Touring

A collection of 98 posts

Mar/Apr '08

Review: 2008 Can-Am Spyder

> Looking more like an imaginative prop from a sci-fi movie than a product you can buy on the spot from your nearby dealer today, the new Can-Am Spyder strikes a radical pose. Part motorcycle, part automobile - with perhaps a touch of ATV, snowmobile and PWC in it -

Mar/Apr '08

Honda ST1300

> Being able to have the best of both worlds is a tough proposition when you're out on the road in unfamiliar territory. Two cases in point: the difficulty of finding clean, comfortable rooms for reasonable sums or restaurants that still serve tasty and wholesome fare. Sometimes you

Nov/Dec '07

Review: 2007 Kawasaki Concours 14

> Kawasaki could write the book about playing the tease. For most of 2007, they coyly titillated the motorcycling world with hearsay about their long-anticipated replacement for the venerable Concours. Rumored release dates, tantalizing photos, and thinly veiled specs fluttered by, and each tidbit hinted at a machine that would

Sep/Oct '07

2007 Victory Vision

> There's always risk involved when launching a new motorcycle. That's especially true when the model unveiled falls squarely in the upper ranges of the luxury-touring segment. Only a few high-stakes players can sit at that table, and their fan base is very well defined and

Jul/Aug '07

2007 BMW F800S/ST

> BMW has officially entered the midrange motorcycle fray with the all-new F800 series, featuring the sporting S and the touring-oriented ST. The Bavarians invited us to test both in an exotic and very demanding setting: The Big Island of Hawaii. For many two-wheel enthusiasts, it is heartwarming to know

May/Jun '07

Ducati Multistrada 1000DS

> If you want to stand out in a crowd, Ducati certainly has the answer. That's my first thought as I ride into a parking lot full of big, bad chromo-cruisers on a bright red Ducati Multistrada. The Duc's avant-garde bodywork and trellis frame give it

Jan/Feb '07

2006 Aprilia Tuono 1000R

In recent years, the Aprilia product line has been stacked end-to-end with truly inspired bikes such as the Tuono, the Mille, and the no longer domestically available Futura, that dominated the top slots of many an enthusiast's "if money were no object" list. This was no

Nov/Dec '06

BMW K1200GT and BMW R1200GS

> As I sweep through the delicious medley of flowing curves that climb to Fairfield Ski Resort just outside Flagstaff, Arizona, I run through my mental checklist. Power delivery: smooth; brakes: smooth with a nice bite; gearshift: crisp, yet smooth; clutch: light and smooth…damn it  -  my critique of

Nov/Dec '06

Yamaha FJR1300A/AE

> That is the question facing potential buyers interested in the 2006 edition of Yamaha's exceedingly popular FJR1300. Laurel-resting certainly wasn't on the year's agenda over at Big Blue. And topping the list of cool refinements on the sport-touring world's top dog

Sep/Oct '06

2006 BMW R1200ST

As I conducted my initial walk-around of the BMW R1200ST at the Palm Springs press intro, my first impression was that the bike offered three good sides and one that only a Bavarian mother could love. Appointed in the most appealing of its available color combinations (red with black trim)

May/Jun '06

2005 Yamaha FZ1 - Long-term Evaluation

> "Large increases in cost with questionable increases in performance can be tolerated only for racehorses and fancy women," wrote 19th-century physicist William Thomson, Lord Kelvin. He would have appreciated the 2005 Yamaha FZ1 then, which offers most of the performance of the company's flagship R1

Jan/Feb '06

Honda GL1800A Gold Wing (ABS) - Long-term Evaluation

> I've never liked Gold Wings. For years they were objects of derision. The characterizations I'd hurl in their direction included too big, too clumsy, too heavy, and the ever popular "it's nothing but a car on two wheels." On top of

Jan/Feb '06

Honda CBR100RR / Kawasaki ZX-10R / Suzuki GSX-R1000 / Yamaha YFR-R1

> The best of the best, cream of the crop, and pick of the litter are all phrases used to denote the outstanding single example of a collective. And when surveying the four 1000cc supersport models parked in the hotel parking lot, it quickly becomes apparent that picking the "

Jul/Aug '05

Just right: Suzuki's Practical Classic

Once upon a time (and this is no fairytale), a motorcycle was just a motorcycle. It came from the factory in one flavor  -  plain vanilla. What you did with it after that was up to you. To go touring, you could add a rack and a pair of panniers;

May/Jun '05

Kawasaki Concours - Long-term Evaluation

> Since its introduction in 1986, the largely unchanged Kawasaki Concours has inspired a loyal, some would say fanatical, following. The Concours Owners Group (COG) is well represented from coast to coast and beyond. This crew motors out of the woodwork for practically every motorcycle show and consistently show themselves

Jul/Aug '04

2004 Yamaha Royal Star Midnight Venture

> It's big. It's black. It gleams with lacquered paint and brilliant chrome. The Midnight Venture muscles its way past the large displacement metric cruisers to sit atop the heap as the undisputed champion in the tourer class. Continuing with a model run available since 1999,

Jul/Aug '04

V-Strom 650

> That simple sentence once summed up the philosophy of the English economist, Sir Carl Popper. Today, it's an ethos that certainly appeals to the motorcycle makers at Suzuki. And even in the US  -  a country where it often seems everything has to be big  -  it&

May/Jun '04

BMW K1200GT & Kawasaki ZZR1200

> BMW and Kawasaki have been active in the sport-touring market for quite a while. The German brand started out with the K series in the mid-eighties, and looking to produce a successor to the powerful ZX-10, the Japanese came up with the ZZR theme in 1990. Here, we'

May/Jun '04

Yamaha FJR 1300

> Voted by many magazines last year as the sport-tourer of the year, Yamaha's potent, high-speed touring missile is back for 2004 and, with a host of improvements, looks set to keep its hard-earned crown. Concept & Transformation Hard to believe it has been 20 years since Yamaha

Mar/Apr '04

Honda ST1300 ABS

> In the ST1300, Honda has introduced a bike with more capacity, more power, a lighter frame, and more equipment features than its predecessor. If you need a comfortable bike for longer trips that is still sporty enough for twisty roads, here it is. Concept & Transformation I will never

Jan/Feb '04

BMW K1200LT-E and Honda Gold Wing ABS

> There are only a few bikes that can claim to belong in the category defining the best long-distance bikes in the world. We tested two of them, the Honda Gold Wing and the BMW K1200LT-E  -  both outstanding touring bikes but very different. Honda's introduction of the

Mar/Apr '03

BMW R1150RT, DUCATI ST4s

> Motorcycle traveling has changed a lot in the last 20 years. Nowadays pure touring bikes compete with cruisers, standards, and sportbikes, which can be equipped with luggage racks and bags by the factory. In this comparison, the tourer BMW R1150RT met up with a sport-tourer, the Ducati ST4s. Concept

Summer '02

Aprilia ETV 1000 Caponord - Suzuki DL 1000 V-Strom

> One concept, two characters. Both are players in the still growing, successful segment of big dual-purpose bikes, each equipped with a powerful engine on a lighter frame. But two different interpretations went into production. The Aprilia ETV 1000 Caponord and the Suzuki DL 1000 V-Strom have a lot in