Bonneville America Forums Forums General Motorcycle Forums Other Bikes Touring - Sprint ST 1050 & Thunderbird 1700 - ???

For the last few years, some of my high school buddies and I have gotten together once a year, and put a good day of riding on. The first two years were in Northern Missouri.
This year was Southern Missouri and Northern Arkansas (Branson area). Living in North Central Iowa, I get nothing but miles of straight roads. Going South was always an unknown, both the roads and my ability. Well, much to my surprise, I did not die in Arkansas, and rather enjoyed it. My best high school friend, lives in Northern Arkansas now. He has been pushing me to come down to ride. Now that I have sampled the area, I see why he was pushing.

My America isn't the best bike for the job. Although, it was quite fun. With the high amount of curves, and the thought of possibly starting to do road trips with my buddy, I have started bike shopping. I recently owned a Triumph Speed Four. I did not ride it much, as it hurt my wrists. But, I did not mind the riding position. Looking at what Triumph offered in the mid 2000's, I have been looking at the 2010+ Thunderbird and the 2005-2009 Sprint ST.

So, can anyone give me advise on either of these bikes, for this type of riding? Both long haul traveling and curvy roads will be on the menu. I most likely will keep the America as a second bike.

can't go wrong with a 1050, and the Sprint is a comfortable sport touring bike.

the 1050 tiger is a great all around bike. a little more relaxed position over the sprint

I was looking at those as well. Not a real fan of the styling though.

Just my .2cents. I like the idea of a Sport Touring bike, however I dont like the idea that you are basically locked into one riding position on a Sport Tourer. Where as a large cruiser you have more options to move about. Change foot positions, stretch the legs etc.

I will offer a different way of looking at your needs. You implied that your current steed is a little lacking on "curve ability". I disagree. I rode those same roads on the Ark rally with our friends on here and the America did well. The problem isn't the BIKE, it's how you ride the road! I'm saying this; just SLOW DOWN AND ENJOY THE ROAD AND THE CURVES! Yeah, I know, somebody's gonna call me a "******". And I really enjoy the comraderi on the rides with our group on here. But face up to it, these cats like to RIDE FAST! When I'm by myself, I just take it down a notch and enjoy a sweeping curve at a slower pace. Think about it. If you take a trip with your buddies and ride the curves like a madman, what have you proved! And are ya riding to prove something? Nuts. Ride to enjoy the ride, not to show everybody how fast you can go. Can I ride as fast around the twisties as everybody else. Sure I can! But is that what I am gonna remember about the trip? In the last couple of years, since getting the "big blue monster", I've slowed down considerably, both because I don't like the feel of "guiding" a 800 pound bike through sharp corners and because I like to "look around". Looking around is why I TAKE TRIPS! And while I look forward to more trips with my Triumph buddies, I'm gonna be at the back of the pack, enjoying the road. I'm done now, but consider this other point of view. Oooops, I think I hear a knock at my door. Probably someone here to take my "man card" away from me.

Rich, I TOTALLY agree. And I do slow down a bit. There are four of us on this "buddies" trip every year. The fast (local) guy has a Ducati 1200 sport tourer, there is a Harley Street Bob (or his Tiger 800), a Harley Hertiage, and my BA. I have the little bike, but the Duc and I push the hardest. We all try to show off some, but I think we all knew we needed to keep our heads on with this trip. And we did.

I do not mind using my BA on those roads, and it is super fun. It is the long days with high miles that has me wondering about getting a different (bigger or sportier) bike.

i wasn't a real fan of the looks either but they are a sweet ride.

I will research them some more. I think Scott really likes his.

Frankly, there isn't much in the way of bikes, that I haven't ridden and owned..... including the big stuff...but I've yet to find a group of riders that I can't keep up with on the TBA....my last big trip was in company with two Victory Cross Countrys round Ireland and also a trip to Belgium with same plus a couple of big twin Harley tourers.
My TBA LT was revving more but never left behind and never out handled...and way more comfortable than some of the others.
Depends what you want/ need.
I'm off to Scotland week after next with my Beloved two up touring...my bike will cruise with us both between 80-90 without grief or hassle and we'll still get off at the end of the day in one piece.
I may well add something bigger to the fleet one day but for now it's a damn good tourer....
Trouble is with us men that we all want to own the biggest bike in the car park

Oh yeah, and the tall windscreen is SO ugly...but it works...,just put the ' summer' screen on and it buffets horribly at those speeds so back to the effective one for big fast trips.

