I`ve had a Nexus 8 on my commuter/grocery/bikepath bike for 10 months (2000 mi?) and I love it for that- mostly for being kinda different and for the under-rated ability to downshift after an unexpected stop. For me, I don`t think it would cut it on a "serious" bike because of the gear range. I have mine geared pretty low with 42t ring and 21t sprocket to 26 x 1.5 tires, and it`s enough granny that I RARELY wish for lower, but I spin out somewhere around 20-25 MPH (no speedometer, so I`m guessing here) and my gearing is spaced out more between gears than with a modern derailer/cassette system. Anyway, I`d check the gear inch calculator on Harris to make sure it`s in line with what you`d consider touring on. The mulit-sprocket setup on some SRAMs (what do they call that?) seems like maybe a good idea, but it seems silly to me to drive an IG hub with a double or tripple crankset because you end up needing two derailers and two shifters anyway (RD to take up slack). What would be the point?

EDIT: I`ve skimmed the thread you`re talking about and found it interresting. If it works for that guy, maybe it`ll work for you. For me, I think I`ll just leave my Nexus on my `round town bike and count my blessings.