Looking for a road bike to slow down and have multi hour comfort. Wife rides with me on occasion. I’ve gotten interested in the Road King Special. It’s the “standard” category that attracts me. The other Harley models aren’t interesting for me. Rented a Road King this weekend and am enjoying it. But it’s so different from any sport or adventure style bike that I’ve had for the road. It’s a mellow experience but the riding performance is so much less than what I’m used to having (braking, ground clearance in particular). Have you bought a Harley touring bike and then regretted it? Or vice versa? Also thinking about a new BMW RT as an alternative.
Have a CVO roadglide. After racing for many years the bike is VERY relaxed. Anita and I rode to Mt. Rushmore from OH and loved every minute. Also been many roads in the south. Come on over to the dark side, you will love it after a bit of a learning curve. And after all. Two wheels is still two wheels
Road King is an awesome ride. One of my favorite street bikes. My perfect garage would have a Road King and something like a Mutistrada.
What D-zum said. I was in the market for a Goldwing at one point but the price was just a little higher than I wanted to spend so I went with an electra glide that was loaded That being said, Ive spent hours patrolling on a Road King. They are very comfortable.
I also owned a Road King...Great bike. Just wanted to travel longer distance. Honda is also a good idea. Just don't let people push you around. Trust your gut!
Asked a similar question here on the beeb a few years ago. Was given advice to take a look at a triumph thunderbird. Bought my '14 Tbird 3 years ago and still love it. Have been to many demo days since, including Indian , BMW just to ride someone else's bikes . Triumph still beats them all especially in regards to power. Triumph discontinued them a couple years ago because they never sold well. But you can find tons of clean used ones for dirt cheap.
Gold Wings are great - which is my problem with them. It wasn't bad but I'd enjoy a nice convertible just as much. And mine wasn't remotely as nice as the newer models.
I've owned a GL1500, 2 GL1800s, 2 Ultras a Street Glide and a Heritage Softail. Loved every one of them but for different reasons. The Harleys are a different kind of riding experience. All were comfortable on long trips. The Goldwing definitely have more power and agility. Always had to get a running start if I wanted to pass someone on the Harleys. But there is definitely a testosterone dump when you crack the throttle on the Harleys that you will not get on anything else. It's hard to explain. No regrets!
I'm thinking of getting rid of my S1000XR and upgrading for basically the exact same reason - looking for something to have multi-hour trips on and possibly bring the wife. To the extent you'd like something resembling sport bike type braking, the 1250 RT is what you're going to want (a quick glance at the specs on both and it looks to be about 100 pounds lighter as well). [EDIT: just took another look and it's more than 150 pounds lighter]
I should add, Lisa always preferred the Goldwing. Passenger comfort is better. She used to fall asleep on long trips.
It took me 1 full month to get used to a harley.While owning the Harley I bought a goldwing thinking it would fix the shortcomings of the harley,mainly suspension.As Sean said,the goldwing is just a bit too vanilla,and the suspension was no better than the Harley. The guys suggesting sport touring or adventure bikes mean well,but not even close to the all day comfort a road king,goldwing,etc will offer. Finally,don't be afraid to offer low enough on a harley that you can get your money back quick if it isn't your thing.The market is saturated.
I think he meant dark side as in non performance land barge.But,to really crank it up,over and above the "asking about a Harley on a roadrace site" I'll say that I loved the Michelin car tire I ran on the back of my goldwing.
