This bike, like a lot of others, has much more power than what it looks like at first glance. A 649 cc, parallel twin engine, 6 speed transmission may not seem like a lot of bike to control at first blush, but it is. This bike could do 70+ hp @ 8500 rpm, and for the uninitiated basically means it can jump from a dead stop to full throttle quickly.

My own horror story comes in the form of hitting some gravel while rounding a street corner and having the bike spin out from underneath me. It went one way and I went the other. Thank the stars I had bike insurance and was wearing a very strong steelie helmet and full leathers because the helmet cracked and the leathers tore. The bike, when it stopped, was 30 feet away. It was embarrassing enough to be shuttled off to the hospital by another biker passing by.

The man never said a word about my lack of driving skill, to his credit. I sold the bike shortly thereafter.