Cross Country Trip/Advice needed

[pitbull]

Basically, all of the National Park Service areas in southern Utah / northern Arizona, plus Monument Valley.

I think it's called that because it's a roughly circular region encompassing the four states of Utah, Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico where erosion due to the Colorado River and other waters have exposed just about every geological layer in every fantastic way possible. So within a day or two travel of each other you have the Grand Canyon, Zion, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, Arches, Canyonlands, Monument Valley, Natural Bridges, Grand Staircase-Escalante, Mesa Verde, and a whole host of other spectacular areas.

http://www.utah.com/nationalparks/grand_canyon/grand-circle-itinerary.htm

A description from another site:
"The forces of wind and water, and the sheer age of the exposed rock, have created a phantasmagoric land of natural arches, bridges, balanced rocks and basaltic dikes which amaze and delight the eyes and hearts of travelers."

http://www.desertusa.com/grand-circle.html#ixzz3bYjSq2IV

If the OP has the time, the above is excellent advice. I could easily spend a month in Utah and not see everything I would want to see.

[jduke]

Find a used FJR that's been well maintained.
You can pick them up for about $4000 and then unload it when you get back.
An ST is a great bike, but they are about 10 years old and a top notch one will cost you more than the FJR.

[He Man]

I would agree that even for a short inseam person that a cross country road trip on a duc can be a bit stressful on the knees. Ive done 1000+ mile tripes about 4-5 times on the duc and lets just say as I age, i dont want to try.

But i also beat my knees up offroad racing...martial arts...skydiving. so YMMV

[Raux]

I disagree on pricing. A good condition st2 can be had for under 3k.

[JohnEE]

Yeah i've been giving more thought to taking the monster....might have to buy bars and risers and go for a long ride.

[the_Journeyman]

Yeah i've been giving more thought to taking the monster....might have to buy bars and risers and go for a long ride.

Not a bad idea.  I do more adventure type riding, usually covering a fair amount of miles mixed with a nice peppering of twisties because that's just how riding is around here.  I have risers and a moose ATV bar on my M750.  Works really well for a more upright riding position. However, after about 4-5 hours, my knees are starting to get unhappy.  Doing the risers and whatnot, just be sure to spend some time to get a feel for any geometry changes.  It also steers completely effortlessly both at speed and in parking lots with the help of the wider bar.

JM

[fragile_this_side_up]

I had a very difficult time choosing my Monster 696 over a VFR800. I still want the VFR, but don't need it for how i ride and my monster is more fun anyways. But much better wind protection on the VFR versus the 2012 Vstrom 650 i just sold. The Vstrom was great. 26k miles over 2 years of ownership and not a single issue.

[pitbull]

I disagree on pricing. A good condition st2 can be had for under 3k.

Yeah, I picked up my 01 ST4 for $3K.

I would actually prefer an FJR 1300 for interstate riding, but I couldn't find one as cheap as most of the ST's that came up.

[Dochunt]

I have done long trips on my Kawi Versys 650, It was ok, not that stable past 75 MPH.
If you haven't already, read "Zen and the art of Motorcycle Maintenance" by Robert Persig,  best book ever.

[Vishwacorp]

Whoohoo, a long motorcycle trip! I hope you take lots of photos. I did a similar trip last year on a Monster 620 with a Sargent seat. I thought it was okay but I also averaged only 350-400 miles a day. One thing I wish I had was a proper windscreen. So whichever bike you end up looking towards (if not your S2R), then that should be a comfort concern for sure.

[akmnstr]

I wouldn't be hung up on miles per day.  I find it is the time in the saddle that matters.  If you ride interstates you will cover many more miles in a given amount of time than you will on back roads.  I'm rather a wimp and prefer to do about 6 hours of actually riding in a day.  That gives me time to camp which is how I prefer to do long distance rides. 

[seevtsaab]

For long days in the saddle, an AirHawk is your friend.

I throttle lock can be helpful, as well (I've use the Go-Cruise iirc).

Best advice - stay off the slab whenever possible. Hopefully your schedule allows.

[JohnEE]

Thanks for the tips everyone. I took off the week of September 14th for my little East of the Mississippi trip  I could not get the time off for a east to west trip, but this will do.

I have about three weeks to order parts and get the duc up to snuff for touring duty.

Now I need suggestions for places to stop. Right now I only have Route 97 in NY State(Hawks Nest) and deals gap(tail of the dragon) for places. Places to camp, eat and sights to see are always welcome.

[The ModFather]

I vote for the Multistrada. Here ya go make an offer and go get her.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ducati-Multistrada-/201405343829?forcerrptr=true&hash=item2ee4b1a855&item=201405343829