Sport/tourers vs Sportbikes

[No Worries]

I found an old Motorcyclist magazine (Jan. 2002) where the front headline was "Sport-tourers vs. Sportbikes (it's closer than you think)." They compared Italian bikes. The Ducati 996 vs Ducati ST4s, and the Aprilia Mille R vs Aprilia Futura.

On the road, the ST's have higher handlebars, so the rider is more upright. Also, the bars are wider which make them easier to steer. The ST's "gave a much greater feeling of being in complete control."

The ST's have the same basic engine, but are retuned by different mapping, cams, gearing, etc. to deliver power at lower road speeds. The 996 and Mille were geared to the moon for top speeds over 160. The ST's also had lighter suspension damping. On all but the fastest roads, the ST's hung with the sporties.

What about the track? They had two racetrack veterans and one novice racer, and ran the Streets Of Willow. They yanked the centerstands off the ST's, but kept the saddlebags on. The expert went fastest on the sportbikes. Five full seconds faster on the Mille than the Futura. But less than 2 seconds faster on the 996 than the ST4s.

The other racer ran half a second faster on the Mille than the ST4s. But the ST4s beat the 996 by two tenths. The novice ran the two sport bikes faster than the ST's, but was faster on the Furura by a second over the ST4s.

Here's my theory. I feel that with an upright seating position, I can lean wayyyy off the bike. When I rode an Aprilia, my face was almost on the tank and it was difficult to lean my upper body. Try it from the chair you're sitting on now. Sit up straight and lean to either side. The put your face by the keyboard and see how far you can lean. Your center of gravity moves much more when you are sitting upright.