I get to ride a Connie 14!

[cap'n]

Next week. I visit my in-laws in GA where it's warm, and my father in law just got a connie a few months back. I'm really excited, not just because of what I get to ride, but the fact that I get to ride at all, given that in Boston it's still sub-freezing and salty and disgusting.

Only thing that worries me is my size relative to Connie's size. She's a big girl, and I am a very small dude. I'm on the right:

I'm about 5'5" and 115 lbs. The 14 is somwhere just shy of 700 lb's, and I know the seat is a little higher and wider than the fizzer. I'm not REALLY worried about it - after 7 years and 50k miles I know what to do, I just have this recurring dream that I go to tip it up off the side stand, and nothing happens. Or I get to a stop light, and have a hard time one-footing it. Someone tell me I have little / nothing to worry about, please.

 

[Motogiro]

Yeah but you have, "Crazylegs!"
I know what you mean. I'm 5' 7" and I'v ridden tall seat bikes but not 700 lbs.

 

[Cali rider]

...Only thing that worries me is my size relative to Connie's size. She's a big girl, and I am a very small dude....

...I'm not REALLY worried about it - after 7 years and 50k miles I know what to do...

...Someone tell me I have little / nothing to worry about, please.

A- Once you are moving the weight means nothing.
B- 7 years and 50k miles? You are far more experienced than most.
C- You truly have nothing to worry about. But please take the time to give a comparative review between the two bikes. I am probably on my last season with my FZ and the C-14 is on my short list of new vehicles.

 

[2006_FZ6]

You'll be fine, just steady yourself with both feet as your coming to a stop. As Cali Rider said, once you get moving the weight won't be as notable.

Let us know how it rides! Some more pics too!

 

[cap'n]

Thanks all. I'll take pics, and post up my impressions. I can NOT wait.

 

[cap'n]

Oh and "Crazylegs" is a run named after a sports booster guy in Madison WI. My wife runs it (ran it ) every year, when we lived there. I got the t-shirts.

 

[cap'n]

Ok, I've spent 2 days with her. I'm visiting the in-laws, and they know how badly I'm jonesing for any ride time, so they've sent me out 3 times on 'er. 3 trips, 4.5 hours, and about 150 miles total.

First, a few things about this bike. This is an 08, so the fairing heat issue is not fixed, the mirrors still show a lot of your bags, and there was no heated grip / abs available. This particular bike has a 2 Brothers pipe on it (!), bar risers, and a throttle meister that I did not touch. The front tire has been replaced with a Pirelli, the rear is the stock BT021 with over 10k on it, and it's squared off a good bit.

I won't bore you with comments you can read 800 places elsewhere. Just the FZ6-Curious specifics I guess.

Yes, it's bigger. Yes, it's heavier. Yes, it's faster. Yes, it's more comfy. My questions going in were "how much?" So one by one...

BIGGER. The reach to the ground is a little bit longer than the fizzer, but not undoable for me. So the reach to the bars was similar to mine, though both his 14 and my 6 have risers. Foot pegs were very similar as well. Seat is wider and much more comfy. Windshield adjusts on the fly from way down low to right up under my line of sight. A few inches from top was perfect... clear view, no buffeting. It shrinks once you've ridden it... it just doesn't seem so gigantic.

HEAVIER. As with all the bigger bikes, once I actually throw a leg over it, it doesn't seem "all that bad." I had no problem righting it from the kick stand, nor setting it back down again. I also got it up onto the center stand, with only a little bit more effort than the 6. My father in law (new to biking) didn't believe me. I remember being really intimidated by center stands. I showed him how. It's up to him to practice it now, I guess. If this thing fell over, forget about picking it up alone. And muscling it around the driveway, gas stations, red lights, etc, was doable for a guy my size, but a LOT more work than the 6. This would not be a lot of fun around Boston. My calves were burnin'. Also maybe it was the weight of the engine, but this wouldn't power wheelie for me, and I gave it several chances.

FASTER. Whoa lord. This bike pulls hard. Only thing I've ever ridden that pulled with this much thrust, this much torque, was a sportster 1200S. That bike was like a light switch, just instantly launched wherever you were. This was similar, if maybe a little more spongey with a MUCH broader power band. Throttle response is crisp and very close to "immediate." There's still a lag, but it's 1/4 what it is on the fizzer at, say, 3k or 4k rpm's. I got it to bog, once, by rolling on the gas hard in 6th at 60mph. That was identical to the fizzer at maybe 50mph in 6th. GRRRuuuuuuuuuUUUUUUUAAAAHHH then it goes. Having said that, at 90 in the freeway, 6th has the engine turning at 4.2k. Seriously. Redline is 10.5. I got 2 chances to really open it up. The first time, I found a half mile long straight flat road by a little airport. It was a dead end, and NOBODY is ever on it. I launched twice from a stop, and gave it all I had the stones for. The second pass I shifted just before redline in first and second, then chickened out halfway through third gear at about 98mph. The front never even got light, somehow. But it was all I could do to hang on. By 98, things were getting scary, and fast, though I should say I had no idea what my speed was til I let off. It was just at that point that I felt like the stakes were getting too big too fast.

