Another Ride Report? Yes, Vancouver Island This Time.

 I just finished up a Web page of the trip we made to Vancouver Island,
this past summer.  Relive it with us at:

http://www.xidos.ca/Bikes/VancouverIsland

 On Dec 20, 3:40 am, langkd_NO_S...@shaw.ca (Road Glidin' Don) wrote:

That Sporty does a pretty good job of disguising itself as a tourer.

 On Sat, 20 Dec 2008 05:47:45 -0800 (PST), saddlebag


It sure does.  

Because we do a lot of touring, we've contemplated replacing it with a
big twin, but the question always comes back:  "Why?"  

It's sized right for her, very reliable, keeps up with other bikes
easily, handles well when on occasional stretches of gravel and
maneouvering to get into campsite, a large tank (equal in range to my
Road Glide), comfy seat, can carry plenty of stuff... the bike fills
the bill almost perfectly for a person of her size.

It's actually a good example of the additional value you derive when
the bike you have has a good supply of accessories available.

Everything used to suit it for touring duty was standard, bolt-on
Harley parts - all put on before it left the dealership, so they were
covered under the warranty.

 On Dec 20, 11:47 am, langkd_NO_S...@shaw.ca (Road Glidin' Don) wrote:

IIRC, the Sporty is actually faster than the big twins.


I'm no fan of the looks of big skinny front tires on those bikes, but
that is the same size tire used on dirt bikes for the very reasons you
mention.  I was just reading an article about the GS800 which also has
a 21" tire and that author was also extolling its superior off road
prowess even compared to it's larger GS1200 brother that sports a 19"
rim.  I think I'd still prefer the added contact patch of a smaller
rim with a fatter tire, but all in life's a trade off.


And with that nice Sundowner seat (that should come standard) they are
quite the comfy ride too.


The only potential downside I see is that while all the leather looks
traditional, how water tight is that stuff really?


Did you change her rear shocks?  That's another troublesome thing for
me.  On the 1200C they put some "lowboy" crap suspension that has very
little ground clearance that doesn't seem to me to be conducive to
long distance riding.  If they made that bike with the thick Dyna
front end, an 18" front hoop with dual discs, a standard Sundowner
seat, and floorboards, I think I'd be sold.

 On Sat, 20 Dec 2008 08:40:54 GMT, langkd_NO_SPAM@shaw.ca (Road Glidin'
Don) wrote:


Considering the frigid bloody weather we are experiencing, this was a
very welcome read.

Thanks for posting it Don/