Former Fz6 rider, NOWWWWW, Finally an Fz1 Rider

[Dustin]

I know I'm about to catch a lot of flack for this, but I'm going to ask anyway. :surrendero different tires offer different abilities to lean in quicker? :surrender:

I'M NOT BLAMING THE TIRE FOR MY CRASH, but the bike showed up with brand new PR2's. My last bike had Hypersport S20's. The S20's I could throw the bike into a lean quick and easy. The PR2's I almost feel like I have to fight against it (or the added 45 pounds comparing Fz1 to Fz6 reallly is that big a difference). I just read an article that the Michelin guys even suggested that only well experienced/track ready riders attempt to try to push a pair of PR2's hard.

Nothing wrong with that question! Tires do make a difference and you will learn to feel it as you get more experience. Every brand and model of tire can feel different and it gets interesting to try different kinds. That said, based on watching your ride in the video, you were nowhere near even 10% of the capabilities of the PR2s. You were going at a snail's pace and the PR2s would have offered all the grip in the world, it is an an excellent tire.

The difficulty getting the bike to lean could have been any number of things. There are so many variables it's impossible to know. You were comparing an FZ6 to an FZ1 and although the names are similar, I'm sure the geometry is different. The rear tire is larger, the bike is heavier. Tire pressures play a role. The rider plays a role and new riders are often the biggest factor of all. Being stiff on the bike, arms straight, nerves, squeezing bars hard... that makes a good bike feel like a pile of shit. I know from experience.

A valid question but you should take your mind as far away from equipment as possible in this situation

 

[WABBMW]

Ssky0078:
Sorry about your crash. I believe that you can become a skilled rider, but only if you get out of that throttle. In looking at the video, I knew at 0:15 seconds that you were making a mistake. You need to get rid of that old thinking that you used to run the crap out of whatever you were driving. Hell, at 70 MPH in second gear, you were probably doing 8,500 RPM. This is nearing the peak power range of the engine, where one little blip of the throttle can raise the front wheel. You should have been in 5th or 6th gear, concentrating on steering the bike, not braking to avoid running off the road

Remember that it takes lots of practice to make all the skills become good habits that happen without concentrated thought. So in the mean time you need to leave a large margin of safety in case your skills fall short of optimum, or you freeze up. You need to ride so slowly that it is boring while building your skills. Take baby steps in your progress. Proceed very slowly. Learn from both your own mistakes and those of others. We want you to enjoy your riding. Good luck.

 

[stretched06]

:angel:

At this point I plan on keeping the Fz1, only riding it to and from work or my monthly 300 mile round trip out of town on straight freeway. I will look for a Ninja 250/CBR250 or KLR 650/DRZ400s for cheap pick up to learn how to ride harder.


Ride smooth and smart. rideing hard is what I beleve got you in trouble.

 

[Ssky0078]

Another question, the bike showed up with what seems to be rather stiff suspension, I'm guessin the all the preloads are cranked down. Is there a trick to dialing in the suspension on your own or is it recommended to go to a shop and have them help?

I'm not trying to go fast but I find that because the suspension doesn't have a lot of travel up and down that when low speed (10-20 mph) cornering on and off main roads to side streets that the uneven road makes it feel like the front wants to slide out.

I'm probably just a little gun shy after both my screw ups, but I'm trying to make adjustments and learn as I go.

 

[Darth5oh]

I am not going to comment on the crash(es) but just share what has (so far) worked for me. I had not been on a street bike for almost 3-decades. (Previous/only bike was a ’77 GT-550 I rode in college – so I’m guessing I’m way older than you.) I’ve always wanted to get back on the street, and the stars finally lined-up 2-years ago and I jumped at a low-mileage ’06 FZ1. (May not have done this if I had been lurking on this site.)
I consider myself a very good driver (own 3 Mustangs) been on dirt-bikes, wave-runners, jet-skies, and heck - I even have a VFR pilot’s license. I say this to point out I love motorsports, speed, love being “pilot-in-command”, AND have had very few significant negative incidences in my driving/riding “career.”

I knew the FZ1 was a bad-arse bike. I took (and am STILL taking) baby-steps. For my first 200-300 miles, I never put tach over 3500 rpms with a max of maybe half-throttle. Pretty-much rode it like I drive my 4-cylinder Ford Fusion. Getting comfortable with how the bike felt, each several hundred miles I added 500 or so rpm, more throttle, and cut more and more into the chicken-stripes. I put about 1000 miles on it before going to 6000 and ¾ throttle. In the next 1000-miles, I did a few hill-country rides with friends – one buddy has a Harley, so there was no pressure to “keep-up.” I got more comfortable with the power – knowing I had not nearly yet tapped the liter potential – and would roll on the throttle to full and take it to ~8k – just where the holy-crap starts. Last year (with the same Harley buddy) we did a 1500-mile round-trip from central Texas to Cloudcroft, NM. No racing/speed – just a nice cruise, with a couple blasts to 100 or so mph out in the desert. Still – to this day – 2-years later with about 5000-miles on the bike, I have yet to hit the redline – maybe 10,000 tops (once or twice.) I can say I now have a pretty-good feel for the bike, but know I'll never be a "pro", or ever come close to using this bike's potential.