Second chance to hit it hard was getting on the interstate (I85). I left the on ramp getting way up into 2nd, and stabbed 3rd looking to shoot into a clear spot in the left lane. I should say for those who don't live in Atlanta that the default speed is 85mph. If you're slow, you go 75. If you're in a hurry, it's 90. I forget that, living in Boston. People are ruder there in their cars, but they do go a little slower than down here. Anyway, I was just merging as far as I knew, and when I looked down I didn't believe the speedo when it said 110. All the usual FZ6 clues about how fast you're going - helmet buffeting, pants flapping - were absent. It was just a number. And the bike made it known that 152mph was just an afterthought away. "Make up a number," it said. "Any number you want. That's how fast we'll go." So for comparison's sake, 90mph on the 14 felt like 60mph on the FZ6. Like the whole world is still ahead of you. Like the bike is just barely waking up.

COMFORT. Squarely between the fizzer, and a barcalounger. It's not a gold wing, it's not overly plush anywhere. You are aware of your surroundings, and you would get wet in the rain. But those lower fairings... I was smitten. I would KILL for that, now. My knees get so damned cold on the fizzer in the winter. The bags are simple and huge, the mirrors suck, and all the controls are typically Japan Easy. Gears shifted smoothly, clutch pull was stiff for a hydraulic - my left hand got a little tired. Brakes were what you expect - sportbike good.

OVER ALL. I don't want to trade. I don't do a lot of highway work, and I have to maneuver around Boston all the time. This bike is not as good as the yamaha for that, period. It is a sledge hammer, when I need a framing hammer. The engine is fun, but honestly it's so damned big that it limits how much you can enjoy it. In order to see the top 1/3 of the rpm's you have to be hooning around, bigtime. There's nowhere I could, for example, open this thing up in Boston but Storrow Drive. You need a long straight, no cops, no sand, and no traffic to be able to let that motor do its thing well, and I just don't have that. I'd love to have one as a second bike, to take 2-up trips. For that, it is a much MUCH better tool. Or maybe if you're a really big guy who doesn't need to push the hell out of his bike often, and live in a midsize or smaller city with reasonable traffic, this would work out great. It's perfectly happy to loaf along in the lower half of the power. I personally find it much more fun, however, to ride a smaller bike hard, than to ride a bigger bike at 1/4 of its potential.


I have more pics and video, but Imageshack us failing for some reason. More later, potentially. You need to hear this beast.

 

[The Toecutter]

You'll be fine Capn! I got a freind Chad who is your exact size and he could wheelie a Harley Dresser!! and i'm being totaly serious I saw him do it!! :jawdrop: :noworries: :Sport:

 

[cap'n]

It's already happened. I've been here with the bike for 3 days. No wheelie, but then I wasn't really looking for one anyway.

 

[lonesoldier84]

It is a sledge hammer, when I need a framing hammer.

Epic quote. Better than a lot of people who get paid to write about bikes.



But.....FJR for the win....

 

[cap'n]

But.....FJR for the win....

I'm thinking so, yeah. Or Sprint 1050. Seems like those might be a bit easier to wrestle.

 

[cap'n]

What a 5'5" guy looks like holding up a Connie 14:

 

[KCmdmn]

I currently have a C-10 and have ridden it for 20+ years (140+K miles). Bought an '06 FZ6 about 3 weeks ago, finally got it licensed yesterday, and rode it for 90 minutes in the afternoon. So I'm kinda going in the opposite direction as you.
That said, I agree with what you wrote. The Conc is a big machine and takes a bit of getting used to. And the C-14 has more power/better brakes/better handling/etc., etc. than the C-10. But a small guy can handle it with a bit of practice. And yes, that fairing is SO nice, as it provides a lot of wind protection.
Now, riding a Conc around Boston (which I have driven in, although it was 10-15 years ago) would be a challenge. The Conc won't be as manueverable as the FZ, but it *is* a bit more noticeable. I commute 90+ miles a day to work, and have really enjoyed doing it on the Conc. But I think you nailed the differences pretty accurately, although I may change my mind as I ride the FZ6 more. Good luck!!

 

[krid80]

I have put a good amount of miles on the C14 and I agree with everything except the Sportster 1200 reference. While the sportster has torque, it makes about 60hp and our FZ6 would eat it for lunch in every aspect including straight line acceleration. Maybe it has been a while since you rode a sporty or maybe you mistook noise for power LOL.

Great write up on the Connie and you are so right about Atlanta traffic. I usually hit the HOV lane and keep it around 90.

Sent from my HTC EVO 4G using tapatalk.

 

[bcityroller]

I'm thinking so, yeah. Or Sprint 1050. Seems like those might be a bit easier to wrestle.

I don't think the FJR would be any easier than a C-14. A VFR800 or a K1200S/K1300S is more in line with the Sprint 1050 for weight and splits the diff with the C-14 and the FZ6. If you liked the C-14 motor, you'd prolly like the K12/13 motor as well.

As a an owner of a K1200S I will say it's still is a lot more work around town than the FZ6 was - but it's way more comfy outside of town (and faster). Your earlier comment about "pick a number" seems pretty accurate - as long as the number is north of 50 - if it's not then I think the bike picks it's own.