http://www.ridinginthezone.com/5-tips-from-an-aging-sport-bike-rider/
Interesting article

Assist:

http://www.ridinginthezone.com/5-tips-from-an-aging-sport-bike-rider/

Good read,when it feels right"Go for it"when I first get on the 14 my aches a pains go away within a few minutes and I drop 30 years and when everything feels so right my multible personalities come out ,Yvonne Duhamel,Lang Hindle

I think the bikes help us stay young. That's good. I really think it helps your physical and mental health a great deal to be young in your mind. I'm fighting the whole way and hope to burn out like a supernova. No nursing home for this hombre.

I plan on my demise being going off a cliff on Hwy 1 into the ocean on my 14...on fire... epic.

Mad

Well hell, I just recently turned 70, but I'm not about to give up my favorite passion! I eat right and stay in physical shape and can still keep pace with the much younger guys in the sports bike club I belong to.
Attitude guys is where it's at, think young and you'll stay young!!

Thanks for the assist Hub

I love the "supernova" and "going off a cliff,...... on fire" ideas!!

Maybe go out on the evening news with a high speed police chase that ends in a dramatic crash then hail of gunfire!

I am just starting to LIVE now that my first track day is next week!

But seriously, I am not yet to the point of being physically feeling the effects of a sportbike riding position, but I guess, as with any result if the (ahem) """-aging process-""", it sneaks up on you so slowly you don't realize it

* Last updated by: ZX14MAN64 on 8/8/2014 @ 6:38 PM *

I picked up my ZX-14 on 8-2-14 and I will be 53 0n 8-17-14
This beast will definitely keep me feeling young.

Good article. Just got back from a 3200 mile trip from Gold Beach to Jackson Hole. Great country. My 2008 Silver ZX-14 had 51000 miles on it before I sold it and my green 2012 has almost 38000 on it now. I ride a lot and I hope to be riding for years to come. I will be 71 in February.

My bike actually has HELPED my lower back injury/pain.ALWAYS feel much better after a ride...even next morningLOL!!!No shit.

good point green,I never get back pain on this bike,even after a 800km day

* Last updated by: darryle on 8/9/2014 @ 4:55 AM *

I got back into biking a year ago after a 15-year hiatus ... got an '04 Honda RC51 ... 45 now, thought I was about the same as 15 years ago. Nope, that sucker is hard on my wrists and neck! Thus my new '13 ZX-14R I can ride this sucker for hours and hours ... the only discomfort being skin irritation where the seat's shoulders rub my inner thighs, which I don't think has anything to do with age.

* Last updated by: ZX14R on 8/9/2014 @ 9:07 PM *

Well hell, I just recently turned 70, but I'm not about to give up my favorite passion! I eat right and stay in physical shape and can still keep pace with the much younger guys in the sports bike club I belong to.
Attitude guys is where it's at, think young and you'll stay young!!

fuck yeah!

Jebus... you boys make me feel 22. And I'm turning 42.

I'm 40, weight train like a madman, and just put an Alienhead 2 on my 14R. So, I'm a kid at heart. :)

That is some awesome riding 21744, I salute you.

I turn 60 in November. I've had my 07 zx14 since January. I started riding again at age 50. I've had several bikes. Sport touring to cruisers. Cruisers are just too boring. I've had 2 blackbirds but find the zx to be much better ergonomically. My legs get tight but if I stretch I'm good for 300 mile days. Over the 4th of July my uncle also on a zx14r did a 1300 mile trip to northern cal. Our next move will be to trailer the bikes to the fun places. No Harley's or gold wings in my near future.

Hello. First post here. I've been riding motorcycles since the 90s and have always wanted to be able to ride a sports bike. As of the last few years I've had an eye on (along with a Ducati Diavel and the Concourse) the ZX14R. I already have two bikes in the garage, so this would be number three.

