Josh,
I hope I can answer some of your questions about what bike to take on an Americas tour.
I am currently in Ecuador, riding a 2005 BMW F650GS. My wife is also riding an F650GS. We have been through a lot of the Western US, Most of Mexico, and have hit all of the Central American countries. We will continue south.
In my opinion the F650GS is well suited for someone who does 80% paved roads. This bike is heavy so when you get into sand or gravel you need A LOT of upper body strength to man-handle the steering. The bike has a lot of tourque and it is true that power saves your butt when your front starts to go its own way. We have taken some pretty rough roads on these bikes, one stretch in Guatemala was over 100 miles of mountain roads, and the worst thing that happened to my bike was the back brake going out. That may have been due to rider error as my wifes bike has no noticable pad wear.
As for highway milage, we get 60 to 65 mpg and that has been speeds from 45 to 80 mph. Very comfortable on pavement.
Let me know if you have any specific questions,
Tom
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Lynne and Tom
www.strollsouth.com
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