
Originally Posted by
WilliamCutting
If your definition of "riding" is merely getting on the bike and making it down the road without falling over, you can probably learn on a 1000 cc bike. However, the curve to actually learn how to ride properly will be much, much greater. It doesn't take much experience to get a bike to stay up or hammer the throttle in a straight line. Where your inexperience will hurt you will be in a turn and in situations where you must brake rapidly.
Any sportbike will do exactly what you tell it to, when you tell it to do it. If the input you're giving it is flawed, then so will the outcome. This is more apparant on larger bikes.
If you're riding just for the "look" the 1000 is fine. You'll be able to sit on it, learn how to take off and in time get comfortable cruising around.
In my opinion, if you want to really learn how to ride a sportbike properly, start on a 600, preferably an older one. That way if you drop it, lose interest or any of the many things that occur to beginners it won't hurt too much.
You will learn all the fundamentals of riding much quicker.
When you get to the point that you can be tucked in at full throttle on that 600, approach a turn, slam on the brakes, downshift, lean the bike to where your knee is nearly touching the ground, bang the throttle fully open, ride through the turn, come out, upshift and hit it wipe open again and it gets boring, then go buy the 1000.
Remember, it's your first bike, not your last...