How old are you?

[duhs10]

34 here and although I prefer the performance of a liter-bike, I'm highly satisfied with this one. Rode my buddies GSXR600 the other day and I felt like I was sitting on it the wrong way. I'm not used to the body positioning of crotch rockets anymore, nor do I wanna do long rides on one.

33 here... That's what I love about the FJ-09 compared to 600 class bikes.. Sure the 600 class bikes are fast and light, but you have to really wring them out to get that power. You can do that to the FJ if you want, but it has enough torque that you don't necessarily have to, to get this thing moving. Of course a 150+ HP litre bike is going to out perform the FJ on the track, but around town, in and out of traffic at any sub-suicidal speeds the FJ will hold its own. I know you already know that, but felt like commenting.

[BVEBRAD]

"When I'm 64" just became reality for me.  Lovin' the FJ-09 after many, many years riding big sport touring machines. 
 

I'll be 61 in a few weeks.  The FJ makes number 11 for me.  I'll go as far as saying it's my favorite ever.  My insurance dropped substantially this year, well over $100.  The reason State Farm quoted for the rate reduction was because of the low incidents reported for the bike.  Certainly works for me.  I guess we do pretty good for a bunch of old guys.

[dvinny13]

40 here....this is only my second bike and I guess the reason I bought the FJ is because it was the middle ground to best satisfy my indecision. I really wanted some thing sportier with some good power but my practical side said that after a couple of month commuting on a naked bike I would be miserable...I think the FJ is the best of both worlds!!

[mcrider57]

I just turned 59. Been riding motorcycles since 12 years old. First...Jawa 50cc step through.

[alejandro]

47. It's my third motorcycle, not counting scooters, and my favorite. I'm glad I only started riding in my 40s. When I was younger, I drove cars like the impetuous youth that I was. Fortunately, by the time I got a decently fast car (M3, then M3, then souped-up S4 wagon), I had calmed down a little. And now, the 400HP+ cars I've driven (souped-up S4, Corvette) are just not that impressive, because at street speeds, the FJ is quicker.
 
Motorcycle #1 was an old, tired Ninja 500, which was the perfect first bike for me. Someone knocked it over while it was parked one day, and I didn't want to pay $$$ for a new fairing, so it became a "Ratbike 500". Which was sort of fun.
 
#2 was a 2013 Street Triple R. A beautiful, light bike with a honey of an engine, smooth like 3-cylinder butter, and some cool premium stuff, like configurable shift lights on the analog tach. It is the perfect bike for someone, but it wasn't for me. First gear was too tall for around town, and the gear ratios were IMO silly close for street use. Steering lock was too narrow. It was hard to affix luggage and passengers to it. I suppose at the end of the day it was a little too much of a sport bike for me, although the seating position was pretty nice. But surprisingly, the handling never felt intuitive to me. And the dealer I bought it from was a mixed bag.
 
#3 is the FJ-09.
 
I rode a Tiger 800, but wasn't impressed. I rode a Hyperstrada, was very impressed, it was SUPER fun, and then realized that I wanted something I could count on for transportation, that could hold enough gas to be useful on longer trips, and that would not hold me ransom for a few thousand dollars every once in a while (like the souped-up S4!). Also, I have a habit of pushing the center of the turn signal repeatedly, even when it's off, and on the Hyper, that switches engine modes or something--super distracting. I thought about the Multistrada. I saw one on deep discount. I came close. But I guess I wanted something cheaper, less fancy, and a little lighter. And honestly, I don't feel like I'm a good enough rider yet for a "top-of-the-line" motorcycle.
 
I rode the FJ. Juuuust right. I got a triple like the one that I loved in the Triumph, but with more torque and better gearing. The seat is long enough that I can change body position any time I want, anywhere from tank-humping to back-stretching, and I can even raise it up a little if I want. I got lots of luggage and passenger options (the passenger seat is almost too big!). My knees aren't in my elbows. The low-speed handling is aces, as is the mid-speed handling and the somewhat-high-speed handing. The traction control's greatest calling is as wheelie control, which I find myself using quite often (I should probably turn it off and train my throttle hand some more). The ABS has been there when I've needed it.
 
