Originally Posted by RobertLever

So a sport-tourer is only 700 lbs while a touring bike is 900 lbs?
I found a copy of Motorcyclist magazine from April 1997. The lead article is called "Battle of the Twins". It compares a Ducati 916, a Suzuki TL1000S, and our own VTR1000F. The gist of the article is if you're going to the racetrack, get the Ducati. If you want fast, but butt-ugly with a jerky throttle, get the Suzuki. If you want a good fast bike for the real world, get a Super Hawk. Some quotes "Still when the cruel realities of straight pavement, urban traffic, and the credit union specify more of a broadband approach, nothing goes faster easier than the Super Hawk."
"In a 10-round decision, I'd have to go with the dang Honda. It's not quite so sportingly competent as the Suzuki at high speed, but I always head for the slow twisty stuff when I go for a ride anyway, and that's what the Honda likes. There's not quite as much top-end power as the Suzuki, either, but it's interesting to exit a 50-mph corner at about 4000 rpm, behind the Ducati, and whack open the canal locks Honda calls carb slides: buwHHUUUUUUUpp. You'll run right up the 916's twin tailpipes if your not careful. Whoa! Up to about 60 to 70 mph, I'd wager the VTR is one of the very fastest vehicles ever.
"You can also ride the Honda to work every day, comfortably, and you could even take somebody for a ride in back if you wanted to. Where it really whomps the TL, though, is in the looks department. While Honda captured some 916 beauty in its bike, Suzuki captured some sort of big koi fish."
" Ahh, but it's this razor-sharp focus wherein lies the Duck's Achille's Heel too, as it misses the mark as real-world transport...That said, I'd have to nod to the VTR here. It's almost everything the Duck is, and isn't, which is to say cozy."

Almost a Ducati without the torture, that sounds like a practical sportbike. That's why I got my 'Hawk. Got to go open the canal locks.