- This topic has 5 replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 15 years, 3 months ago by claybomb2003.
supermoto vs sport
-
AuthorPosts
-
December 16, 2008 at 3:31 am #2412claybomb2003Participant
I am trying to decide between getting a supermoto style bike like the suzuki DRZ 400SM (or similar) and a sport bike (either a ninja 500 or an sv 650). This is my first bike. Can anyone that has ridden both types give some advice on this? What kind of handling differences are there? Reliability? Maintenance/cost of parts? Power? It rains a lot here so any differences on stability when its wet? I will be using the bike for a 45 minute commute that is on highways and twisty roads (I live in hawaii). Any advice is much appreciated!
December 16, 2008 at 3:43 am #15286megaspazParticipantif you’re worried about the wet on the street, then a sports bike. Wider tires, bigger contact patch. Supermoto-style bikes, lots of fun though. A lot of advantages to a supermoto bike. They’re lighter, more maneuverable in the corners, very flickable. More upright seating position. Can go offroad and onroad. A sports bike has more range than a supermoto with a bigger gas tank. They go a lot faster in a straight line. Having 2 sports bikes, my next bike’s gonna be a dirt or dual sport. If you hate washing your bike, you might want to just go with a sports bike, because the temptation to take a dualsport/supermoto offroad would be just too great….
—
If there’s anything more important than my ego
around, I want it caught and shot now…December 16, 2008 at 7:14 pm #15292AnonymousGuestWider tires, bigger contact patch = hydroplaning in rain. For rain and snow, narrow tire.
December 17, 2008 at 12:22 am #15301MunchParticipantBefore splitting hairs too much…. the contact patch in question…wide or narrow has to have the ability to shed water to not hydroplane. A bald 1/4 inch patch is just as dangerous, actually more so then say a passenger car tire. Less chances to regain traction in the instance of slippage.
Also the contact patch on the bikes offer more room for deeper leans in turns. The “V” shape of the tire is specifically for that. The harder the lean the more rubber on the road. Cruisers are not made, or atleast by basic habits, for carving a turn at radical speeds which is why they have more of a “U” shape. Keeps a decent amount of straight line rubber.
Snow ( this is more for cages, if its snowing I hope you have better sense to stay off the highway on a bike)…. well the jury is out on that one… leave that to the drivers skill. I can float 33’s (inches) or 35’s over the top of snow or I could chose to run a meager 235 (metric) to try and “cut”my way through it. All depends on application and skill.Yesterday is a memory, tomorrow is a prediction, but today…… is a Bi**h
December 17, 2008 at 4:43 am #15309dcJohnParticipantYou know, you really can get both worlds. There’s the Versys–Kawi’s dual-sport adaptation of the Ninja 650. This past year it won Motorcyclist’s Bike of the Year and Motorcycle News’ “All Rounder Machine of the Year.” The stock setup is much more on-road oriented than off-road, but it’s very easy to tweak for more serious offroad riding if you like. (It’s also what I’m riding, so plenty of bias.)
If you lean a bit more toward the off-road than on, there’s also the Suzuki V-strom–also a dual-sport, just leans a bit more toward off-road performance than on-road in comparison to the Versys.
Check out advrider.com for a great discussions of these and other dual-sport options.
December 18, 2008 at 7:29 am #15325claybomb2003ParticipantAwesome, thanks for all the input. The Kawi Versys does look like a great bike, but its a bit out of my price range. I am still completely torn about which bike I want to get… I think either style would be good, and it might just come down to what is available on craigslist when I am buying! I might be leaning towards the DRZ, because I think it will be a bit cheaper to maintain, and if I drop it, its not going to be as bad the SV. (Plus I can take it dirt riding!
-
AuthorPosts
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.