Ducati Multistrada

Munch - I was checking out this Multistrata this morning. The owner had a bunch of goodies on it. The bike drew a surprising amount of attention.

Just an opinion, but if you actually want to take the thing off road, I'd say get the F650. I've had one for about 2 years now to use as a "foolin' around" bike for rides when I'm more interested in the world around me than carving. High speeds are fun, but the world seems to narrow down like tunnel vision to the just the road ahead, and then there's that whole visit to the Judge thing. You miss alot that way. My 650 GS has had just under 8k of dirt roads, abandoned rail beds, farm roads, and my wife toured on it last year on our vacation to the Blue Ridge. It also handles pavement suprisingly well, too, although the long, soft suspension gives new meaning to the phrase "brake dive", and it's tall enough that you get suprised at first on corners. Your head gets a whole lot closer to roadsigns and oncoming SUV mirrors than you're used to accounting for.
I looked at an R1150GS the same day I bought the 650, and I quickly realised that while it isn't that hard to pick an R1150 GS up on nice level ground, I'd be screwed if I dropped it on a muddy slope. It's just too damn big and heavy. Yesterday I was on an abandoned railroad grade and a fallen tree pushed me too close to the offside of the gravel side slope. The gravel turned out to be a whole lot less firm than I thought, gave way, and the bike slid out and ended up on its' side with a small tree wedged between the shift lever and the motor on the down side of the incline. If I'd have had the big GS, I'd have been screwed. It'd still be there now, waiting for a crane.
While the new R1200 GS looks like a nice improvement over the R1150 GS, the F650 is a good enough bike on its' own that if you're going to go exploreing on anything more rugged than a groomed dirt road, you'll be pleased. Yes, your freinds will laugh at you (right, Fernando?) for being on such a small bike, but the first time you get it on a bad road you'll be laughing your ass off. Taking gravel roads at 60+ mph, and aiming for potholes and puddles is a hech of a lot of fun. Try that on yer 748. I sure wouldn't on my Daytona.
The Multistrada looks like a whole lot of fun on paved back roads, especially rough ones, but I have no experience with it, nor has anyone I know. It's 17" wheels aren't going to give you access to any god dual-sport tires, though.
So, I guess it depends on where and how you want to ride. Whichever way, good luck. If you go for the Multidtrada, give us a review, okay? Fernando and I are both real curious.

Hold the phone...I just found this.

Go to http://www.motoguzzi.it for specs.

Damn Italians...always building stuff I can't afford!

I haven't carried alot of pillion passengers on the 650 GS, but that's mostly because my wife and I don't do 2-up well. We're much better off on our own bikes.
Having said that, the 650 is my only bike that still has a back seat and passenger pegs, and those times I did take Annika around were surprisingly simple. I didn't notice much difference, and neither of us is what you might call "light". Of course, we didn't climb any mountains or try to maintain 90mph on the highway, either.

KTM makes a really good bike, and I would probably get a 950 Adventure over an R1150/1200GS. You should be aware, though, that KTMs are a bit more biased towards offroad than their BMW counterparts.

As for the Caponord, I don't know anyone who has one, and have only seen them in magazines.

What about the Triumph Tiger? I bought a new Bonneville last spring, and was so impressed with it I sold my '02 R1100s Prep to get a new '04 Daytona 955i for my daily driver. It's a great bike. Triumph seems to have a knack for making exceptional road bikes.

Munch, I'm in total sympathy with your frustration. I've been through it myself more times than I'd like to admit. I spent over a month seriously obsessing about alternatives before I settled on the Daytona. It's easier for Fernando- if Ducati doesn't make it, he isn't interested. I have to admit that makes the whole process alot easier.
My advice is to make a list of what's important to have in your next bike. We know from your earlier posts that A) It must be pillion friendly, B) It must have a more forgiving riding position than a 748, but needen't have an upright tourer-type seating position, C) Cruisers are out, and D) It should be of non-Japanese manufacture.

That's a good start. Now- how important is touring capability? Where do you ride, and on what kind of roads? How about dealer support? For example, the nearest Ducati dealer to me is 3 hours away by interstate. I ride alot, so I'd have to factor in frequent long trips up I-85. If it was a BMW, fine- but from Ducati I'd like a 1000 SS. No way.
Do you enjoy trackdays, or spend 98% of your time onroad? How much of your own maintenance do you like to do? What engine type do you prefer? And so on.

Then see which of the many bikes you're interested in meet the most of the criteria you've listed, and go for it.

By the way, I'm very happy with the 955i. I wanted a fast road bike for everyday use on day long rides on mostly windy & rough back country roads. It also had to do the occasional tour, be dead-ass reliable, and not be a cop-magnet. The Daytona does this all the way.

Good luck.