[Pecha72]

XL600V is not very light-weight, and its softly sprung for two-up, and for me also a tad underpowered for that use.

That said, it's a proven workhorse, that'll take you there, even with a passenger. And it is a bit lighter, and probably easier to control than a 1200cc... also the good old Tranny is known to be very reliable (but a 1989 bike may still have some issues by now).

edit. The last version, XL700V, has FI (a plus in my book) and a bit more oomph for two-up. It also has optional ABS. But it also put on some weight compared to older models.