#Touring

Does the type motorcycle you ride indicate the presidential candidate for whom you’re voting?

Peace, love and understanding is what we’re all about here at MO, man, and on this excellent junket to the great Midwest, we made some serious inroads. One dinner, after a day spent rolling along the east bank of the Mississippi through springtime Illinois and Wisconsin, Editorial Director Sean Alexander (who thinks the Aprilia Tuono is the perfect casual traveling bike) actually admitted that the bikes we were on were ideally suited to our ride. Well, hello. He also admitted it was his first time riding in “flyover country.”

Pitting the ultimate expression of soccer mom adventurism in the form of Honda’s VFR1200X against the top tier off-roader in Triumph’s ever-increasing line of Explorer models is audacious, if not a little bit irrational. But ever the astute brain trust of intrepid motojournos, we rose to the occasion and Sherlock Holmes’d our way to a few rather elementary discoveries.

Ever since Triumph announced its 2016 model line at EICMA, we’ve been anxiously awaiting the arrival of the updated Tiger Explorer line. As we’ve noted before, the Explorer models have been divided between the XR models, which receives more street-oriented cast wheels, and the XC models, featuring dirt-friendly wire-spoke wheels. All Explorer models are based on the same platform (meaning the same engine, basic suspension specs and wheel sizes) with the designations signifying trim packages. The Explorer XCA tested here represents the top of the Explorer line.

What the hell is this thing anyway? We were all so caffeinated about the new Africa Twin that when Honda offered up the new VFR1200X for us to ride around upon, I had almost forgotten about it. Known as the Crosstourer since 2012 across the pond, here it is now in the U.S., available in six-speed manual form like our tester, or with Honda’s excellent DCT automatic transmission for only $400 more ($15,999).

Some may wonder why we’d bother to test a new motorcycle model that basically only includes stylistic changes from the one we tested previously. In the case of the 2016 Indian Chieftain Dark Horse, we last tested a Chieftain in November 2013 and felt enough time had passed that we needed to throw a leg over this Indian to remind ourselves what a great bike it is. Also, there was a battleship tour, in the form of the USS Iowa, involved as well as a chance to get out of the office for a ride.

In 2014 Indian released the Chieftain, and at that stage of Polaris’ reclaiming of the Indian brand, the focus was still very much on the heritage of the name. The styling was clearly inspired by Indians of the past, but great pains were taken to make the Chieftain a modern motorcycle through the inclusion of modern technology. However, the Indian brand has grown to include more modern motorcycles, like the Scout and the Scout Sixty, preparing the public for Indian to be a manufacturer with a clear vision of its past while still looking towards the future.

We’ve traveled down this path before when we asked what types of bikes our readers have owned. What we learned there, frankly, didn’t surprise us too much. You’ve owned a bunch of different motorcycles. That makes you a lot like us. We like motorcycles – all motorcycles. As an industry friend once said about our profession, “All motorcycles good; we investigate.”

Okay, right off the bat, Victory has a lot of nerve listing any Magnum X-1 as a Stealth Edition. The very idea of the Magnum X-1 is contrary to stealth in any form. First, the motorcycle in question is based the Victory Magnum, which is the tricked-out and slammed iteration of the venerable Victory Cross Country. Victory literally upped the volume with the Magnum X-1 by adding to the factory sound system already in the batwing fairing by mounting four speakers in the saddlebags. Yeah, these bikes are all about getting attention, despite having stealth in the model’s name. There isn’t any  better place than Daytona Bike Week to see how well a cruiser can strut its stuff, so we rolled up the Magnum X-1 Stealth Edition and sank our way into the hoards of people at motorcycling’s annual coming-out party.

On a tram in Zürich – en route to see native son Urs “Grizzly” Pedraita unveil the modified Victory Cross Country Tour he will use to try to break the world record for traveling around the world – I spot a newspaper on the seat next to mine.

In 2009, when it came to burning away mile after mile in long-distance, big displacement touring comfort, certain motorcycles came to mind. Motorcycles like the Honda Gold Wing and Harley-Davidson Electra Glide Classic were obvious choices, but another motorcycle deserving inclusion in the conversation was the 2009 Kawasaki Vulcan 1700 Voyager/Nomad, the topic of this week’s Church of MO feature. Here, MO’s Editor-in-Chief Kevin Duke takes one for a spin, wherein he discovers you really can take this Kawasaki from coast to coast in absolute comfort. The fact it is still in Kawasaki’s product lineup, seven years on, speaks to its capabilities. Read on to get Kevin’s complete thoughts on the bike, and to see more pictures of the Vulcan 1700 Voyager, be sure to check out the photo gallery.

File this one in the “They still make that?” file. We’ve been bombarded with so many cutting-edge sportbikes and go-anywhere, do-anything adventure-tourers lately that it’s easy to forget about the cruiser segment of the market. And even among the cruising set, the sub-liter middleweight category hasn’t been getting much love. The attention usually goes to the big-displacement crowd because, let’s face it, cruiser riders have an image to uphold.

The Africa Twin is one of the most beloved Hondas to never have been imported to the United States. In 1986, the NXR750 Africa Twin factory racer made its debut at the then Paris-Dakar Rally. The bike was powered by a V-Twin engine, while the rally largely took place on the African continent – hence its Africa Twin namesake.

Victory, and parent company Polaris, know how to throw a birthday party. Take for example Alfonse Palaima’s thinly veiled attempt at a motorcycle review, seen below in this week’s Church feature. The bike is the 2009 Victory Vision Tour 10th Anniversary Edition, named such in honor of Victory’s 10th model year. Only 100 were made, and AP was lucky enough to throw a leg over one for a ride. Equally as important was the opportunity to join 98 other Victory owners for a chance to chew the fat, rub elbows and drink beer with Victory/Polaris execs. The Fonz was sure not to drink and ride, of course, and returned with an entertaining and informative review. Check out the whole story below, and to see more pics of the the Vision, be sure to visit the photo gallery.

There comes a point where you just do not feel like stopping, where getting off the bike feels unnatural. It doesn’t start that way, it ends that way. Presumably you probably have a destination you want to get to: your own bed, your own coffee maker, your spouse, your front porch. Interstates are great for that, and I detest them. They are heartless, soulless slabs of asphalt and concrete looking at the same thing over and over again: orange barrels, the usual fast-food slop chutes, and truckers and tourists. That’s not living.