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[Dr.D]

This question was hinted at in another thread where a member was looking for 150+hp at the rear wheel on a Street Glide. Another poster suggested that it was not feasible to have that kind of reliable power go for very many miles and mentioned the idea of a real street bike.

With that background what IYO constitutes a "touring" bike? Is it a frame type? A windshield/faring? A level of comfort?
Does it really have to go touring and what is that?

Don't even get me started about the "bar hopper" bike. Does it just go from bar to bar and how drunk can you get and survive?

[Twolanerider]

Touring bike:

[Twolanerider]

^ which is to say "touring bike" is different things to different people.  But, generally, we all agree the definition combines storage, road going power and satisfactory handling to the tasks at hand with comfort enough to ride for extended hours in a day repeatedly.

[rheiner]

To me, for a Harley, it's a bike in the touring line, i.e., the touring frame, cruise control, and not a softail, dyna, sportster, etc.

[Trapperdog]

 Then reduce the weight, increase the HP, improve the suspension and handling and you have a Sport Tourer

[VaEagle]

For me it's a matter of what time period are you talking about and what are the owner's expectations....
Look at the bikes from the 1910s-1930's that were used to cross America in the early days. Some have done it recently in Cannonball Run events too but when it was done on a more frequent basis there was no expectation to travel close to 100mph for 1,000 mile days with all the bells and whistles of today's luxury technology.
Sure there were pioneers who wanted more power and capacity but the majority of riders had lower expectations. You still have some people who pride themselves on being hard core old time riders and they think windshields are for sissies and you only need a bedroll and maybe a duffle bag to hold some belongings. Earlier riders would have loved to have the power and performance of even a new Sportster. They toured the country but at a different pace with lower expectations.
I am no expert but my .02 is that a touring bike is one with storage bags (either leather or hard bags) and option of a windshield or fairing. You asked if it had to go touring to qualify and I would say no since it is what it is to begin with and how it is used is up to the owner. That could open up a whole can of worms as to what is the definition of a tour. Would it be a day trip for pleasure or does it have to be multi-day thing and how many days a year do you need to tour to qualify ? etc.....

[mjb765]

Touring bike:

I don't know Don....I don't think my butt would survive the entire day on that seat

[tweeter13]

This a copy of Mr. Spartypants from a yahoo post that I think fits real well for the subject

Every motorcycle design (or design of anything!) is a compromise between different goals. Engineers know you get something up to get something else, and the trick is balancing the different things you want. Years ago, nearly all bikes were 'standards'. If you wanted a touring bike you'd put a windshield or fairing on the bike, and bags. If you wanted a sportbike you'd put on stickier tires, stiffer suspension, low handlebars and a little bullet fairing. But the last few years bikes have been designed from the ground up for specific purposes.

A sport bike compromises everything to speed and handling. Modern sportbikes are really almost like racing bikes with license plates. So they are not comfortable. They have an extreme riding position that puts a lot of stress on the lower back and wrists, plus the seat is very small and hard because you get a lot of road feedback through your butt. They're popular mostly with young people because older people can't take that position for a long time. And they're not for beginners, partly because they have very sensitive steering geometry to make them 'flickable'.

A touring bike is the other end of the spectrum. Handling and even top speed is sacrificed to comfort. The bike is larger because it will be expected to carry luggage, and maybe even ride two-up most of the time. There are other features that make it better for long trips like a bigger gas tank, bigger fairing to keep off the wind and weather, and wider, less aggressive tires which last longer.

Sport-touring was practically invented by BMW in the 70s and 80s, the idea of spending your vacation in the Alps, riding from one hotel to another. And that's a real compromise between sporting qualities and touring qualities. But the category 'sport touring' just sounds so good that most 'standard' bikes today are advertised as sport-tourers. Some of them are more at the sporty end of that definition, some are more at the touring end.

Some touring bikes (like the Honda Gold Wing) are no fun in town. At low speeds they are heavy and ponderous, like driving a truck. Real sport bikes are not exactly ideal for town driving either, partly because of the position, you're looking down at the street and can't see traffic.


