Anyone Ever Really RIDE the XS11?

[IanDMacDonald]

So, I'm curious. The XS11 is big, heavy, does not like the curves at higher speeds, etc. So, with that being said, has anybody really tried to ride this bike to the max? Taken her down around a corner fast and low to the ground, etc. I guess what I'm asking is if anybody has rode this thing like a sport bike? I'm scared this bike will break apart going over the wrong crack or the engine will do.bad things riding it rough. I do highway speeds, and try to keep the revs low. One time I almost over-revved it and thought I did some damage. Dumb, and never again after the money put into this thing.

[DGXSER]

The real issue is your skill level. There are some who can ride the XS11 right with a newer sport bike. I'm not one of them. I know I am more of a cruiser, and enjoy the XS11 as a cruiser.

It is more likely you will push the bike beyond your ability to control it, than you pushing it to a point of the bike failing. JMHO

[motoman]

The real issue is your skill level. There are some who can ride the XS11 right with a newer sport bike. I'm not one of them. I know I am more of a cruiser, and enjoy the XS11 as a cruiser.

It is more likely you will push the bike beyond your ability to control it, than you pushing it to a point of the bike failing. JMHO

+1......it'll break you before you break it. Better 'learn' the bike before playing those kinda games.....and a good choice of tires. BTW, some have learned the hard way that public roads have too many un foreseen obstacles, gravel, reflective glass beads in centerlines, potholes, etc. all to late to correct, and things get ugly....just sayin'....

[Tat2demon]

I ride the hell out of mine.

Guessing that's a big part of my 22mpg problem. I dont do a whole lot of fast cornering though. Sioux Falls has an issue with lots of sand and gravel in corners. No idea where it keeps coming from.

I really enjoy wrapping it just past the middle of a turn. Feels like youre being shot out of a cannon.

[jjz28]

I accelerate fast on mine a lot. I was trying to learn to shift like a sport bike and wheelied in second gear the other day. If I was worried about my bike falling apart, I wouldn't ride it. My bike is rock solid and they are very well put together. The tester of this bike back in the day said that they don't take curves great but most riders would never push it hard enough to get to the point he where it doesn't handle. Basically unless you can ride like a pro, the bike can handle the curve is what he was saying. I know I will never push mine like that. These are not crotch rockets, but the are straight line rockets for sure.

[XS1100 Newbie]

I ride mine with the sport bikes as well. I do a respectable job of keeping up. This bike is just a lot of manhandling in comparison to a sport bike. I am looking at a cbr1000 for fun. I might be to old to handle the 100 MPH corners, don't know, but i won't know if i don't try.

[donebysunday]

I ride mine with the sport bikes as well. I do a respectable job of keeping up. This bike is just a lot of manhandling in comparison to a sport bike. I am looking at a cbr1000 for fun. I might be to old to handle the 100 MPH corners, don't know, but i won't know if i don't try.

Don't try !!!!!
I did when I had my new 79SF the brute force needed can throw you out of your line if not perfectly kept ( hard to do, very ). I had a nice little twisty coming off the main road going to my house, so from a 45 mph. straight road, right turn then left, right curves and a big hill. Every day coming home from work I would practice that ride ( this is out in the country, way out ). Got to the point where I could make the curves and top the hill going air born at 85-90 mph.. Then one day I leaned a little to much in the left and missed the right, ( good thing no body around ! ). Stuck straight in a line of heavy brush THANK GOD ! Had to pull it out with much effort and twisting, back it up a slight incline and ride out headed back where I was coming from in the grass to a flat to get back on the road. Took a long time ( had the bike 79-86, 56K ) before I took those curves at any real speed again but never like I had been. Swear I've a angel on each shoulder, few scratches on me nothing that wouldn't buff out on the bike.

[motoman]

Don't try !!!!!
I did when I had my new 79SF the brute force needed can throw you out of your line if not perfectly kept ( hard to do, very ). I had a nice little twisty coming off the main road going to my house, so from a 45 mph. straight road, right turn then left, right curves and a big hill. Every day coming home from work I would practice that ride ( this is out in the country, way out ). Got to the point where I could make the curves and top the hill going air born at 85-90 mph.. Then one day I leaned a little to much in the left and missed the right, ( good thing no body around ! ). Stuck straight in a line of heavy brush THANK GOD ! Had to pull it out with much effort and twisting, back it up a slight incline and ride out headed back where I was coming from in the grass to a flat to get back on the road. Took a long time ( had the bike 79-86, 56K ) before I took those curves at any real speed again but never like I had been. Swear I've a angel on each shoulder, few scratches on me nothing that wouldn't buff out on the bike.

