Trent, yeah I have done all my miles on the Versys (Although the European trip was on a rented Honda Deauville). I mainly do Iron Butt type rides, so my advice will probably differ if your looking to tour. My typical travel day is 16 hours on bike, 2 hours fueling & 6 hours sleeping. If your a 8 hours on, 8 hours looking at scenery & 8 hours sleeping kinda guy my choices may not make sense. I am NOT saying my way is best, and other ways are bad! Just that I've made some sacrifices that only make sense if your trying to do 800+ miles in a day every day.
1. You mentioned the Baldwin seat. Those are better than stock and very attractive looking. I have a Russel daylong. About as attractive as a wart, but my ass is the last thing that starts hurting when I ride. They do add about an inch in height as well, with my 28.5" inseam means that I can't put both feet down.
2. Good hard luggage is a must. I like the Givi's. I resisted this cause of the weight and size, but soft bags are just to big a hassle and don't lock.
3. For IBA rides the extra tank is a real godsend. My range is now limited to my bladder capacity, not the bikes ;-) (5-6 hours for me; 425+ miles for the bike).
I did an extensive write up with pics on my fuel rig.
4. Highway bars, foot peg lowering, throttle lock. All of these help with fatigue and the ergos. Being able to find new positions to sit in is essential for keeping the aches & pains away.
5. GPS with Weather. I have a Zumo 665 and the weather maps are a godsend. Knowing if I will hit rain means I leave my heated gear on, or knowing its going to hit 90+ by 10 am, means dont bother putting it on in the AM when its cool.
6. Lights. The Versys lights kinda suck. HIDs use less power (leaving Amps for the heated gear) and are brighter. I use Future Vision HID lights.
7. Water. You must have a way to keep hydrated if your doing multiple 600+ mile days. I have a 1 gallon cooler (Wal-mart) with some refrigerator water line hose (Home Depot) and a Camelbak bite valve (REI). On cool days I drink only 1 gallon for the whole day. On Hot days I fill it every other fuel stop (700 miles or so). I also use the dissolveable electrolyte tabs at about 1/2 strength, mainly for some flavor.
8. A tank bag that can be opened easily at speed. I eat on the bike most times (I try for only dinner as a full meal). I had a tank bag that was great, but was a PITA to open at speed. I now have the Motofizz Multi Tank Bag from Aerostich. Its a little too big, but works well on the road. I mainly eat Clif bars.
9. Good cheap tires. I love the Shinko 009s. They are inexpensive and handle like a dream. At 12-18,000 miles a year I burn up 2 rears and 1 front. Saving $100+ a tire change, while not losing performance seem like a no brainier to me.
10. Automatic Oiler. My bike looks like crap because the entire rear half is covered in oil, but the chain is covered in oil too! Without a center stand oiling the chain is a real chore. Your supposed to oil a chain every 250-300 miles, well I only stop every 300-350 miles, so without an oilier I'd constantly be under lubing the chain. My fuel stops are only 10-20 minutes long, adding another 5 minutes to oil the chain... yeah not gonna happen. I have a Scotoiler. I hear that the Pro Oilier is much better with the extra spray problem. Too expensive a part to write off, so I just ride a filthy bike (Well that and I have never washed it, that's what rain is for).
All told my mods cost about the same as the bike. If you are a more casual tourer and that is what you want the bike for... honestly a used BWM RT with factory cruise... might be an easier ticket and not cost much more!
Steve