George,
I agree with your assessment. If I had my lady on the back of my Speedmaster, saddlebags full of gear, and I was pulling the grade west out of Denver on I-70 I think I'd be sweating it a little with the semis on my tail and big SUVs zooming by in the left lane. I think that calls for a few more cc's than the 790 in the BA and older Speedmaster.
On the other hand, I don't need the Biggest Bike In All The Land. The Rocket III is way up there on the ego-meter. It's front view profile is a little Boss Hoss-like so it's looks aren't for everyone.
I like my Speedmaster a lot, and I'm sure if I had bought a BA I'd like that bike equally as well. I'm 6'2" and I weigh about 230 and I do almost all my riding solo, so my bike works great for me. It puts a big grin on my face every time I ride it.
BUT, if I were doing heavy touring with a rider on the back, or even if I were riding solo with lots of gear, I'd have to consider alternatives. R1150RT, K1200GT, Kawasaki Concours, Road King, Road Star, ST-1300, or a good used ST-1100, FJR-1300, and all the other souless YamaSukiKawaHonda metrics in the 1000 to 1400 cc range.
BTW, I sat on a Trophy (dealer demo) the other day. The ergs felt good but the seat felt funny. It had a weird forward slant. I also sat on a new Sprint which fit me good, but put too much weight on my arms. Tiger? Maybe.
John
