Yeah, the "experts" I had talked to previously called it a "sport tourer" (that's how they were advertised back in the day, apparently).

I wish they still made this style of bike for those of us who like the touring geometry with its stable handling, yet don't need a true touring bike. It's basically a rider's bike meant to soak up the miles. I even like the wide 1 1/4" tires. I think it's far more effective than a carbon fiber fork at damping road imperfections.

By they way pgaulrapp, I use this bike for long rides (30-50 miles) as well as commuting in fair weather. It's great. For poor conditions I use my mountain bike to commute (I've got fenders for it). I might pick up some old-school fenders for the Shogun and make it an all-weather commuter, too.

Last thing - You'll notice that the stems on these bikes are absurdly short (for short Japanese men?). Depending on your height, it may not be well suited to riding in the drops at first. Once I got a longer stem, it was pure comfort. I spent 85% of my time in the drops now. My commute is about 5-10% faster on the road bike than the mountain bike with slicks. Not a huge difference, but I really enjoy the ride on the Shogun.

Get that sucker fitted well. First seat height. Then seat forward-rear position. Then, finally the stem length.

Enjoy the ride!