Is it a sport bike?

[Tim_in_AZ_imp]

My mods also lean to the sporty side.

[Ulvetanna_imp]

My mods also lean to the sporty side.

Good that this is a bike that can fulfill so many roles, so well.

[WhiskeyUSMC1979_imp]

To put it in Chevy terms (since that is what I compare most motorized conveyances to)...

It looked like a Chevelle on the show room floor.
It behaves a bit more like a Malibu on the street.
It gets treated by quite a few on this forum like a Nomad or El Camino.

Hahaha. Whatever it is, make it yours.


Sent from an undisclosed location

[Papa Weeley_imp]

I'll bet that the OP had no idea that he was opening this can of fecal matter when he decided to ask his question!

[Ulvetanna_imp]

It's not really an oil thread and not a new topic, but always relevant. Clearly the forum is getting a slow but steady trickle of new members and the "is it a sportbike?" question is occurring independently to a fair number of them. Of course, a search might have turned up my thread from a couple of months ago, but either way, it seems to be part of the collective consciousness of CB1100 owners that the bike is pretty darn sporty.

I figure whoever is paying for the bike can think of it any way they please, and use it as they like, which is as it should be.

Where I do draw a philosophical line is at the proclamation that it is not a sport bike in any way. Now we know at least 25% of forum members do think of it in that way. These polls are good for something, no?

Now, I have to figure out how I can trade my FZ8 in on the new FZ10 and not take a huge bath.

[Cormanus]

The simple truth about this bike is that its classification depends where you bought it. For example, in Australia it's a naked bike; in the US, it's a sport bike. That's what Honda says. Wanna argue with them?

A further question is whether there can—or, indeed, should—be absolute definitions of the requirements for a bike to fall into a particular class which would put an end to this sort of thread. It is clear, from this thread at least, that most members of this forum are very happy to rely on their personal classification abilities: if I think it's a sport bike, it is!

The resulting arguments adduced in support of peoples' cases are mostly entertaining.

[Frulk_imp]

My perspective on this: the CB 1100 is a 'Utility player'.

This from Wiki: "In sport, a utility player is one who can play several positions competently, a sort of jack of all trades. Sports in which the term is often used include football, baseball, rugby union, rugby league, water polo, softball and track. Its first documented use in reference to a motorcycle was on 18 Aug 2016 by Frulk, a member of the CB1100 Forum internet site to describe the bikes versatility".

Last Saturday she was a sport bike on a 40 mile spirited afternoon romp through the local Utah mountains.

Today she was a commuter cutting through traffic effortlessly for 18 miles to and from work.

Tomorrow she'll be a nakit sports tourer starting out on an 800 mile fast paced 2-day/3 state ride with no real goal in mind.

Sunday morning she could be the modern retro bike parked in front of my buddies coffee shop.

Come Monday she may be the quintessential UJM sitting quietly in the bike bay taking a well deserved rest for the day.

When the CB1100 gets put in the game she's capable of being what I need her to be on any given day.

[RockHop_imp]

For what it' worth .... (hint: not much)

Cycle World named the CB1100 as the best STANDARD bike of the year in 2013
RideApart named it the best RETRO bike
Motorcycle.com named it the best STANDARD bike
MotorCycleNews named it the best RETRO bike

The SPORT bike category was a battle between the Ducati 899 Panigale, the Triumph Daytona, BMW HP4, etc.

Does this mean the CB isn't a sport bike? Nope, just not in the running for the best sportbike.

[Ulvetanna_imp]

For what it' worth .... (hint: not much)

Cycle World named the CB1100 as the best STANDARD bike of the year in 2013
RideApart named it the best RETRO bike
Motorcycle.com named it the best STANDARD bike
MotorCycleNews named it the best RETRO bike

The SPORT bike category was a battle between the Ducati 899 Panigale, the Triumph Daytona, BMW HP4, etc.

Does this mean the CB isn't a sport bike? Nope, just not in the running for the best sportbike.

It's certainly not the highest-performing sportbike, but then they heavily weight these so-called shootouts toward track performance. The GSX-R 750 was the best middleweight sportbike that same year in CW's shootout, held at Chuckwalla, one of my favorite tracks.

In pretty much every way I prefer the Honda for sport riding on the street over the Suzuki. Just as fun in the turns but far better on the slab.

[Django]

The CB 1100 is a universal bike. You may use it for a sporty ride as well as for cruising.

Some may prefer the CB over a true sportbike for sporty riding. That does not mean, it would do it better.

Some may prefer the CB over e.g. a Harley for cruising.