After an 8-year break from biking, during which time the trivialities of home-ownership and kids coming along meant that I had no spare cash, I decided last spring that the time had come to get back into it. My last bike was a ZZR1100, so I was used to big sports tourers and wanted similar. My local second-hand motorcycle emporium had a wide range of suitable candidates, but immediately it was the GSX14 that caught my eye. I test rode 3 bikes, but made the mistake of taking the 14 out first - within 100 metres of setting off, the others never stood a chance!
Yes, it's a beast... but it's very tameable. It has more power than any bike I've previously ridden, but the beauty is that it's incredibly responsive, yet controllable.
Handling is surprisingly good for such a big (dare I say clumsy-looking?!) bike. I've scraped the pegs a few times, and it always felt that there were easily a few more degrees to go.
My only gripe is that the rear brake does virtually nothing. However, the intention is to add some braided hoses in the very near future - from speaking to fellow owners, this will make all the difference.
My wife tells me that the pillion seat is excellent. Very comfortable and a good seating position, which means she's not fidgeting or asking to stop after 30 minutes. I've even taken my 7-year old daughter out a few times :-)
In the past I've usually changed my bike once a year, but that is absolutely not the case here - I'll keep hold of this bike until it no longer works... and then I'm gonna track down another!!!
For someone wanting to combine power, comfort, reliability and looks into one bike, then look no further.