Sound like you took heed to the warning....good choice. Remember all, going down is not an 'if' but a 'when'. BTDT after 45yrs. of riding street,moto-x, trials, you name it. Finially bit me 5yrs. ago on my ST avoiding a T-bone while traveling 50mph........highly not reccomended to say the least. Being of a competative nature, that removed any 'no fear' I had left. Definitely a wake-up call.

[donebysunday]

Sound like you took heed to the warning....good choice. Remember all, going down is not an 'if' but a 'when'. BTDT after 45yrs. of riding street,moto-x, trials, you name it. Finially bit me 5yrs. ago on my ST avoiding a T-bone while traveling 50mph........highly not reccomended to say the least. Being of a competative nature, that removed any 'no fear' I had left. Definitely a wake-up call.

Fear is your friend, embrace it ! It will save you and your bike. Funny I'm always more worried about the bike getting hurt ?

[Pain]

[shrug] I used to follow sport touring bikes are here and there. Been through the Dragon a couple times, and some of the more fun roads in the same area.

I've hit the center stand on one side, and foot peg on the other. It is a big, heavy bike. I use good tires (Lasertec) and keep the rest of the bike maintained. Dirty, but maintained.

All that said, always ride within your, and the bikes, limits. Whichever are lower. I know a fantastic rider who crashed on a KLR chasing an FJR. On a sportier bike he would've been fine, but there's only so much a KLR can do. Same for an XS

[mfarrington]

8 different favorite riding positions

I am massively in love with my scooter. I have 8 distinctively different riding positions, and each one is a testimony to the freedom I experience when riding.

That said, I've tried to develop some thought processes that help me stay focused. This is the list I communicate to my son.

1. A motorcycle is a machine of death, and a lack of respect will get you killed.
2. Always be the most alert person within a 200 ft radius of your position.
3. You have the rest of your life to get there.

Peace!

[mfarrington]

Dragon!

Speaking of the Dragon, my son Deuce (10) and I took a 3 day ride last weekend. Stayed in Robbinsville, NC at A Simple Life Campground. Rode the Dragon 2x, the Cherohala 3x, and played in some cool waterfalls in TN.

Zero mishaps or near misses. Lots of solid twists, and heavy throttle out of curves.

[IMG][/IMG]

The good life ...

[Newbee]

still couldn't

Many years ago I let a good friend ride my xs11g set up with low bars he was a Canadian amateur champion rider god he did things with it I would never try down to the pegs in the corners lifted the front wheel in the straits I have owned this bike for 31yrs. and still haven't got the front end off the ground maybe I'll go out right now a give it a try.

[Jerry]

Really not fair to consider a 32+ year old design with modern bikes. There are a number of mods that can make the XS - XJ 11s handle better: fork brace, SS lines, different fork springs, different shocks. One of the biggest issues is the twin rear shocks vs monoshock suspensions; the monoshock set-up is generally regarded as being superior.

I have progressive front springs and SS lines on the XJ and have experimented with different settings and air pressures in the rear shocks. Have dragged the pegs on more than one occasion.

Given all of that the XS - XJ was not amoung the world's best handling bikes even when it was new...staight-line performance was a higher priority. If you want the bike to handle-better-than-new - not a high bar - then you will need to modify the suspension but realize there are limits to what can be done. For me the changes made a lot of difference but I rarely pushed the bike to the edge of my limits, which are less than what the bike could do.

[650mark]

imnsho, you need a different bike for each type of riding. a Goldwing for touring, a Honda rebel for getting milk at the store, some form of Harley so you can feel at home at the local watering hole, a vespa so your wife will think you're "safe" while out riding, a dirt bike for those weekends when it's raining and getting real dirty doesn't matter, and an xs1100 so when your riding buddies on their much newer bikes make wisecracks about "where'd you find that old ratbike" you can absolutely smoke them getting onto the freeway several times and help them see the error of their ways.
believe me, it shuts them up REAL fast