2025-on Harley Pan America ST review: Adventure redefined

In case you hadn’t noticed, motorcycle racing in the US has gone a bit, er, mad. You’re probably familiar with the ‘King of the Baggers’ series which started out as a one-off exhibition race in 2020, has since grown into a staple of US national racing with factory-backed Harleys and Indians, and will support six MotoGP rounds in 2026.

But that’s just the start. A new ‘Adventure Trackers’ race series kicked off this year and saw virtually stock, large displacement adventure bikes such as Harley’s Pan America race on supermoto-style, part-dirt, part-road circuits over four rounds. Quite.

While, somewhere in the middle, the provocatively-named Super Hooligan championship, as created by customiser/ex-racer Roland Sands, debuted in 2016 with a slightly complex formula of modified, naked, high-barred, sub-125bhp V-twin or triple street bikes.

This has now also grown to be a staple of US national racing with the first six in this year’s series all on, wait for it, Harley Pan Americas (albeit unrecognisable ones). Who said US racing was tailored towards American manufacturers?

And that’s before you (rightly) question why the normally 150bhp PanAm is even eligible (it’s something to do with weight ballast, apparently…)

Anyways, the point is this: Harley’s new-for-2025 Pan America 1250 ST (for sport-touring) has been inspired by that Super Hooligan success and is essentially a purely street version of HD’s previously dual-purpose PanAmerica adventure bike which, with sportier suspension, wheels, riding position, and so on,  is intended to “appeal to riders ready to exchange a sport bike or streetfighter for an agile bike with more comfort and longer distance capability."

In reality, however, it somehow all comes together to be, in my view, one of the best all-round street sportsters you can buy – and I don’t say that lightly. On paper and in practice it pretty much has it all: great, characterful engine, sufficiently sporty chassis; enough upright comfort and touring potential; quality cycle parts, a classic name and decent value.

It’s not perfect. Those looks are an acquired taste, even in saucier ST trim, and the screen’s a bit low… but that’s about it. Overall, it works really well, has lots of versatility and appeal and is the version of the Pan America I’d be likeliest to buy.

I’ve long thought the adventure PanAm a little underrated, misunderstood and unfairly mocked for its oddball styling. But then, in all honesty, I never really fancied taking one off-road, either. In this ST guise it might finally have found its mojo.