The windshield was terribad, so I replaced it. The handguards were too wide for me, so I removed them.
 
What's on my wish list? Smoother fueling; perhaps a prettier exhaust note; perhaps slightly lower and/or narrower bars. I know I could get all these if I wanted them badly enough. I guess I don't.
 
I'm very happy to leave my bike mostly stock. I've had some significantly-modified cars, and it came back to bite me one way or another every time.
 
If I had to get a friend or two for the FJ? I don't feel like I need anything bigger. Maybe a 250/300/390cc sport bike that I could really flog on the track and in the hills. Maybe a Buddy 170 or a HD 200 EVO for around town. Maybe an Alta Redshift SM for short-range ripping and ya-yas.
 
Or maybe at some point I'll feel ready for a Concourse14 or a K1600 or some other king-of-the-hill beast. Who knows what they'll be like by then. I'm actually not into any more electronics than what we have on the FJ--I think too much could encourage bad habits and sloppiness. (My cars are still stick shifts.)
 
Thanks for reading, and ride safe.
 
Alej
 
 

[jgalloway]

40. This is my 9th street bike. I've been riding on the street since 16, and grew up on dirt bikes. My fist was a Honda XR 75 when I was 10. That began my addiction to being on 2 wheels. I'm embarrassed to admit that one of the previous bikes was a Harley V-rod. I'd been riding a first-gen FZ1 for years, and could keep pace with or beat my friends on sport bikes. But sadly, most of them stopped riding due to marriages, kids, etc. The only friends I had left that rode were on cruisers. So, I had a moment of weakness when I wanted to fit in, and I bought what I thought would be a fast cruiser. It just didn't work out. Not only did I constantly drag chrome stuff on the pavement, causing near misses every time I rode it, but it sprang an antifreeze leak after 3 months. I found myself riding my worn out, obsolete FZ1 instead of a brand new V-rod. I'm not saying this to bash Harleys, I'm just saying that I learned a LOT from this expensive experience. I realized that while I do have a need for speed, I also have a need for comfort, maneuverability, and reliability. I sold the V-rod. After the FZ finally called it quits, I knew that I wanted to replace it with something as close to it as possible. The newer FZ1 is awesome, but the ergonomics are just too aggressive for me. I like to sit upright. I sat on the FJ's competitors, and I really liked the Kawasaki Versys, but in the end, I had to stay with Yamaha. After the mods I've made to the FJ, I honestly don't think that I could be any happier with any other bike out there.

[madcat]

Just turned 47 last September. I started riding in the late 90's till 2007. Rode a Honda VFR400R. Fun little crotch rocket. Also had a Kymco 150 cc scooter for everyday commuting. Sold the bike and scooter when i emigrated to Canada. Didn't ride again till i got a Fz07 last year. Then traded the fz 07 for an fj09 this month.

[sjsadler]

I'm 59..it's my second bike since I started riding again.

[kdimitris]

Soon i' ll be 43 and fj (tracer in my place) is my favorite bike.
Ridin' since 16 years old and this is my 3rd motorcycle (used to have a scooter too).

[trokarr]

I'm 60 and the FJ09 is my 8th bike. Got my first bike at 15; a 1965 DKW (type 158 I believe). I have never seen another in Canada. Here is a picture (not my bike but same model):
 
 

 
 
I bought two of these for $35 Cdn in 1971 from a friend who could not get them running (1 complete and 1 a parts bike), which was a lot of money for me since I had never worked at that point. Since I had no income, I taught myself how to repair the bike. I got it running and put hundreds of miles on this bike (49cc lol) without a licence, and if I was awake, I was usually on this bike. Most of my friends had mini-bikes and one guy had a real enduro (Yamaha). I did hill climbs with this bike and eventually broke off the rear fender from wheelies (it didn't have the power to do a wheelie so I had to stand on the passenger pegs and pull up). Lots of fun and is what got me hooked on motorcycles. I got my licence when I turned 16 and have never looked back; no street wrecks to date (knocks on wood).

[superfist]

I'm 37 years old young confused. The FJ-09 would be my 4th iteration of riding a sanity maintenance machine. Since everyone else is telling their riding story, here's a synopsis of mine!
 
