im a new rider in the bay too. ive been riding dirt my whole life, this is my first street bike. 88 hurricane 600f. its definitely powerful enough to get you into trouble if u ride irresponsibly, sounds like you are aware of that so i would say go for the 600 and take it easy.

 

Hey guys thanks for the welcome and it took a while but I finally got my CBR!!!!

Was pretty cheap due to salvage title from front end damage, but had it taken in for prepurchase inspection and frame, forks, engine, clutch etc is all looked perfect so I went for it.

2000 CBR F4 - Previous owner put on F4i front end after his crash.

 

and no dont worry I didn't ride it without gear, I was just sitting on it. Don't have much experience so I wasn't comfortable driving from San Francisco over the Bay Bridge back to my house so I had a friend ride the bike for me