The Bagger That Made Me Forget It Weighed 816 Pounds

I said yes to this bike faster than I've said yes to anything in my life. Harley called, asked if I wanted their CVO Street Glide ST for a month, and I was already reaching for my helmet. I'm a sporty rider. A big classic bagger is not my usual thing. But the ST package changes the math.

Here's the thing. This is a 45,000-dollar motorcycle that weighs 816 pounds, and it spent the entire first ride trying to convince me it was something lighter and meaner. Sometimes it worked. Sometimes it very much did not.

Performance Highlights

Start with the engine, because it's the whole story. This is the 121 cubic inch Milwaukee-Eight, the High Output version, which means Harley pulled the variable valve timing off the standard motor to chase peak power. You get 145 pound-feet of torque and a redline that climbs higher than any touring Harley has business seeing. What you lose is the buttery bottom end. What you gain is a Harley that actually wants to rev.

And I loved that. Roll it into the meat of the power and it comes on revvy and sporty, which is not a sentence you get to write about a bagger. For the 40 to 80 pull I started in second gear, because you have to, and it hit 80 in 3.40 seconds. On an 816 pound motorcycle. It threw me into the backrest and I laughed inside my helmet.

My one complaint is the exact thing I love. The fun lives in a short window up high, so right as this thing hits peak excitement, I have to shift and start the whole game over. It reminds me of a small, punchy bike where you're always rowing the gearbox to keep the party going, except now you're doing it at highway speed on something enormous. I just wanted the party to last a beat longer.

The chassis is the real surprise. It's Showa front and rear, and it showed up set so hard and racy that I softened the rear just to keep myself out of trouble. You feel the bumps, but you also get a confidence to push that no bagger should hand you. The Brembos and the electronically linked braking do a genuinely solid job hauling this thing down, though you never quite forget the weight. You are not stopping this on a dime, and it will remind you of that.

Rider Experience & Tech

Comfort is where it stops arguing and just wins. The seat is massive, my whole body sinks into it, and that backrest catches you when the power throws you back. On the highway there's so much wind protection that nothing touches me until the very top of my Shoei. No buffeting, no shaking. Harley even built the famous shake to only show up when you're stopped, so the second you roll, it goes smooth. This is peak highway riding.

The tech is all here too. A 12.3 inch touchscreen with CarPlay, eight ride modes, cornering ABS and traction control, and a hill hold that buzzes the front brake lever so you know it's holding. Little haptic touches like that are the stuff I appreciate.

Then there's the part that keeps this from being easy. At low speed you feel every one of those 816 pounds, especially with the wheel turned at a stop or backing up a driveway, and it has caught me out more than once. The levers are so big I can't run a two-finger clutch, so I drag the whole lever back to the bar every time. And I gotta be honest, the kickstand terrifies me. The bike rolls forward as you set it down, and my anxiety spikes every single time I park it.

The Chase Score & Final Thoughts

With a Chase Score of 68 out of 100, the CVO Street Glide ST lands firmly in Good territory, and it gets there in an unusual way. The ride and the usability came out dead even at 34 apiece, which tells you exactly what this bike is. Genuinely fun and genuinely comfortable, held back by heavy low-speed manners and a price that opens at 45 grand.

So who is this for? The Harley lifer who loves the life but keeps wishing their American cruiser had a little more sport in it. This gives you that in a way you won't see coming. Skip it if you want something easy to paddle around a parking lot, or if 45,000 dollars makes your wallet flinch. Because aggressive and fun are two words you never use on a Harley, and this one actually earns them both.