So in summary it seems:

Normal to go up to or even past the 80 mark on the coolant gauge.
- How hot is it when you enter the "red" zone?

And bottom line, hey, it's a Honda so don't sweat it!

Thanks y'all. I just needed a warm fuzzy in case I decide to pursue titling/registering my MC21 for some street use in the future. I live in the DC area and traffic here really sucks (like Tokyo, L.A., etc...)

Jae