I just thought this may help some.  I am sure some will disagree but for me this pretty much covers it.

Todd

[North Georgia Hawg]

Pic below. You don't really need any more "Touring Bike" than this. Plus, it hauls ASS!

Ken

[Twolanerider]

I don't know Don....I don't think my butt would survive the entire day on that seat

Amen to that MJ, amen to that.  Though I'm not sure that would be much worse than pissing blood at the end of 12 hours on a hardtail.  But still, I've got nothing but respect for the guys that can and do pedal all day long.  I think they're crazy, totally freaking crazy, as an engine and no pedals makes the whole process so much easier.  But I totally respect their effort.

[Dead_Reckoning]

^ which is to say "touring bike" is different things to different people.  But, generally, we all agree the definition combines storage, road going power and satisfactory handling to the tasks at hand with comfort enough to ride for extended hours in a day repeatedly.

Wouldn't it also include a power plant that provides good TQ and HP in the 2,000 to 4,000 RPM range?
Especially good TQ at low RPMs

[ultrarider123]

My definition of What is a touring bike?  Whatever you have in the garage when you are ready to go....

You can make any scooter a traveler.  Yes, a faring bike with bags/radio/cruise does make it nicer to travel cross country but hey, there is something to say about minimalistic travel.  I've been blessed to take cross US trips on various bikes over the years.  They were ALL fun rides with different memories for each. 

[Dr.D]

I figured there would be many ways to look at the designation, touring bike.
 I prefer mine to have a motor at minimum.

One reason I ask is I see so many people using the Heritage Softail as a touring platform and I just don't see why they did not just buy the touring frame package mentioned by rhiener. My wife converted a Deluxe to a travel bike with bags and a shield but sold it immediately when I bought her a  Street Glide saying there is no comparison in the ride and handling.

Touring for me is long distance rides that require carrying supplies for multiple days. A long day ride is still just that and I can do that on the Fatbob. Not with as much comfort as the Limited but doable. A real ride is a minimum of 250 miles in a day.

The idea of touring also means riding in comfort  and that rules out some of the CVO seats placed on the Dyna and Soflttail models. I call them style seats because as another poster mentioned they trade off looks for comfort. I even have a hard time accepting the seat on the new CVO Road King as a touring bike??? I am not deriding the bike or the owners just defining what touring means to me.

The characteristics of the motor are specific for touring also IMHO. I agree with Dead-Reckoning that the power band should be easy usable power at low rpm and not require a lot of effort to keep the bike in the power band. Rmember the old two stroke 125cc dirt bikes that only ran at the last 1000rpm of the motor? Who would like a road bike like that for all day riding? Now a heretical comment. The bike should not be to loud. When I ride for three days in a row for 300/day the sound can get irritating to me, not to mentioned trying to hear the music turned up over all the motor, tire, wind and road noise. There is something relaxing about a touring road trip and I want the whole package.

And to answer ahead of time no I won't take the car.

I have no desire to have a painful ride on a sparse a machine or prove I can ride on leather over iron seats cause they look cool. (envision a alligator hide seat with ridges tall enough to go all the way up the crack to the hole). I really like my new Limited CVO it really is a touring bike.

[Dr.D]

I felt the need to qualify some of my statements and mention that there is one large reason to not get a big touring bike dressed to the hilt and all modified up with power out the azz.  $$ These new bikes are very pricey. They also are a bit tall in the straddle for some.

All in good fun gentlemen.

[owl893]

Dr. D has stated that "touring" begins at 250 miles in a day, that seems like a good place to start, although guys like Jesse have that much in before lunch.  When you leave home on the bike for more than a night, you are "touring" regardless of what you put between your legs. That said, we HD owners have an obsession with blurring the lines between "show, street, sport, touring, performance" and every other classification of motorcycle usage. Of course, that is the beauty of the product, we can "Frankenbike" them into (almost) anything we want.

OWL