05-25-2017, 06:27 AM
The engine’s tractability allows it to pull smoothly from idle at 1,500rpm in sixth gear. - A dealer near me rode everything at Americade and his own bikes are 15-20 year old sport tourers. He liked the CBR650 the best. He said it was fun to ride. Smooth. Maybe he just liked the lighter weight compared to his older sport tourers. I thought it looked nice when it came out but I questioned blue and flat black. Looks much better now. I think there have been lots of small sport bikes sold so they are looking for those riders to move up. The CB11 would be too heavy for most of those riders. Lots of returning riders got ZRX1100s or Bandit 1200s and crashed them with so much more performance than they had back in the day. I like the 650. It has its place. Bike Nite in Lowell MA was mostly cruisers, some stretched Busas, some sport bikes and a smattering of naked bikes. One CB1000R. No CB1100s this time though there was a black one a couple of years ago.