I didn't mind Jerry H's comments, he is entitled to his opinion. Plus, he gave me the opening to explain my crazy-ass self about why/how I came to purchase such an unlikely bike for my own comfort . I also appreciated all the chivalry! So far, the stock seat is fine (125 miles so far, ain't much of a sample, so stay tuned:), but I noticed Saddlemen has some verry nice seats for the gsxr.
there has been at least one other Gixxer thread: http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=605853 welcome to the nut house BTW - I sold mine with 68,000 miles on the clock
I might be off base here, but isn't the 650 a GSX 650 F? not an R? The 2012 or 2013 manuals would be for Europe or Asia if it's an F.....They dropped it from USA in 2010, I believe, but still a good seller in the rest of the world.
My bad , I meant GSXR 600..... good catch. The GSXR 600 and 750 apparently share a lot of components.
I was your age when I rode a stock GSXR1000 915 miles in one day. All I got was shoulder ache for a few days. I routinely ride 400 mile days with no problem on my present GSXR1000. It's all a question of being in reasonable physical shape.
I don't have a great back and like you find leaning over puts less stress on it than riding in an upright position. The Apex risers are a good idea. I have Helibars and rearset plates on on my GSXR1000 and found it made a big difference in comfort. Also I have a small tankbag which makes it easy to rest my left elbow on it and make the straights somewhat less boring. I've had Corbins on two bikes I have owned and they are a very comfortable seat. Have considered one for the gixxer. I can honestly say that I don't feel any more tired after a 400 or so mile day on my GSXR1000 than I do on my VFR750. You'll have a great time on your bike.
This can't be stressed enough. Strong core muscles will increase your mileage on a sport bike more than any farkle.
I put about 50,000 miles on a 1993 Honda CBR900RR. Rode it all over the western U.S., all over west Texas, and up and down the Appalachians several times. The only "comfort" modifications were Heli-bars and a Corbin seat. Sold it when I was 52 years old, and only because I wanted a newer bike. Still wish I had that CBR now - don't let anyone tell you that a sport bike can't be used for touring.
Try packing your tank bag with a towel on the inside top so you can lay on it on the straight roads. This saves your arms and neck for the twisty bits. It also is a comfortable way to duck under the wind screen. Flip down your passenger pegs to hook your boot heels on for a different position as well.
Well, I'm no suzuki owner, but I hope putting my Yamaha bike and plans on here. Here is my plan, which might have to be postponed from this August to next August, do to the fact we started a new business and want it to be on solid ground before I take a month to do this. Actually might plan an east coast 10 day trip to test out the bike as well. Anyways, the trip consist of towing the bike to my cousins house in Alamogordo NM and taking off for a 5k mile trip. Weapon to be used is my 2005 Yamaha R1 Raven edition. I (me and a friend) welded up some custom mounts for my Givi hard bags I bought used. Got a used Corbin seat from R1forum, helped me get about 50 miles more than usual. Bought a set of new Buel footpegs from a ________ (forgot the model number), they lower the footpeg about an inch. Also got a set on Converty Bars to raise my handle bars a couple of inches. The trick to raising the handle bars more than the usual 1-1/2 inches is to build custom spacers for the mirror bolts. What I am going to use is a custom 1.75 inch spacer to go between the upper fairing stay (where the mirrors bolt to) and the fairing. So in other words the fairing will be slightly bent upwards. Kind of like this. There are other mods coming along, like running lights, stop lights and blinkers built into the Givi bags. There is a lot more, but I'll let you chime in before I thread Jack too much! LOL My Apologies and I'll start a thread of my own soon. Thanks
I realize I owe you an apology after finding out why you are using a hardcore sportbike for touring. As you can tell from some of the other comments, most everybody on here believes the only real street bikes are sportbikes, and hate cruisers. I had to give up riding such bikes because of the extreme pain they were causing me, and I only rode them short trips, I couldn't tour on them 30 years ago at age 24. I also tour on cruisers for medical/health related reasons. I have severe arthritis/fibromyalgia, and cannot support my body weight with my arms and legs for very long (It has reached the point where a mile is about as far as I can walk anymore without serious pain) I also cannot bend my neck back as far as it will go. I even sometimes have trouble getting my leg over the seat of anything but a cruiser or scooter (I ride both) So I have to have a bike that does not put any stress on my arms and legs, where my neck is straight, and where almost all of my weight goes on the seat. Other than an all out touring bike (I just sold my Goldwing because it was so big and heavy I felt uncomfortable on it in parking lots) or a cruiser, which is what I currently ride. I have been riding cruisers since 1980, when I discovered just how comfortable they were for me. So it would never have occurred to me in a million years that someone would ride a hardcore sport bike FOR comfort. Anyway, I sincerely apologize for thinking you were just another macho type sport bike rider out to prove how tough they are (I know about a zillion of those)
Wow. That was very kind of you, JH. Apology accepted Yes, the last year has been difficult, being in chronic pain and not being able to ride, so, I'm right there with ya. I have had 3 epidural spinal injections, physical therapy every week, chiropractic, acupuncture, and a handful of different pain meds. But now I'm pain med free . In my darkest times, I thought maybe I was going to have to give up riding, so, now I'm just happy to be riding something-anything!:). The crazy thing is I have never liked sportbikes, and I'm sort of embarrassed to be riding one. The popular sportbike culture (trackdays, stunters, squids, etc.) doesn't reflect who I am as a person, so it's weird to have one in the garage. But, since my back feels relief when I'm on it, I decided to put my own prejudices aside, and just go with the flow (it's an experiment, really:). On that note, I wish everyone a Happy Spring forward day
Twistedthrotlle has alot of touring stuff for all bikes. I whould have looked at the bags-connection blaze saddlebags.http://www.twistedthrottle.com/sw-motech-bags-connection-blaze-sport-saddlebag-system-suzuki-gsx-r-750-1000-11 I use my ZX14 for touring, and like all sportsbike the saddle is on the hard side. You could buy a bicycle shorts with gelpads on the butt or a air-hawk pillow.