My main issues are comfort. I'm in my mid 40s, 5'9", a husky 220+ lbs, in poor shape, plus have back and health issues. I recently rode a naked bike (Monster) and had trouble with all the weight on my wrist. I did ride the Diavel and although it's a fun bike, and even though I do my own maintenance, a Ducati just seems like a lot of work and money. Not to mention the cost of entry.

The two bikes, to me, that i've been really interested in are the Concourse and the 14R. My question to the 14R riders my age and above, how comfortable is the bike really? How do you do it? Are there comfort mods that help? Like higher bars, more supporting seat, different foot positioning options?

Am I better off with a Concourse? They've got the same DNA strain as the 14R but, it seems, possibly in a more comfortable package? The question on the Concourse would be, how much does the extra weight and different engine tuning effect performance?

I'm not too hung up on getting the last few 1/100s out of a trap run. Nor will I check my 60' times. I want to have fun on the bike and some of that fun will be using a good deal of the power. But, if I can't get comfortable on the bike it'll just sit in the garage. No matter how fun it is.

My other two bikes are a '07 Sportster and a '76 Ironhead. If I pick up a 14R or Concourse, it would be a used one, a year or two old that was well taken care of and close to stock or Stage one. I wouldn't want a highly modded bike as reliability is important too.

I've babbled long enough. Any help or suggestions are appreciated.

Ride Safe

You should probably go with the Connie. Tons of thrust, and if you don't ride a ZX14, you'll never know what you're missing.
The ZX14 is deffo a compromise in comfort, but will rip your arms off trying to hang on.
There is stuff to make the ZX more comfy, but with the Connie you're done.

Hi Guy's
Just as a matter of interest !! have most of you ridden all of your lives !
As I am 68 years old and still ride every week my Honda FireBlade and 2012 ZZR1400
I just do not get it when I hear people say oh I am 45 yrs old now,need a more comfy bike !
You are not riding fast enough if it is hurting you !
I am off to the Isle of Man for the Manx GP next week on the 1400 as I will have a pillion,
this will be my 20th year at the Manx,and I have done 50 TT's 1964 to 2014.
Not all good news it did make TWO divorces..................
Ride safe guy's and gal's.
cheers TT Paul.

I don't see how fast someone is going has anything to do with whether or not a certain bike or type of bike is comfortable to someone else. You have your life's experiences and I have mine. You see things your way. I see things mine.

The last I checked there are currently about 500 (five hundred) different motorcycle models available for new purchase. A little something for everyone.

I believe that most of us love to ride motorcycles regardless which model or type. I know I do. If one model or company didn't exist, I'd be on some form of two wheels. Anyone that says they'll only ride _______ model or brand, doesn't truly love riding.

I'm looking at the 14R because it seems like a really fun bike with gobs of power to get into "trouble" with. That said, I have to be somewhat comfortable. If not, I won't ride it enough to justify having it. I want to enjoy my times on a motorcycle. Yeah, if it were the only motorcycle in existence, I'd ride it no matter what. But, fortunately, we all have choices. I just want to make the right one for me.

I must be falling apart. Any ride over 100 miles my lower back is killing me. I thought this bike was supposed to be comfortable. I feel like 70 years old after a good ride. Won't even get into neck issues I get from this bike.....Don't get me wrong I love the zx14r, smile every ride.

Not me Madevil. I love to get lost in riding. I often wish the ride would continue forever and ever.If I could I would hit the ride for ever button, on open back country roads that lead to grammas house.

Tip 5. Share your knowledge, that's a big one!
Good article!

@baka1969

I'd sit on both before buying either. The 14R is great, good ergos, a kitten and a beast. Never rode a Concourse, so I can't really say one is better in whatever way. Concourse would be a good bike and it has some balls too, just not quite 14R territory.

Sit on both, test ride both if you have to. You might even check out something like Honda VFR 800, probably like a smaller brother of 14R. There's a ton of bikes, worth doing research and spending the time to find the best fit for you. Find them, sit on them all, test ride how many ever you need to.