I'm sure you're correct, but talk is cheap and touring bikes and all the accommodations fit to them are costly. It does make sense for me to ask questions and I profit when I take the answers into serious consideration. Especially when I feel inclined to do something that seems contrary to convention and the collective experience of many others, I think I should be asking questions before I invest a lot in proving them wrong so to speak.

I'm not paralyzed by analysis. I've made three serious offers on bikes in the last two weeks and bought one of them. I would have been touring last weekend had things worked out, but getting the bike ready was a long shot. Now work precludes me from a multiday trip until after this coming weekend.

I would love a trike. I noticed a beautiful ICE Sprint RS for sale. I'd have to pay substantially over $2K for something like that, plus the luggage. I have some concerns about safety alongside traffic and about the weight going over mountain passes with 15% grades. A trike involves even more unknowns for me than a touring bike. I have a lot of questions that I think only riding one would answer, and since the entry-level price is around the same as a very well-equipped touring bike, I've put it off for now.