So I went and test rode a Victory Judge today....

[R1200RClassic]

Rider Magazine's testers preferred the Fat Bob, in their comparo.



The late Gordon Jennings used to pass sport bike riders on his Yamaha Venture Royale.

It's fun to try to hang with a faster rider for a few corners, after they pass you.

But just a few.

guys, guys, don't think I'm a complete idiot... I know the difference between a cruiser and a standard bike, etc.. and I can't fault someone for a preference for one over the other, much less if they chose a sport bike or tourer, the problem however is that the Judge is meant as a competitor to the standard bike market... it's not intended to be their "Cruiser" .. sort of like the Sportster from HD...

In the current issue of Ultimate Motorcycling they also review it and like it... but then they never dislike anything, however even they emphasize that it's a new direction for Victory intended to be less of a cruiser and more of a standard bike.. and having ridden it myself, it sticks in that category... My old Honda Shadow "Cruiser" felt more responsive in terms of handling, never mind my prior experiences with the Brutale or Speed Triple, both of which also ate it's lunch as "standard" bikes.

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Rider Magazine's testers preferred the Fat Bob, in their comparo.



The late Gordon Jennings used to pass sport bike riders on his Yamaha Venture Royale.

It's fun to try to hang with a faster rider for a few corners, after they pass you.

But just a few.

I have news for you. A Venture Royale was a darned fast and good handling bike in it's day. Hanging with the sport bikes of the era, remember, mid to late 1980's timeframe, wasn't all that hard to do on one. I swapped my K bike for a week with a friend who gave me his Venture and it was an eye opening experience. Oh, and you could put high end reservoir shocks on them too, unlike most other touring sleds of the era. I honestly liked the big Yamaha V-4 in that application better than in the V-Max with it's V-Boost nonsense. V-Boost didn't really make any more power, it just gave the impression of a big jump in power. The Venture's version of that engine was more refined and every bit as powerful.