The only two “scares” I’ve had were 1.) drifting way too close to a 4-5” drop-off on a shoulder-less 2-lane road at highway speed, and 2.) some target-fixation in a corner and I ended-up touching the double-yellow center line – both of which really had nothing to do with it being a liter-bike.

As others have stated – self-control is the key. If I had jumped on this thing 2-years ago and immediately started blasting it to 10k rpm – I really don’t even want to think about what may have happened. Baby-steps and miles. Baby-steps and miles. Best of luck!

 

[Darth5oh]

Another question, the bike showed up with what seems to be rather stiff suspension, I'm guessin the all the preloads are cranked down.

I found that too. I cranked both the front and rear to softer than factory
settings myself (some trial & error) and it feels better to me on the street. Look for write-ups on setting the sag - I need to do this on mine also...

 

[Ssky0078]

I took (and am STILL taking) baby-steps. For my first 200-300 miles, I never put tach over 3500 rpms with a max of maybe half-throttle. Pretty-much rode it like I drive my 4-cylinder Ford Fusion. Getting comfortable with how the bike felt, each several hundred miles I added 500 or so rpm, more throttle, and cut more and more into the chicken-stripes. I put about 1000 miles on it before going to 6000 and ¾ throttle.

As others have stated – self-control is the key.

I'm 34 and a doctor who has worked with chronic pain for the last 6 years. A fair number from car, motorcycle and atv accidents.

I was the complete opposite, I hopped on and within the first mile had it to 8000 rpms. Within the first 20 miles I had redlined in first around 85 mph and in 2nd around 109. Listening to your story I'm just going to call myself and a-hole again.

Since crashing for the last 2 days, I have been playing around with shifting, gear selection and rpms to keep it below 6000. The only time I ever go past that is getting on the freeway ramp. I just may be lazy but I rev it up to 75mph and then pull in the cluch, double or triple up the shift and then keep the rpms down.

I wish I had started off like that, but oh well, luckily I lived to learn about it.

 

[johnnyontherocks]

MSF course, trackdays with some coaching or any number of prominent schools, take at least one and keep taking them. Many people spend tons of cash on modifications for their rides but few invest money into their riding. Remember you did not become a doctor by having people answer questions for you on a internet forum. Find a track near you or pick up a issue of roadracer magazine (will give you who and where near you) and invest into yourself. This is the best advice that I can give. You wont be sorry.

 

[WABBMW]

I am attaching a spreadsheet of the suspension settings. It shows the minimum, maximum and factory settings. Then there are 3 settings I have found to be good for me, as I weigh 160. The last column, is a very rough estimate for you, considering your weight. All I did was to estimate the preload settings, based roughly on your weight. Then just duplicated the factory settings, which should give you a softer than normal ride, again based on your weight.

I have also found that the FZ1 needs a little more pressure on the handlebars to make it turn, as compared to motorcycles with narrower tires. I believe the 190 rear tire size has something to do with this, but do not start making changes. Just ride and become acustomed to the motorcycle. One other thing - the suspension settings would not have saved you from the crash. Back again to the rider skills thing.

All the best to you.

 

[Ssky0078]

I am attaching a spreadsheet of the suspension settings. It shows the minimum, maximum and factory settings. Then there are 3 settings I have found to be good for me, as I weigh 160 and have a short inseam. The last column, is a very rough estimate for you, considering your weight.

I have also found that the FZ1 needs a little more pressure on the handlebars to make it turn. I believe the 190 rear tire size has something to do with this, but do not start making changes. Just ride and become acustomed to the motorcycle. All the best to you.

I shall try again to upload the file, but unsuccessful thus far.

If you can't post, then PM me and I can give you my gmail. I'm very interested.

 

[grommet]

MSF course, trackdays with some coaching or any number of prominent schools, take at least one and keep taking them. Many people spend tons of cash on modifications for their rides but few invest money into their riding. Remember you did not become a doctor by having people answer questions for you on a internet forum. Find a track near you or pick up a issue of roadracer magazine (will give you who and where near you) and invest into yourself. This is the best advice that I can give. You wont be sorry.

+ 1000

You can do it, you just don't know how yet. Nobody did when they first started.

If you made it through med school you have the brains to figure out the machine and figure out your body. Put them together, figure it out, take it slow.

Trackdays have a novice group for a reason. I've seen grandmas and 7 year old kids on the track in novice. They did fine. Get out there and take it slow. No prize money for going fast. After a while you'll start picking it up, and then you can slowly pick up the pace. Baby steps.

Don't give up on yourself.