i third the windshield. wife has an 07 sporty and the windshield is a life saver

 

Although I did put the 4 gallon tank on it for distance. make sure you have a backrest (that's so important for distance riding) Better grips and a good windshield. Here's a pic of the setup I would run. I can only speak for myself but I found the XR1200R loved 65mph but anything above that brought the lightness of the bike into the picture as far as smoothness of ride.

 

Pretty much the same as everyone else is saying. Windshield, rain gear, forward pegs, good riding gloves, sunblock, earplugs, at least a 3/4 helmet with a face shield will help, and cramp buster on the throttle.

Ride safe,

Bob.

 

Underarmor Underwear, just pack your crap and ride man, get these underwear and you wont even notice buttburn. I just rode 9k miles with a guy that did it on a 883 sporty, more than a few others on 1200 C or Roadsters, 800 miles is not that bad. BTW you need to ride that bike more, 20k in 4 years is not that much usage.

 

Here's a picture of my Night Rod I put 4500 miles on last year with no windshield and loaded down with gear.

 

The Under Armor is great. I prefer the compression long arm and leg type. Your legs and arms will "glide" easier against your outerwear with them on.

Ride safe,

Bob.

 

For my Sportster touring when I had my 2001 1200C... I had an engine guard and highway pegs on that I could stretch out on the highway..also had the touring leather seat that had a wide seat area, a detachable sport windshield....and the premium leather bags...I called it my "little tourer", and I could keep up with the big boys!..

 

+1 Under Armour, a cramp buster for the throttle, earplugs and a backrest.

 

Lots of good advice...... my wife did almost 14,000 on her nightster in a year and a half by doing the basic stuff everyone else said on here...... use a windshield if you can, wear a full face lid, listen to some music if you can. It helps keep me from spacing out on long highway stretches.

I'll add..... get some sort of seat add-on..... I use sheepskin, a buddy uses a beaded seat cover. The important part is that you can ride with it for a few gas stops then take it off and it's just enough of a change to keep the butt from aching....

and



as unpopular as it may be, wear all the gear you can given the heat you're riding in. A full jacket will keep the wind from beating up on you ( which will wear you out quicker) and it'll keep your sweat from evaporating too quickly so it'll keep you cooler when it's super hot.... chaps, helmet, gloves......

hydrate like crazy..... better to have to pee a lot than to dehydrate on the bike.......

 

Open road... windshield and breaks about every 75 - 125 miles whether you think you need it or not. I've gone further but not comfortably.