And by the way, I envy your group of fella's who you can ride with. My "pool" of friends is pretty limited due to work schedules and their limited saddle time preferences. I've got a cousin with a new HD tourer who is a trooper, but that's about it.

I am pretty much alone up here in North Central Iowa. My high school buddies are in Northern Missouri, Central Missouri, and Northern Arkansas. We only get to ride together once a year. But, we have a great time doing it. And, it gives us a chance to save up the insults!!!

Friends....' Victory' John....Cross Country, Clive... Speed master,Treasure( don't ask) Honda VTX 1800, Andy( Indian Dark Horse)....plus a load of HD riders from my patch cub that I'm still after all these years a member of.

Between the 1050 and the T-bird, I would choose the Sprint. If you are keeping the America, would you ride it if you had the T-bird?

If you don't ride twisties often, like the cruiser and just want more power, I'd trade the LT for the Thunderbird.

I rode my Sprint over 80,000 miles and loved it. We rode the Dragon, made it to Key West and commuted on the highway.

I am definitely biased but if I lived in flatlands with straight roads, I might prefer a cruiser.

It was mentioned above that a cruiser offers foot placement options for changes in position. When I had a Yamaha with foot pegs out in front of me, it had me sitting with my lower back rounded in a way that hurt after a couple of hours and killed me on a multi day trip. I added highway bars but the best relief was riding with my feet on the passenger pegs. That put my spine in a proper allignment. The Sprint's footpegs had my back properly aligned and is comfortable for days on end.

I achieve the same back curvature problem relief with a stout backrest I can push my back into with my legs. Moving the handlebars back, helps as well.

Interesting what works for each of us.
I'm 6'3" and long in the limbs. For me the forward footboards on the TBA LT are just about perfect.....I find that forward controls in fact position my legs and spine in much the same angles as do mid controls with all you normal mortals out there.
My brother, who's shorter has announced he's giving up riding as he can't seem to get the weight distribution right for his spine.
But then he rode VN 800 and 1500 Kawasaki's.
Could never get him to try one of those ' unreliable ' tba's

Unless you are just itching for another bike I would just switch sprockets.
I have 19-41 on my Speedy and it has done 27-28 countries just fine.
It snatches slightly in the beginning in first but you adjust accordingly.
You retain the nimbleness where needed without the added weight of a bigger cruiser.
Just my experience.

Ok, I think I need to update this slighty.

Currently I have a carbed '07 with Specialty Spare long pipes, no airbox, and plan to do a 904 kit, cams, and bored carbs in a few years. I have had 19/41 gearing since I bought the bike about six years ago. Tsukayu hard bags. I have the tallest Memphis Shades windshield they offer, as well as their lowers. Progressive 444 shocks and fork springs with Race Tech valves. Dunlop Elite 3 tires that are taller than OEM. EBC stainless rotors and their best pads. I am still looking for a Tsukayu trunk for it. When I get the big bore, I will put steeper yet gearing on it, like a 20/40 or 19/40 or 19/39, etc.

I will probably be moving to southern Missouri in five to ten years, when my daughters are out of school.

I do want a second bike.

Our yearly one day trip is going to become a week long trip in the next couple of years. I think we are planning on hitting all lower 48 states and parts of Canada before we die.

I don't think you should write off the Thunderbird 1700. Mike and I both have Commanders and I love it on the highway and it does fine on the curves too. Mike keeps up w the fast guys in the twisties where I'm a little more laid back. (Spelled slow). By the way if you liked northern Ar for riding you need to come to the AR rally in Oct. Scott needs to come too.

The ARK RALLY is on my list, now. Dave has been bugging me to go for years. I just need to find a way for it to happen.