My first was at 15 years old when my grandfather gave me a 1972 Yamaha U7E. I was hooked, and rode it all over the place. School, rural dirt roads, random exploration. 40mph or 45 with a good wind and downhill was insanely fun, even at that age.
 
My next motorcycle was years later and I picked up a 2007 KLR 650 brand new to get back into riding. It was my primary transportation for years and I didn't even own a car at the time. I would borrow my GF's car on occasion when saddlebags/backpack wouldn't be enough. I loved it, rode everywhere on any surface.
 
I eventually stepped up to a Triumph Street Tripe R, of the 2015 variety in July of this year. It lasted exactly 31 days and was totaled by a gentleman who decided changing lanes was a better idea than braking, couldn't change lanes and I got a first hand ejection seat experience. Flight was achieved with a less than graceful landing. Thankfully, I'm ok. 3 broken and displaced transverse processes that healed with no long term effects. Thank you back protector or it would have been much worse. Full gear saved me from any other injuries which is saying a lot when a motorcycle braking and at 19mph gets hit by a Buick Century driving 50+ mph. I might release the video at some point, after the lawyers are finished.
 
So the Street Triple taught me that I want something more capable of longer rides and I was addicted to the new power levels. I don't have to preach to this crowd about the awesomeness of the FJ-09 =) This is the next chapter and I look forward to it!

[PFJohns]

66, 53 of which years have included powered two wheelers!

[2and3cylinders]

62, riding incessantly since 71, before that sporatically. First motorbike was a 57 BSA C12 250, then a 65 Triumph T90 Tiger followed by a beautiful 63 BSA GoldStar DBD34 Cafe in a Rickman-Matisse frame (oh my), 29 Scott Flying Squirrel TT Replica, a 72 Triumph Tiger 750 and I believe then 69 Norton-Villiers Commando 750. I broke from the Queen's henchmen for a few weak moments and bought a 72 BMW R75/2, followed by a 1972 MV Agusta America 750S (which I owned for only 2 weeks until I stupidly sold it to a wealthy prig who made me an offer I could not refuse.  Same thing happened in 1985 when I needed fast cash with my 1973 Ducati 750GT.  When I finally started finally drinking at age 27, I reverted to form and got really into heavy AMC Matchless and AJS machines (see my avatar photo of my 61 C80CS Cafe with dummy headlight, as it had no generator, and I had a 6 volt battery in the fiberglass bum stop to power the brake light, so I did night ride it at night). After that I lost count as I no longer kept written account of the maybe 45 subsequent bikes that ran from my spanners.  I bought, fixed and sold them at a fearsome rate.  Not for the money but like each was a "fix" that did not seem to last long, and I was on to the next seeking a better "high". In the late 70s I also did succumb to the Japanese because I had much earlier raced for SF Yamaha. It's a bit of a smokey haze but I recall a mid 70s Suzuki GT550 triple, a 72 kawasaki H2 Mach IV (with Morris mags, dual front disks, a set of Bill Wirges expansion chambers and his clutch bearing), some year Suzuki Titan 500, then a 84 Honda VF500F, 81 Kawasaki GPz550D1, 80 Honda CB750F (with a Vetter Quicksilver frame mount fairing with matching silver paint and a chrome luggage rack), 88 Honda NT650 Hawk Gt, and my current 77 Yamaha RD400C, 98 Honda VTR1000F and of course 15 FJ-09. Other than the NT, CB, VTR and FJ, all my bikes were used, many basket cases I restored and sold, as I related above, to feed my motorized two-wheel addiction.
 
Oh how I wish I could have kept so many of those motorbikes long gone due to need if not want of the evil greenback to feed, cloth, house and educate my children!

[kimofj]

I'm a 19 year old trapped in a 72 year old body. I've been riding since 1964 first 15 years cali desert
then street. Jim in Ojai CA

[eeetea]

I'm a 19 year old trapped in a 72 year old body. I've been riding since 1964 first 15 years cali desert then street. Jim in Ojai CA

The problem I have with your post, is that doesn't sound old to me anymore. Let's focus on the 19yo bit only!