Most of those 1200 CC and above adventure bikes are like most SUV's and jacked up pickup trucks, they never leave the pavement. At most they are taken down a gravel road. My Sportster has seen as much dirt and gravel roads as my buddies GSA1200 has.

But still they make nice touring bikes, with the rugged look and squared panniers they hold a lot of stuff. Long travel suspension is really nice if you hit a pothole or frost heave Sitting up high gives you a nice view of the road. They have tons of power and handle pretty decently.

 

This.

And, on top of that, they can handle the gravel roads or fire roads or even dirt trails better than a typical touring bike. They open up options. And they don't have to weigh 950 pounds like a Harley Ultra either.

That doesn't mean they're all lightweights; the BMW GS1200 weighs 600 pounds, not far off what my Fat Bob does, and my Fat Bob is a pig at 675 pounds for a street cruiser.

Heck, after watching this video again, maybe all I need to do is get some 80/20 tires for my Fat Bob and I'm done...

And that was with the stock tires... hmmm...

 

Sounds like a good option to me Fish. Buell Ulysses was promoted as a (mild) adventure motorcycle and it used belt. I recall they touted the particular belt was more durable to cuts and holes from rocks than the standard HD belts. If HD could use that type of belt along with enclosure or at least better shielding....... AND design it to be relatively easy to change, they'd have a low maintenance, quiet, and unique FD.

 

Call it what you want but I call it enjoyable...commuting 500 to 600 miles a week by simply throwing a leg over the saddle and riding off...and doing that all month long.

I didn't have any issues keeping up with my V-Strom chain maintenance with the same commute. But once I moved to a shaft drive rig, I realized how nice it was to not worry about it. I didn't get lazy. I just learned its ok to enjoy a little luxury with my motorcycle.

 

 

You call it lazy...I call it convenience. Do you still haul your water for your house up from the creek? I guess you do because anything less than that would be considered "lazy". What's with these "wimps" that want city water hook-ups anyway? LOL!

 

 

Wow...so clueless.

How do you explain me getting my hands dirty doing all the other maintenance on my bike (including changing final drive oil every other oil change)? Not to mention getting my hands dirty at work.

Not sure what your hang up is that you can justify calling someone you don't know lazy based on their motorcycle preferences. I assume all of your motocycles are chain drive?

 

 

Just stating my opinion is all.