Enthusiast from Ohio!

[winifredbarkle]

 I just realized that after posting a couple times that I forgot the most important thing: Introductions!
 
I'm from Southern Ohio and have been riding for just over 3 years. My current ride is Lucy, a 2008 red Ninja 250. She's been good to me, but I feel I'm due for an upgrade. I've pondered for almost 2 years now of what I want in a new bike, and unfortunately very few things in the current US market meet the bill. I wanted a sport touring bike, that weighed as far under 500lb as possible, with a decent seat height (being only 5'5" myself) and a 600-900cc engine. I almost pulled the trigger on a WeeStrom, but the seat height still made me super nervous and I wasn't sure I wanted to mess with lowering the bike. Plus, it was heavier than I'd prefer.
 
I fell in love with the BMW F800GT, but saw dollar signs everywhere. Want the bags? (+$1000) Want the center stand, heated grips, better seat ($$$$$$). Want to keep the warranty and have it serviced at the nearest BMW Dealer (Drive 2 hours and $$$$$$). So, I kept looking.
 
In September I came across posts about the then rumored FJ-09. It seemed to hit a lot of my points. At this same time, my husband fell out of love with the Ninja 1000 he had wanted for over a year and decided he was buying an FZ-09. After months of waiting, we brought home the new baby: A matte gray 2015 FZ-09. I haven't ridden it yet (he's hogging it), but if I like it, then the FJ will definitely be on my purchase list for 2015.
 
Now the biggest decision: Gray or Red??? It seems silly to have matching gray bikes, but I have a red bike already too! Might have to flip a coin for it, because both colors in the promo pics were sexy.