Thanks ! I have been thinking the same (sorta). My wife
has implied I might be able to get another bike and I would
be interested in fairings and hardbags so she can go.
Right now I'm just thinking out loud. Have always liked
the ST 3 but haven't ever been on anything but my 900
Monster.
Also y'all have been really good about the open ended
question Thanks
Have a look at the Ducati ST series.
I owned a triumph sprint RS for a year and rode it on a few long trips, but all the time I was on it, I was wishing I was on the monster. It was a fantastic highway bike with a fantastic engine, but top heavy and had shitty suspension. The triple 955 was a fantastic engine, but still lacked the visceral feel of the monster for me.
I also rented an FJR 1300 out in Colorado for a week and put a number of 10-12 hour days on it over 7 days. It too was a fantastic bike and certainly awesome on the highway. However, once we got into the tighter twisties I found it to be a little cumbersome. Don't get me wrong, it handled well and certainly very well for it's weight, just obviously not like the monster.
I also did a couple short rides on a buddy's VFR (2002 I think, but not sure) and didn't really care for it. It's a fine bike, but wasn't all that comfortable for me (5'9) and lacked the visceral feel of the Ducati.
About 2 months ago, I traded one of my 2 monster 900's (a 2000) for a 98 ST2 straight up.
I was prepared to be underwhelmed as a few people on the ducati ms forum claimed the engine was a "dog".
I have been really surprised and pleased at how well it goes and with stock exhaust and unmodified air box and filter. I've since added a sargent seat and an upright set of rizoma bars and risers I had sitting around and it is super comfortable for my 5'9 frame. My knees usually get sore after an hour on the monster, but I've done up to 4 hours on the ST2 with no knee issues.
I hate to admit it, but I think I prefer riding the bike to the monster. It munches miles on the highway yet handles far better than the triumph sprint in the twisties. Most importantly it gives me the ducati feel I was missing when on other ST bikes.
I'm riding it out west to Colorado in a couple weeks for a 10 day blast, which should really give me an opportunity to put it through paces in all types of riding.
When I look around at what some used ST3 and ST4 and 4s bikes are going for ($4,500-$6,000) it seems to me one can get a whole lotta bike for the money, if it's in good condition.
