Here is what I am up against; Wife - 33 - 31" in seam Old bike: 2010 XT250 Riding - gravel roads, secondary highways. She has limited experience. 1000 miles on her XT. Wants something she does not have to ring out when on the highway 55 is about the top of the XT. She will not be pushing past 70. We would like to travel next summer to Banff Canada on two bikes. Ideas, thoughts...
Well, since you posted this in the "Parallel Universe" forum, how about a 700GS? Probably get a lowered seat and she should be quite comfortable. All the power she will want. My wife is tall and got an 800GS and loves it. Says she is really enjoying riding much more now. Your wife will thank you.
With a 31" inseam a F700, or earlier F650 twin, shouldn't be a challenge at all. There must be some reason you're asking here in "parallel universe". Has she ridden one yet? If you're thinking plenty of dirt, then an F800 is a much better choice and can be ordered with lower suspension. There's also the triple cylinder Tiger 800 and 800XC, with its "love it or hate it" sound...awesome engine though! But really, a Verseys would be a step up for riding the roads, and well groomed dirt roads.
The F650Gs is a great bike, but maybe look at a G650GS XCountry. I have both. The XCountry is lighter and has plenty of go. I use the 658 mainly for 2 up duty now and go for a squirt by myself on the XCountry. There is a separate thread for the XCountry.
The reason for the Parallel Universe is there really is not anything else I can find that fits what she is looking for. Looked at Honda NC700( too street ), Kawasaki Versy (she does not fit), Yamaha does not have anything in the states, KTM ( too tall ), Husky ( not for her ). So we have BMW left. Have not found a DL yet, she sat on a new factory lowered 650GS and liked it. We did not have any riding gear with us so she did not test it. Also looked at a 700. I do not think the 800 is for her. As you can tell from my bikes I bleed blue. If she falls in love with a BMW I am all for it. Hell a wife that rides...still bitches about my KLiM gear though.
For reasons I will leave unmentioned I will walk out the door if she buys a KLR. I am sure they are fine motorcycle. I don't want one.
Women often find a DL to be top-heavy. It wouldn't be too hard to lower your WR 3-4 inches, than switch back, IF it was just for one trip. Assuming you will be riding the S-Ten, she'll want something more highway friendly though. The G650 already mentioned is incredibly smooth for a thumper, and it's fairly low and light, but if I was in the market for a highway oriented mid sized dual sport there would only be 2 on my list. The 800cc BMW twins and Triumph triples. From there, it's just a matter of preference, but BMW comes low from the factory whereas the Triumph might require lowering links. A 31 inch inseam might be plenty for stock height, and if you guys are riding off road she'll appreciate the ground clearance.
She can ride the WR and does ok on it. It is not a highway bike; will it do it yup. Is it fun? Not in the slightest. Thanks for the input. Need to just go and get her on some bikes. Yes the plan is for me to be on the ST and her to ride her own. 1800 miles to Banff one way. I would like to do Key West in a few years. Who knows what we will find. I will update more in a few weeks. I am headed to Prudhoe Bay in exactly two weeks. See what the future brings
Get the F700 and she'll love you. If she's short, then get the lowered version and she'll love you even more. The twin will purr smoothly over the highway and since it's so planted (especially the lower one) she'll be able to do gravel and most decent off roads that the other bike will do, just by going slower. You can carry plenty of luggage and you have plenty of options when it comes to the seats. The weight is "okay" until she drops it or needs to muscle it through some crazy corner and that's where a lowered version (and you) come into play. But that weight will help drifting when it gets gusty (or passing a semi-trailer). I couldn't imagine droning along, especially trying to tell someone I loved to get a substandard bike. You don't want to take chances with a long trip otherwise you're going to hear about it nightly, and it'll turn into a "never again" experience. Regardless, get her $0.02 and make it mostly her decision to avoid it being "your idea" entirely when things go south. And if you think about the best-of-all-possible-worlds type of scenario, then the twin will be more than capable in pulling duty in nearly every situation and be a bike you keep around for years. Until she gets tired of it all and wants you to buy the Gold Wing so you can chauffeur her around :)
Before you buy a new bike, try this put in a 140 main jet instead of the stock 135 get a FMF pipe instead of the stocker remove the air box lid (remove 2 screws and take off the air filter cover) do the air/fuel screw 3 turns out mod (will have to drill and remove the brass plug on the carb to get to the screw) put a small him under the jet needle You will see what that does to the bike, makes it pull better and have better speed, i still sold mine and got a DRZ tho But you can try all of that for around $260 bucks, it really wakes that bike up.
F650gs twin. She will love it. Tank is low so much easier to manoeuvre. Also ditch the battery and get a antigravity. This will dump another 11 lbs or so off the top. Then aftermarket the pipe. More weight loss. If you need help while here in Alberta, I'm in Canmore that's 10 minutes from Banff. Mike
