Welcome from Louisiana, the land of heat and humidity. I'm a regular reader of the boards since Summer of '08, back before the old board crashed, etc. I don't post much, cause there's plenty of folks on here with more info than me about the zx.
I've been riding since 1974, and on the street since 1989. Started on the street with a Honda XL600V Transalp. That was a great go-anywhere bike back when. Good street comfort, with enough clearance to hop parking logs. Sold it to get something with a little more power.
Next bike was a Honda CB750 Nighthawk. Good commuter bike, but felt heavy (steel frame) and awful slow for a 750. Wanted something quicker and lighter.
Next was a Suzuki SV650. Good choice, that was a great bike. Light, good low end power, and loved curves. I added a 4 degree ignition advance kit to it. Still wanted more power.
Sold the SV and bought a 96 Yamaha VMax. Had to fulfill a highschool fantasy of owning one. First bike that I had owned that didn't seem to need more power. Rolling burn-outs, no problem. One bad SOB. Didn't handle very well. 1980's era frame and suspension provided some real scary high speed sweepers, with lots of frame flex/wobble. Sold it after about 4 years.
Finally had to have something with the things I had found to be critical to me from the previous bikes. Wanted something with as much power as was available, plus relatively light weight(vs a VMax), with up to date suspension and brakes, decent wind protection, and a real world riding position. After lots of time researching and soul searching, decided on the ZX14. Considered LOTS of other bikes, but knew that I wouldn't be satisfied with anything less.
So, I broke the news to my wife, and went to local dealer and picked out an 08 Special Edition last August. Each to his own, but I love the matte black and persimmon red. The flames I can take or leave. Anyway, I've been riding it every chance I get for the last 10 months. This is the longest that I've owned a bike and haven't wanted to either modify it or buy something else.
Anyway, thanks for reading, and thanks to all you regulars for keeping us informed. Thanks especially to the guys that spend the money and time to try stuff out and report back to the rest of us lurkers about what works and what doesn't.
