it is a nice bike . my neighbor Richard has owned a husky 701 before this bike so is very familiar with all aspects of the type .
so my neighbor Richard has at least 3 bikes in his garage at all times . he is a well known Texas dual sport rider(Trail Boss ) who organizes dual sport rallies around Texas and Mexico . he has a few help books and guides that he has written and sells (I have seen them in dealers ) about places to ride in Texas and Arkansas and Oklahoma .... has a web site Texas Adventure Rider .... and is an all around good guy. he bought this 690 and immediately sold his KTM 500 exc within a weeks time (never seen anyone sell a bike as fast as him ) . he has a list of farkle's he is adding to the bike (yesterday was pannier racks ,bark busters and MRA windshield ) . he is leaving for a big bend rally later this week ,about 120 or so will be attending . his current bike ownership list is , KTM 300 XC , Honda Africa Twin DC , and now the 690 . he is already talking about buying another bike and selling the Africa Twin (fully farkle d ) immaculate and extremely low miles ( I think I know why he sells so fast ) . rarely does he keep a bike longer than 2 years . as for me bikes are a more long term experience as my pockets are not as deep but I do know will get to ride his bike at some point so that is a plus about being his neighbor . and sometimes I do ride with him. good neighbors are hard to find. I'm lucky.