i need some feedback with this one lol...i am planning to take a pretty long trip with the 14 from ny to miami and it's about a 1200 mile trip...anyone road that far with the 14 before??? would definitely like to know how she treats ur back on long hauls, the most i ever did at one time was 300 mi and it didn't seem that bad

Here's my sport touring list I've compiled thus far for trips such as these. I'm about to pull the trigger tomorrow:

Zero Gravity Sport Touring Smoke Windscreen
Airhawk seat cushion
Expander Saddlebags
Joe Rocket Mantra Tank Bag
Back Off brake light modulator (three blinks when braking to keep cagers aware of the fact that you're applying brakes)
Stebel air horn (139dB of cager-waking horn)

From several different posts within this forum and others and from my own personal experience to backup the claims, the stock windscreen has a buffeting effect at around 70+ mph. Folks from other sport touring sites swear by the Airhawk seat cushion for those long hauls and the luggage is obvious. Lastly, I'm going with a Powerlet socket cigarette lighter adapter so I can power my iPhone on the trip, listening to tunes and using GPS. Please let me know how it goes as I have a few 500+ trips lined up over the next few months. Ride safe, drink plenty of water and make sure you tell close friends when you plan to leave and your anticipated arrival time in case of emergency. You might even consider a Camelbag to keep on your back for hydration while on the go. That was a thought of mine. Personally, I can't wait for my trips. Keep us posted please.

rc the longest ive ridden at 1 time on the 14 is 600 mi the trip isnt too bad but im 6'3" 240lbs I have the stock seat still the only thing that bothers me is my throttle hand & butt gets a little numb after awhile. So for me i welcomed the gas stops but no back problems and my back is not the best

When I had a zx14 4-500 day trips was no problem with a dbl bubble screen and risers. I did a 612 mile day trip once consisting of back roads and some highway man that was brutal. I put 21k on the bike in two short IL seasons and the seat was really soft at around 15k so replace it if you plan on long trips. As you already know the zx14 is really easy to exceed the speed limit on and not even realize it. I wired this device into my passport 9500 and it saved my ass at least a dozen times while blasting the highways.Belkin splitterThe really cool part is you can plug one of the adapters into the headphone jack of a radar detector and one of the other adapters into a GPS that plays music. This will allow you use a good quality set of ear buds like these ear buds to protect your hearing while listening to your GPS,music and listening out for the POPO. If you use the correct channel it will cancel the music/GPS when the detector alerts you. I also carried on of these along with tire plugs mini 12v air pump. The pump comes with a thin pig tail power adapter that you can attach directly to the battery(run a inline fuse) and leave the other end tucked under your seat. I carried the pump, tire plugs,extra credit card, spare cash,wallet,phone mini flash light and a bottle water inside the bag with no problems in this tank bag Joe Rocket tank bag. The bag has a low enough profile so you can still tuck if needed. Oh and it has been tested up to 165 on GPS by yours truly. I know its illegal in most states but I would carry a second drives license, spare credit card and key in my jacket just in case you lose your wallet while 1200 miles from home. I know in some places the cops will take your DL until you appear in court if you get a ticket. Oh and one more thing don't trust the gas gauge on a zx14 fill up at every stop. Good luck

* Last updated by: willidx4 on 3/2/2010 @ 8:17 AM *

willi very good tips some id not of thought about and brother you are spot on with the statement about the speed id look down thinking i was just cruisin and speedo would say 100 bike so smooth it would be easy to get a ticket

thnx for the tips, didn't even think about hooking up a detector, gonna have to do the 12v outlet mod, i remember seeing it before in one of the other posts, gonna def use it, it would suck to run through states bringing back a souvenir from all the through states lol, my main concern was the comfort level with the stock seat that i have on it, completely forgot about the other factors

* Last updated by: rcflyer1388 on 3/2/2010 @ 2:12 PM *

To solve the throttle hand stiffness, stop jerkin "it" with your throttle hand the week before you ride, or pick yourself up a set of throttlemeist bar ends, twist of the wrist and it locks your throttle to where you want it and gives your right hand a break.... they work great and look good too..... cheaper than having cruise installed...
http://www.throttlemeister.com/index.html

2800 miles!!! thats a long trip there, but since you did it in 11 days then i guess its not that bad, i'm looking into doing this one in about 18 hours, that way i can spend a week there and head back so i don't miss out on work lol...i checked out the throttlemeister, seems like that might do the trick, the other guys are gonna hate me when they see me cruising with just the left hand...guess i gotta leave the arm to rest for a week before leaving

To solve the throttle hand stiffness, stop jerkin "it" with your throttle hand the week before you ride, or pick yourself up a set of throttlemeist bar ends, twist of the wrist and it locks your throttle to where you want it and gives your right hand a break.... they work great and look good too..... cheaper than having cruise installed...
http://www.throttlemeister.com/index.html

Forgot about those great product. Whatever you do don't try to cheap out like I did and get a throttle rocker those things are deadly. One morning at 6am I took off to meet up with some buds for a ride and almost highsided just making a right turn out of my driveway. My palm hit the thing while the bike was leaning over to the right that caused the rear to spin when it caught that sent my ass of the seat about a foot into the air. I ripped it off,dropped it in the street.

