on the NESBA message board from time to time: “What’s the perfect Track Bike”?

Of course the answers vary, but by in large I am surprised by how many Advanced group riders, who also race, say pretty much the same thing “an old two stroke 250 in good condition” or “SV650” with the occasional 600 thrown in the mix. But by in large, their advice seems to go unheeded. There is this real misconception with people who don’t know better that the bike makes the rider faster because of the statistics printed in a glossy magazine. But a ride thru the twistys or on the track says otherwise, yet again, it is ignored.

It appears a rider should be picked on or shamed for having a ‘smaller’ displacement motorcycle. That if you have a bike that can only do a quarter mile run in 12-13 seconds you are somehow less of a man/women for owning such a bike. I have to really question the logic behind this thinking. To many of us on this board we get it, that’s why we own the VFR or another street bike like Fizz’s FZ1.

In riding with and watching my friend Jeff on the street and track, I’ve come to love some of the early morning scoffs and looks he gets because he’s on a Busa (which is usually the only one their, so he sticks out). But Jeff does well in a B-group pace on that machine. He’s faster than betarace and me, but not because he’s on a faster bike, but because he carries MORE corner speed than we do. Therefore he’s a faster rider. But then Jeff gets passed by riders on 600’s. Why? Because they carry more corner speed than he does. Corner speed all comes down to skill, more than the bike one rides. In Fizz’s defense, Jeff does not like Turn 5 at NJMP-Thunderbolt raceway because it’s a sharp fairly high speed left hand turn that goes up a hill. He says that’s really when the Busa’s turning weaknesses are shown. He has said he has to really crank that thing over and feels comfortable carrying only so much speed in that turn.

The point is: Rider skill is the most often ignored and underrated topic in motorcycling today. Who knows, maybe it always has been.

My two cents.

BZ

 

I'm pretty sure Shanej was just having having some fun when he started this thread, if he decides to go to Reg's BBQ we will retaliate with a big sharpie waiting for him :heh:

Another thing you must consider is this forum has become a motorcycle version of Facebook in 2009 and these kind of threads unfortunately are getting very normal, if you don't believe me just check out Tiger Tiger

 

Shayne was just playin. He owns a VFR ya know.
XX Firefighter is no slacker on the K1200, I have seen him ride.

Please, don't any of you get pissed off over this thread.

 

TOO LATE I AM Sooooo im gonna :kaboom: ALLL U HATERS A WARNING IM GONNA and :brick:

:flip:

 

What's up Shayne, hangin' in there brother? You must have owed Stuka big time!

 

remember when comparing a hayabusa to a vfr (especially a gear driven cam model)...that the honda was generally considered the best all around motorcycle in the world at the time..i love my busa( dont like the new ones much)..but my 96 vfr does it all..comfort ,sound,handling,fit and finish,..there is nothing then or now that compares...thats why we love em...suzuki never made a bike like it ,and never will...sad thing is neither will honda...take care of them you gen 3 ,4 and 5 owners