Wanna buy » Passenger touring

[James]

I'm thinking of buying a new bike. My wife wants to start going on tours (she doesn't ride) with me. Of course, I want to have something to zip around our mountain roads, and she want's something comfortable and not to intimidating ("like those crotch rocket things") .

Has someone used a Multistrada for touring with your significant other? Pro's or con's? Any other ideas on a good sporty bike that will satisfy both of our needs?

[atypical1]

My wife and I do some touring on ours. We used to have an RT (GREAT for two-up touring).
The bike is not as comforable for touring as a dedicated touring bike. It shines more in the solo touring stuff. The ST3 is a better choice for the two-up.
But, it can be done in relative comfort. I find myself having to stop on more regular intervals because there is not as much room to stretch out. That is not necessarily a bad thing.
It really wants to wheelie with a pillion. Not the end of the world but you do have to watch the throttle.
The bike is also really tall. My wife is short. Not the best combonation but it is not a show stopper for her.

Good luck!

[lotus54 - Moderator]

I've ridden two-up with my sweetie for medium long trips. She is pretty comfy on it- after I put a 26l tailbox on it with a back rest. She is short (5 foot) and the passenger pegs might even be a little low for her.
I think it gets a bit more wind in the back than some bikes, but off the freeway it is fine. If you are looking for a freeway only bike, I think I would look at something else. Or perhaps a bigger fairing on this one.

If you can, take one for a longer ride two-up and see what you think.
I quite like it.

mark

[Wolfie1]

We've owned several bikes over the years, the latest ones being ST2, ST4, and Futura. As you can tell, we're Sport Touring people, so there's no way we'd want a full on tourer. Anyway, of any bike I've owned, she loves the Multistrada the most. She's comfortable with the corbin seat and full luggage wrapped around her back side and we chat whenever we want via the Autocom. I'm sure that enhances the experience, but at the end of the day, it's the bike and her overall comfort that matters - and she says the Multistrada is the shiznizzel.

Best,

-Wolfie

[James]

awesome! Thanks for the input. Any other's please let me know your experiences.

[wim1000]

Hi James,

Here is a message from over the great ocean on riding two on a Multi. I have especially bought the bike for two purposes: Sportbike and also touring. I have owned a monster before which is great for sports purposes but not for travelling.

We just came back from a holiday in Italy which is roughly 1400 kms from our home. It was the first real big trip with luggage and all (check my pictures of the fully loaded multi in the travelling section, it is the black beuaty with the black and red bags).

It went super, she steers like a raisor also with luggage and lady and the lady had less to complain than the ladies on the FJR's that rode with us. She herself was very happy with it. And for myself (I have the DP comfort seat, awesome) no sour butt and no pain in the arms, as we did most of the way NOT on the highway but doing twisties.

I was very pleasantly surprised with it and will go again as soon as the time and the money allow it.

She is one of the best if not the best dual purpose bike. We did some riding alone around the twisties in Italy and I can tell you, if you come up a mountain pass and see the sign with 42 tornaties (which are corners) a man on his Multi gets very happy and it is hard to get the smile of your face.

Oh by the way, don't try to corner an FJR as a Multi, it will not do this.... (greetings to my friend Jan)......I will wait for him at the end.

Greetz,

Wim

[bone 2006 1000S DS (Red)]

We just came back from a holiday in Italy which is roughly 1400 kms from our home. It was the first real big trip with luggage and all (check my pictures of the fully loaded multi in the travelling section, it is the black beuaty with the black and red bags).

I noticed those pics awhile back and thought that the luggage looked pretty sweet compared to most others I've seen. Could you do a small review for us as to how these bags performed?

I also wonder whether the saddle bags interfered with the passenger's footroom at all and whether you had a rack of some sort to keep them away from the exhausts...?

I definitely like the looks of those bags and I need to make a decision on bags as I'm about to embark on a 2-week trip across america in a couple of weeks... and the real trick is that the trip begins with me picking up the bike for the first time, so I can't experiment with different bags myself.

Thanks for any help you can give me!