This thing will kill you

I bought the Kaoko Cruise and will hopefully have it installed some time middle of next week. If anyone cares, I'll post my review of it after having used it a while.

You can buy an aftermarket cruise setup from autozone or oreillys and adapt it to the 14. I don't know how, but a guy i used to ride with had it.

Two years ago I went from CA to Phoenix AZ, trailered with a buddys bike and his setup to Daytona. Then rode the 14 the entire way back. The 14 was spectacular, as well as the weather and sceanery. Cops-n-Highway Patrol all over until Calif!

* Last updated by: JDC on 3/4/2010 @ 7:28 PM *

I never went more than a couple hundred miles in a day until I bought my 14.
Still, I've only done one long trip, by my standards. Went to Yosemite from L.A. and on up to Reno.
I'm about 5'10" and I have the Genmar risers (1" up,5/8" back)and stock seat. Used a light backpack for a few days clothes and camera.
First day was about 400 miles. Coming home, one day, was about 550 miles. The day in between about 300 miles.
I had my doubts about comfort as I never owned a bike like the 14. Only bike I've owned the last 30 years is my GS1000 with a super soft seat and straight up standard bars of yesteryear. I was surprised how comfortable the 14 was. Only time the seat started bothering me was the last 200 miles coming home, and then it wasn't too bad. My back gave me no issues. Only problem I had and I most likely will have to fix is the bars. When going downhill, my wrists started aching and I got some numbness. With my weight going too far forward and down on the grips there was little I could do but keep shaking my hands often. It wasn't an issue unless going downhill for longer than several minutes. Out on the freeway I had no issues. I can suggest being aware and not day dreaming though. You can easily find yourself going faster than you though because the bike is so smooth. Also real hard to stop yourself from opening it up as I did in the long sweepers up above Lee Vining (160mph+). So if you get ANY sore wrists or circulation issues from just puttin' around, then you'll probably wish you had a bar kit. My Genmars help a little but not nearly enough. Also have some soft Grab-on grips to help but again not enough.
I'd bring along a tire repair kit. If you've never repaired a tire from the outside then it may be best to practice on an old one to get the hang of it. Get a good lock. I've got a New York disc lock with the bright orange cable attached to the grip. Not saying it's the best but people see it easily and hopefully it stops someone if they want to steal your bike. Most everything else needed someone has already covered.
We're all a little different and prefer different things. Probably no matter how much you plan, this trip will let you know what you need for future trips.
Hope you have a great trip. I envy you. The open road and the 14, or any bike, is just too f'in cool!

damn, u guys got me all thinking about all the things i need to take for this trip, i was looking at more of a hop on and go type of deal, where i throw the bags on the back and haul ass lol

1. rainsuit
2. underwear
3. 1/5 high octane beverage
4. no detectors in Va. & running the front door in Va. is like wearing a cream pie suit to a fat ladies convention.

2300 miles 3 days,4200 miles 7 days.C14 seat,Genmar risers,ZG ST screen,NEB throttle lock,PCIII with dual map.

Ninjamaster, how is the C14 seat? Does it let you get away from the tank?

An aftermaket seat- corbin, c-14, meyer etc. The stock seat IMHO is painful for more than 4 or 5 hours. A bad seat can ruin a trip. I have ridden mine up and down the west coast 4 times and to sturgis and beyond. The bike is at its best on the open road. Radar detecter and laser jammer reccomended. Spray your license plate with that reflecting spray makes it very difficult for cameras to read plate. It sounds like a wonderful trip. post photos.

I constantly travel to games of my favorite hockey team Minnesota from New York where I work to St. Paul on my bike which is more than 1100 miles one way, and I must say that I got used to such distances, but at first it was not easy for me and for my bike. Once on the road I had to order a new exhaust, good thing I read the article https://allforharley.com/true-dual-exhaust-for-harley/ before and knew where to order them, so it was no big deal.