Moving from Harley to VFR800

OK, so I have been riding for 35 years and have never owned a sport or sport tourer. After following the VFR800 reviews and rider praise I finally decided to get one to see if it is really as good as everyone says. I picked the bike up last Saturday and have put 150 miles on it and I am still getting used to the egos, but I will say it sure does handle well and this engine is unbelievable. I just need to get used to knees forward instead of feet forward. BTW I have been riding my Harley Nightrain since 2010. I am looking forward to making the bike mine and reading through everyone's experiences here on the forum. I almost forgot, she's a 2008 with 9500 miles.

 

Welcome to The World Vallokid! It's common practice to post a pic of your ride on your intro post, so once you get a chance be sure to post one up! I'm sure once you get some more miles on your bike, you'll really appreciate what the VFR is, and that's a great all around motorcycle!

 

Congrats on the new toy! Hopefully you are smarter than the average Harley rider and invested in some good safety gear.

 

Awesome, another harley rider recruited. Enjoy, and what Rollin_Again said....gear is number one

 

Welcome to the other side! You're going to love that bike ...

 

Hey Vallokid, welcome aboard. What I think you'll like about having your feet underneath you instead of in front of you is the fact that you can move your weight around better and bumps/potholes won't be felt right up the spine so much. And you'll have ALOT more control of the front wheel than you're used to.
It's a good forum and you'll get some help here if you need it. Post a pic!

 

Welcome vallokid. Great to have you here.

 

Welcome. Give it some saddle time and you'll love it. Gear or no gear, enjoy the bike.

 

Another great reason for switching is when you walk into a bar with sportbikes out front unlike one of those all HD joints, nine dudes in assless chaps don't start hitting on you..

 

Note that if your like most HD riders and don't use the front brake, the VFR you own has a linked braking system, so even if you only use he rear brake pedal, it does activate the left from caliper! Just something to be cognizant of...

 

Welcome Vallo. Hope you enjoy your new ride. I to came from a Harley. The very experienced salesman gave me a tip I found helpful. Ride with your thighs. Sounds odd. Sort of hug the tank from the knees up. It allowed me to take the weight off my wrists. Seemed to work for me.

You'll find some helpful/knowledgable folks here. Ride safe.

 

Thanks for the replies. Re: safety equipment, the first thing I bought was a good Shoei Full face helmet and after wearing it on my 1st ride I realized I should have been wearing this for years. I do plan on getting a good riding jacket and any recommendations would be appreciated. I have been riding for quite a few years and do understand the need for good equipment. I've never been a t-shirt and sandals rider. I appreciate the advice from you guys unlike the other forums I have visited where you're not cool with that mushroom head comment is common. Thanks again.

 

Well, equipment is definitely something I can speak to ... it helped save my life / excessive injury a little over 3 weeks ago.

You've already got a full face helmet, and a nice one it sounds like!

Jacket - doesn't matter what you get so long as it's armored. I like the Joe Rocket stuff myself. It's reasonably priced for good quality.

Pants - again, it doesn't matter what you get so long as it's armored. I'm actually wearing a set of Joe Rocket Blaster armored jeans. They have kevlar in the knees, hips, and arse as well as knee pads built in.

Boots - don't buy boots that have buckles that stick out - they damaged my foot in the last crash as much as the impact with the semi truck during the collision. They are pressure points that can direct a lot of force at your foot. Get boots that go part way up your shin and don't have anything sticking out from it's surface - I just bought a set of TCX explorers an the whole closure system is a zipper and velcro.

Gloves - just make sure they're armored with a hard material for the back of the hands / knuckles. I like Alpinestars gloves a lot.

Ride on!!!

 

I have a tourmaster air intake with upgraded armore from Revzilla.
Jeff just bought the exact boots from Zilla, today will be the 6th wearing them..
Excellent boot, and very comfortable walking as well.
Valokid, if theres any gear that your thinkin about, Revzilla has educational vidios on just about every item they sell.
Good luck, oh and get out and RIDE!!!!!

 

Welcome, gear is just a part of my bike.

 

Awesome! I did a lot of research on my gear this time around - I had a lot of time on my hands to think about and do the research after the accident.

I like how it fit on my right foot - my left foot can barely fit in it right now, but the swelling / edema is slowly going down. I should be able to wear the boots in another week or two. Right now, I'm wearing an older set of my hunting boots with hard toes and steel shank. They come up fairly high and have more space in them so it's comfortable to wear right now.

 

Got the size 8 (41 35/12) since that equates to US 8 and I wear an 8 1/2, made in Romania . Tight at first but now only after almost a week , they fit like a glove...started out tight on the sides of my feet, but walk a good 10 minutes daily to the office...sure this double digits here help also.
Glad you back and riding, Hope you attorney does his job for ya....ride on brotha

 

Yah, I got 1/2 size smaller as well ... it fits my right foot quite well. Thanks! We're working on it anyways.

Insurance has me covered no matter what.

 

Excellent. ..

 

welcome aboard. I am sure you will appreciate your the more you ride it !!!