I switched from Sportsbikes to Adventure Bikes after 25 years on Jap rocketships (with one Italian in there) and do not regret it at all, I guess a lot will depend oon how (and where) you ride, and how you get your kicks, I know some guys who just have to go stupidly fast to have fun, but I think most riders are more like me.
Modern sportsbikes have become too fast, in the UK speed camera's are everywhere, you are far more likely to get put in jail if caught doing 150mph than you are if you stab someone with a knife (really) add to that most main roads are heavily congested in much of the UK and the few really good "biking roads" are in tourist traps and littered with slow moving old people (in cars and coaches) and swarming with police who are there purely to stop the evil bikers having fun.
Queue switch to an Adventure bike, suddenly narrow minor roads are fun, you would barely get out of second if pushing hard on a superbike, but on an Adventurebike you are zipping along quite nicely going up and down the gearbox and swinging through bends with a huge grin, anyone trying to follow on a sportsbike would probably get bounced out of the seat and lose all their fillings. I find far less traffic on these roads, the bumps and pot-holes are soaked up by the large front rim and long travel suspension and crap in the road is all part of the fun.
When I get home I am happy, no waiting for two weeks in fear of a letter from the plod, and when I venture further afield I can ride in comfort all day long, I certainly don't miss bikes that are no fun below 100mph, the bragging rights maybe, but not the reality of ownership.
And with good tires, this 90 horse bike will rip in the twisties. The long travel suspension is so good at smoothing out lousy pavement that it's hard going back to a pure street bike with just 4~5" of suspension travel.
