Victory Kingpin

[JoshuaTree]

Originally Posted by Cruzergirl

... My dream bike? BMW R1200 GS But that may be 'slightly' out of my reach.

Unless most of your 5'3" height is leg, you'll probably find the R12GS to be a tad bit too tall. I have known riders of your 'stature' to handle R1100GS and R1150GS with low seats and lowered shocks, but they get "useless" as an adventure tourer that way. The new F800GS does have a low seat/suspension option that keeps most of the suspension travel in tact. You'll simply have to see if

Go ahead, drink the cool-aid that is BMW Motorrad. You'll like it (or so I've heard )...

Oh yeah, I'd definitely add my 'vote' for the Victory - I know the owner of the local dealership here in Austin. The bikes have proven to be very mechanically reliable. I do have a soft spot for the Triumph America and Speedmaster, and you can equip them for touring duty if you choose to.

[fnfalman]

Originally Posted by JoshuaTree

Unless most of your 5'3" height is leg, you'll probably find the R12GS to be a tad bit too tall. I have known riders of your 'stature' to handle R1100GS and R1150GS with low seats and lowered shocks, but they get "useless" as an adventure tourer that way. The new F800GS does have a low seat/suspension option that keeps most of the suspension travel in tact. You'll simply have to see if

Not only the R1200GS is tallish but it is also top heavy. Very hard to balance when you're short statured. The KTM Adventure however is aother story. Here's a bike that is properly designed for its mission. Like I said before, I'm 5ft6 with a measured inseam of 26" - I wear 29" inseam pants, but I have zero problem riding the KTM Adventure even though it's taller. It's all due to the proper engineering of the chassis. The bike's center of balance is low instead of high, the chassis is narrow (thanks to the V-twin engine) so that my legs go straight down instead of to the sides like on the Beemer.

I love my BMW but KTM makes adventure bikes. Everybody else make pretenders.

Anyway, the ST3 is a pretty sweet sport tourer albeit slightly high. But hey, if you can balance it on one foot, you're good to go. That's a much better bike than a silly ass cruiser.

And yes, I'm highly opinionated when it comes to cruisers. I'll never be old enough to own one. I made the mistake of owning a Harley when I was 25. Never again.

[Cruzergirl]

Originally Posted by fnfalman

... silly ass cruiser.....

I love them silly ass cruisers!