I've always wanted a FireBlade. Don't ask me why, I just have. There are other bikes. The R1 and the GSXR1000 have long taken the sportsbike crown from the Blade but a FireBlade is what I wanted so that's what I bought.

Due to the current, ridiculous, insurance situation I was able to get a good trade in price for my CBR600 and an excellent deal on a new CBR929RR. I found a dealer (DK Motorcycles) who had a limited edition 2001 silver model for sale and I'd done the deal, over the phone, within minutes :-)

One problem. I'm in Essex and DK are in Staffordshire. A bit of a ride then! I took a day off work and rode the CBR6 up to Staffs, during the week, and swapped it for (in my mind) sex on two wheels.

The mechanic said that I should keep it below 5000rpm for the first 500 miles but the Honda manual said don't use full throttle before 300 miles. I chose a happy medium and kept it below 8000rpm. Believe me 8k is plenty. When I left the dealership I was shaking like newbie and when I turned on the power it got stupid. This thing picks up and gallops like a herd of stampeding horses. Each time I twisted the "fun handle" I quickly shut it off for fear that I might leave the ground. The torque was amazing.

Okay, down to earth, owning a FireBlade. This is a Honda, so the gear change is "clunky". The mirrors vibrate so much that they might as well not be there. It sounds like a bag of spanners when it idles. It has no centre stand so you will need to buy a paddock stand. The huge can makes it sound like a sewing machine, despite it's 929cc lump. You'll need to buy a rear hugger to stop that crap spraying into the rear spring and unless you're 5'2" the screen won't protect you from the  hurricane that real speed can deliver. The fuel injection system makes the Blade a little "grabby" at low speed so you're better off in a higher gear (2nd) and low revs around town. Your poor pillion has nothing but a leather strap at the front of the seat to hang on to but hey! you didn't buy a bike like this for a passenger.

On the positive side, it's a Honda so it'll work. It's reliable and easy to get serviced anywhere. It'll wheelie like a ballerina (Gower school) and it does 0-60 in a very silly time. I've yet to test the top end but you don't have to red line this bike in order to enter the fun zone :-) I must admit that cowardice kicks in long before the rev limiter does.

Another cool thing is the storage space. The pillion seat flips up on the turn of a key to reveal a veritable cavern underneath... well for a sports bike that is.

There are plenty of after market bits available from all of the major retailers for the 2001 FireBlade. I've fitted a Scorpion end can, an carbon tax disk holder and a tank protector. Also on my list I have a double bubble screen (cos I'm 6'2") and a rear hugger.

All in all this is a really functional and useable machine. Plenty of fun matched with everyday usability. I commend this to the house.