Road Glide or Road King?

[Redfish Hunter]

A couple more thoughts for you. Watch a video of those policemen riding their Road Kings in those contests with all the cones and ridiculously tight little turns. I don't know you and have no idea of your skill level but I personally can't come close to riding my ST or Dad's FJR as well as they do those Harleys. I watched a local Sherrif's Deputy practicing one day and they can do things with those Harleys that are nearly unbelievable. I am NOT bashing anyone but I think that the Harleys go slow more based on the rider's mentality than the bike's capability. Police officers all over this country ride Road Kings in all sorts of weather, all day long. They must be a pretty good motorcycle.

Having ridden the '07 Street Glide and being around it alot I have come to respect it. You may even come to enjoy the stereo, it works well. With either bike you will have to adjust to those narrow saddlebags, they are very different from the FJR saddlebags. Looking at the bike you would assume the mufflers will drag first. Not so, it drags in the front somewhere and makes a hell of a racket. I can hear it clearly when he is behind me, but I have only heard it twice. Once on the Tail of the Dragon, once on one of those UnGodly twisty little roads leading off the Blue Ridge Parkway. Both times I did not want to ride any faster than I was going. My peg feelers were just whispering against the asphalt, not quite touching at the time.

Harley updated the rear chassis of all their touring models, I think in '09. They eleminated the swingarm flex/wobble and put a wider more appropriately sized tire on the back. This is supposed to really improve the handling.

I would not trade my ST for a Harley, my Dad says that before he trades his FJR for a Harley he will stop riding. We both like the damned thing though and I am not ashamed of that. The Harley is not an FJR but it is a motorcycle and if you let yourself, you will probably enjoy it.

 

[Greb]

I owned a Street Glide, you'll enjoy that bike. My Glide didn't come with cruise control in '06 so not sure if that is standard equipment now. The floor boards drag pretty early on the street glide since it is lowered. If you want more cornering clearance the Road King will have the advantage there.

 

[TwoWhldTerror]

Thanks everyone for the awesome feedback. I am actually something radical...not renting a bike at all! I have decided it is more important to spend a solid week with my father, whom I have not seen in 20 years, and instead just hang out with him and his bride. The riding was just going to eat into that. He is into classic cars and seemed excited and said we could take one of his cars and go to Reno for a few days, just a "guy trip".

With that said, I will definitely store the information away for future use!