Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire question for seasoned bike riders.

Gateway, close to home

Any of these get 50+MPG and are reasonably comfortable. I'd stop for gas once on a 300 mile trip.

Fuel mileage will be better on a dual sport for the most part. Panniers are pretty essential, having the ability to carry some items makes it more versatile.
Look up itchy boots, she has been all over the world, mostly on small displacement bikes.

Not true. Many Sportsters have adequate tanks. My 2006 had a 4.5-gallon tank.

Don't buy anything with tube tires. You can thank me later.

BOOM!

V-Strom is good. Kawasaki makes a 650 and a 900 Cruiser. I have been looking at them for next year.

kwg

Cool!!!! Were you able to roll any coal on bicyclists clogging the roadways??

If you buy one, make sure the seat is comfortable. A good rain suit is great to have as well. How fast will you be riding?

^^^This!^^^

If you find you enjoy riding 300mi is no problem. If not you turn into one of the campfire "experts" who opine on anything they have not done. I started riding in 1967 on a R60 BMW have many days of 500+ on everything from Kawasaki 2stroke triples to Goldwing and Harley touring bikes. My mother rode until she was 80. Owned every thing from Honda Silver Wing twin to Goldwing to BMW K1. Her all time favorite long distance bike was her 500 Interceptor. Mostly its finding something you like and are comfortable on. I found 600 to 1000 mile days easier on a bike than in a car. Get some good training and enjoy.
Pavementends

I love Gateway. It used to be somewhat affordable. Not anymore. The Auto Museum there is top notch. The highway that runs through there is a great animal viewing ride. I have seen herds of elk, deer, bighorns and bear.

Exactly!

Rode many 300+ mile days on an 06 Kawasaki Concours and never had a problem with comfort. My buddies riding cruisers, on the other hand, had a lot of lower back pain on long rides.

I'm sure there are a lot of riders with more experience than I, but I've had a bit. I've ridden significant distances on everything from 250 dual sports to Gold Wings. I've ridden 10 hours on a KLR 650 and, I can tell you, it ain't ideal. An old CX 500 wasn't half bad. A KZ750 was also decent. A Kawasaki Concours was excellent, as was a Honda ST1100. A BMW R100GS was wonderful on a gravel road and decent on long trips. A GL1100 Gold Wing (naked model) was the best long distance bike I ever had. A ZX-14 Kawasaki was not too uncomfortable, but it was a little cramped and a bit scary.
Currently, I ride a 650 V-Strom with a taller seat and it is an excellent bike. Good mileage (50+) and adequate power. Now, at 73 and with a bony ass, nothing is super comfy after five or six hours; even my truck gets a little old. Filling up every 200 miles gives me just the break I need.
Modern day O-ring chains are easily good for 20,000 miles or better, with minimal maintenance. Tires vary depending on conditions and how you ride.
A seat which feels a little firm in the showroom is better than one that feels soft and cushy. I'll second the good rain gear. You won't have to deal with cold weather but being wet sux! GD

Uber

Low cost, great reputation for reliability, versatile- KLR 650. I put in three 1,000 mile days on mine during the 42,000 miles and two years I rode it. No mechanical problems at all.

Downside are chain drive and tube-type tires.

Paul’s suggestion of some sort of dual sport/adventure bike is a good one.

Be aware that operating costs (helmet, riding gear, saddlebags and/or panniers, chains, tires etc) are going to be more than you prob’ly think.

Ride your bicycle through an automated car wash a couple of times on the way to work before you buy in completely.

I have ridden many thousands of road miles. A 300 mile day is about 6 hours on the bike. With gas stops, hydration, meals, etc. you will average around 50 miles an hour. So you should still have time to stop and smell the roses, so to speak.

I find Harleys are the best for casual riding like this and I’ve owned many bike styles. As has been intimated, it’s not a cheap hobby.

And I think the KLR is a fine bike if you are traveling logging roads but is too slow and the seat too soft for long distance use. They are surprisingly good off-road. The BMW was vastly better on gravel, at high speeds especially. The V-Strom is so much better than the KLR on pavement that there is no comparison possible. GD

158XTP, the advice about trying before buying is the best here. I've had 12 motorcycles from little to 1,000 cc's, though not an actual full dresser road bike, but I drove a big Harley for a week during the Sturgis, SD rally. Sure a big one is nicer out on the road, but honesty I had more fun on my bikes staying closer to town and a smaller sport bike was better there. In Australia you have a lot of sand and vast stretches once you get away from the coast. I didn't like being sand blasted, hitting bugs, long duration sun exposure or the windchill factor of highway riding. You have those big red kangaroos and smaller wallabies that could make a collision fatal. I saw lots of cars over there with "roo bars", so hitting animals like our deer and turkeys here must be a real possibility. I blew a rear tire once out on the highway and it was real exciting. In the outback, what would you do with a breakdown? It's not like you can take many repair parts on a bike. Then there are the inattentive people out on the road with you. Even with a big bike, you are still small compared to a car and guaranteed people won't see you and turn into you or pull out in front of you. A big road bike won't get way better gas mileage than a small car and with a car you can take passengers and stuff. The fun factor aside for a while, I sure wouldn't want to do it on a regular basis.