I'm sorry my fellow posters but a 350 day is not that bad. I'm not trying to say a new rider should do more but it is possible. You can't judge what a person may be comfortable with by comparing yourself as a standard. I have ridden from Baton Rouge, La. on a 1981 FX shovel with no windshield and did 600 or more each day with the last day being a 350 day. On other trips I have just rode for 4 hours and stopped as I wanted to spend time in that area and also needed to rest my body. You need to start taking trips with the wife right now. She will slowly build up with longer times each day. You should also break up the days in a trip and make it a do nothing day. Tell her she may rest and relax and take it easy. There is no way that you should plan a 600 or longer day for your wife on a 883 Sporty. The 883 was not designed to be a 600 mile a day road bike. Hell, when I was in my late 30's a day like that on my FX was tough. If your wife wants to take Road trips, maybe you should move her up to the mid-frame bikes like the Lo Rider, Wideglide and so on.

 

Touring Windshield needs to come up to 2 inches below eye sight. You look over the windshield and the air will go over the helmet. A must for longer ride comfort.

 

350 isn't bad. 500+ is. Also that ride on the BRP is slow. Start early

 

I'm an old geezer so my opinion is driven by tired old bones. But here it is anyway. Your FREAKIN' nuts. Unless your wife is 18 and just out of boot camp that is too much. 398 miles on the BRP is 45 mph. 10,000 turns and that speed is held back by geezers from Florida who freak out driving along the cliffs as well as the dump trucks doing road construction. A Sporty has around 2 inches of suspension. That sucks.

Doing a big day to start or end is one thing, running mileage every day is something you have to build up to. My guess is if you finish off with a 600 plus day it will be your last day of touring together.

Dial it back to 350 on travel days, 250 on the BRP. Or buy the girl a Gold Wing.

 

A group of us did a Natchez Trace day ride from Nashville south to the MS line and back one day. About 300 miles round trip. Most of us had touring bikes but one fellow on a sportster was hurting and has not ridden with us again. Don't burn her out on her first trip or she'll not go back. Back to back 400 mile days may be a bit much for a new rider unless she's young and has an iron butt. I agree pick up a detachable windshield.

 

yes.....working to get new riders road miles takes time.......short trips followed by progressively longer ones...... mountain roads can be very unforgiving even to an experienced rider.......baby steps......

 

The mileages that you have for each day is a pretty good average.

When considering splitting up that last 600 mile day though, you should make two plans: Keep the 600 mile day on the table, but make a plan for possibly splitting it up. By day 8, your wife will let you know if a 600 mile day is in the cards.

600 miles per day isn't that bad, did it back in 95 on a Honda 650 Nighthawk. 2600 miles from Eastern Michigan to Puget Sound WA via the Black Hills SD & Glacier National Park. 800 miles the first day, then ~600 per day after that. No windshield, no fairing, upright seating position, 42 mpg and a three gallon tank.

Start planning local trips 50, 100, 150 miles on weekends/evenings prior to the really long one to build up to it. Tank of gas out, rest & see some sights, tank of gas back; once she's comfortable with that, the rest is easy.

 

I don't know your ages and that factors into it. I'm in my late 60's. When I rode an 883 sporty after 150 miles I was beat from the loud pipes and wind buffeting. Switching to a bagger I can do 440 a day but prefer to stay around 300-350 max to really enjoy the day. Your day 6 of 398 on the BRP is about a 12-14 hour day. You can't average over 45 mph on the Blue Ridge and you will definately want to stop to take in the scenery. I wouldn't take on a 633 mile day on my bagger unless I had to. A tip I learned and use, again I don't kow your ages, is I take an aspirin 30 minutes before I start a long ride and take another every 2-4 hours into the ride. I stop and stretch my legs every 125-150 miles, and I also stay well hydrated.

 

A lot of very good advice here. Remember, road trips should be FUN, not WORK. You are a very lucky man to have a wife that likes to ride, don't push her too hard and ruin that.
Have a Great trip, and be safe. Post some pics. when you get back so we can enjoy it with you.

 

It all depends on your wife. Our first real trip was last year from Boise, ID to Lodi, CA. It was about 600 miles. She was riding a Dyna Wide Glide with NO windshield and a backpack crammed full on her back. I was on a Street Bob with the same set up. We had factory seats also. She couldn't wait for more the second day! I think the big thing is if you want to put miles on, or stop and smell the roses. If you are trying for miles behind you then stop often and take some breaks. Another trick is to try and hit cities outside of rush hour. Stopping before a city and eating dinner (a real dinner not fast food) is a good way to do this. An hour makes a big difference often.