[ohiorider]

Grebmrof and I had lunch together today and were talking over our 5K ride from Cleveland, Ohio out West and back in the late Spring. We asked ourselves the question "..... would we ever attempt a trip of that length on a Bonneville again, especially now that we both own bikes perhaps better suited to that kind of ride....?".

The answer was a unamamous and resounding "yes!".

A wonderful trip, and the bikes were great.

There will always be an England!

Bob

PS - Merry Xmas to all!

 

[black-bonnie]

I'm no motorcycle expert, but the bonnie has done great for me on many all day rides.

 

[jreagan]

Yep, I went from New Hampshire to Deals Gap on my T100 a year ago. Never a problem, always a smile. Only 2K+ miles, but ready to do it again.

 

[ohiorider]

Hey, 2K ain't an "only" ride, that's a really nice long-distance ride! Isn't the Bonnie a sweet, all around bike? I may have to take my W650 on a similar trip, only because she pouts if I leave her in the garage.

Bob

 

[sweatmachine]

I did a 1400 miler from Phoenix to the Grand Canyon, to Vegas, Laughlin, and back to Phoenix making a lot of stops along the way.

I had tons of fun and never once wished to be on another bike. My ol' man was on his FJR and I wouldn't have traded places with him for anything!

 

[ohiorider]

Sweat - that's the problem I may have ... trading places with someone on a bike that should be the better bike ...... I just bought a new ST1300, but, like you, I'm not sure I'd want to trade places with myself, and jump off the T100 to another bike, especially one as heavy as the one I just bought. We'll see on that decision ......

I will take either my T100 or the W650 on another long trip. Taking the Bonnie on a long trip and bringing her back home was what America used to be, at least for me ... unlimited territory, and unlimited opportunity. You had to love it!

Regards,

Bob

 

[black-bonnie]

No one wants their ride to be painful. You can make adjustments to the bonnie to fit the individual so all day riding is comfortable. Sure, there is going to be a stiff place here and there, but not painful. I get stiffer driving in a car for that same amount of time, and it's BORING being in a box.

Yes, there are many more comfortable bikes for long trips, but are they as much fun? We mainly bought the bonnie for its nostalgic look, we also want the nostalgic ride without it being too nostalgic feeling.

 

[kliff]

seems I remember something about an east Coast to Alaska 'round trip someone made on a Bonnie this past summer.....but I don't remember the full story with pics being posted.....unless I just missed it....

 

[sweatmachine]

that was muss, it was an 8 week trip I think. awesome, that's balls.

 

[Brooksie]

I loved the Bonnie on the road. Pretty comfortable and good fuel mileage. I like the Daytona even better. If you're doing Interstates, anything over 75 mph is taking a risk for a long weekend in court. The Bonnie ran all day at 80 to 90 mph and never let me down. I just like the overwhelming passing power the Daytona has.

 

[mecscc]

I've owned a few Gold Wings. They are nice bikes and designed for touring. When I got the Tbird, and then the Bonnie after the Tbird was totaled, I wondered what touring on that bike would be like. We do four to six one week tours a year with Sue on her own ride.

Some conclusions.

1. If Sue rode on the Bonnie with me I would rather have the Wing.

2. Since she does not, the Bonnie wins hands down. With the K&Q seat she is ever bit as comfortable, much more fun and fully able to keep going long after I am ready to find a motel for the night.

3. A fully faired "tupperware sail" like the Wing is hell to ride in a strong crosswind. Talk about work! But a 30-40 mph crosswind on a Bonnie mostly goes through the bike and it is much more controllable in that kind of situation.

4. If it rains you will get wet, with or without a full fairing. Stop. It will quit.

BTW: most of our weeks end up being between 1400 and 2000 miles, mostly NOT interstate. And those are all good miles. Can't say that I would enjoy a larger bike in the parking lots, riding the twisting mountain roads, etc. On the Bonnie that is a joy.

Finally, those of us who are a "certain age" (ie: ancient) remember when we toured all over the country on 450-650cc bikes and a 650 was considered a "big" bike. You could say that we didn't know any better, or you could say that the "bigger is better" madness has gotten into our drinking water since those days. Bigger is, to my mind, not better. Its just bigger and brings along issues and complications that simply aren't there with a smaller bike.

Just a thot.

Monte

 

[black-bonnie]

Monte,

Your observations about the Gold Wing compared to the Bonnie were very interesting to me.

Just yesterday my friend told me that although I put on a lot of miles on the bonnie, it would be much easier to do on a real touring bike. I said that may be true, but I don't have a problem with all day riding on the bonnie so maybe ignorance is bliss.

I'm going to copy your section and email it to him.

Thanks!

 

[jreagan]

If I'm going to do a solo ride north-south (where I can get a good gap in the weather to reduce the chance of rain), I'm happy on my T100.

However, for two-up or east-west (where I'm likely to hit rain sooner or later), I'll take my Guzzi Breva 1100. I have hard luggage for it plus my GF likes the seat MUCH better.

 

[CAPTDON]

A long strait road @ 80 mph will cause some aches & numbness on the Bonne. A long road w/ a lot of twisties & you don't even notice. I think its an endorphin kinda thing? A legal high of sorts?

 

[lunus]

She can go two-up as well, though size matters here ! A K&Q seat and some Hepco and Becker cases and off you go. Went to Spain last year, going again this !

Some of those Spanish hill towns you'd have trouble getting into on a Gold Wing !

Cheers





[ This message was edited by: lunus on 2006-12-26 14:59 ]

 

[Guest]

If you haven't seen the recent article in Rider magazine, December issue, Clement Salvadori takes a long ride, from Georgia to California. Appears to have no problems doing so on the T100, but he doesn't talk much about how the bike performed.

 

[ohiorider]

Yeah - I wish Clem would've written more (a lot more) about his thoughts about the bike. Peter Egan wrote an article in Cycle World within the past 2-3 years about riding a T100 into the Bayou Country, and he spend much more ink on the bike itself.

Bob

 

[Guest]

If anyone knows when that artilce appeared, I would like to go back and read it. Egan is one of my favorites and I must have missed that one.

 

[ohiorider]

On 2006-12-29 07:42, W007 wrote:
If anyone knows when that artilce appeared, I would like to go back and read it. Egan is one of my favorites and I must have missed that one.

I don't have the Cycle World mag in which the article appeared, but the article is reprinted in his hardback book entitled "Leanings 2". In that book, the article is on pg 293. The title of the article is "Another Green Triumph". It appears the original was published in Cycle World in the Jan 2004 edition. Short, but sweet!

Bob

 

[Guest]

Thanks for the info! I have read the firsts Leanings and ordered Leanings 2. Now I can search the garage for the old issue. Appreciate your help.