TRIUMPH SPEED TRIPLE 1200RS
In October 2019 I handed back my last long-term test bike, Honda’s CBR650R which had kept things interesting on the roads whilst my trusty CB500 saw me safely through my first ever race season. Racing had been so much fun in truth it had a detrimental effect on my road riding – just getting a little too fruity here and there, and I decided to give myself a bike break for a few months.
Thanks to covid this scheduled ‘break’ turned into a full year-and-ahalf without a ride, which has got to make you rusty, right? Thus it was with some trepidation, aligned with the obvious excitement and appreciation, that I accepted the Triumph seat for Fast Bikes for 2021.
Originally the plan was for the Trident to come visiting, a very capable middle-weight that I thought would be perfect to ease me back into the ride. But then a significant upgrade was offered and despite the nerves, past experiences with previous models and a question on whether I was ready for such a ride, a Triumph Speed Triple 1200 RS had my name written next to it at the Hinckley Factory.
I have always loved the Triumph, offering the performance of four but the grunt of two; the triple engine and I have always got on well. Loved the Daytona, just adored the 675R which made me hate the fact I didn’t have the cash to buy one. I have lived with the Street Triple as a 675 then 765 and couldn’t fault them – but the step up to the Speed I always struggled with. Too heavy, too wide, maybe a bit cumbersome when back-to-back with its Street cousins that I adore and ultimately if being honest, pumping out too much power.
Worry not said Bruce, or words to that effect which may have included one or two choice words. Thus I was soon backing my van up to the shutters at Triumph, dropping the ramp and waiting for the shutters to open. As they raised, just on the other side was the 1200RS which I would call ‘mine’ for the coming months. I am not over-stating it to say that it was quite an emotional moment, this was as close to a ‘new-bike’ feeling as I have had for a long time and found it hard
not to get carried away.
It is without doubt a striking machine, the teardrop headlights more aggressively styled than previous models of either the Speed or Street Triples, below the lights a gleaming black carbon mudguard with the Triumph logo prominent on the nose. This jet black leading up into the gunmetal grey of the tank and tail both sporting flashes of fluorescent yellows to break the stealth nature of the paint job.
Then, as if to highlight and boast the quality of the build, the gold fork legs containing Öhlins NIX30 internals lead the eye down to the stark red branding on the Brembo Stylema Mono block calipers with an additional burst of colour from the rear shock, the Öhlins TTX36 twin tube monoshock. I just had to drink it all in.
I finally got on board the Triumph to join some of my colleagues who were filming a tour of Dartmoor and Exmoor on their adventure bikes for Motorcycle
Sport and Leisure. Two hundred miles to cover, fully loaded with a double overnight stay packed up on my back, in driving rain with brand-new tyres that had a maximum of 10 miles scrubbed into them and me as the rider with zero bike miles since 2019 – this was going to be interesting.
My delicate start quickly became more deliberate as it all just came flooding back, the ride smooth and comfortable as I traversed the B-roads from Bath through to Glastonbury getting the feel of the bike. The quick-shifter is smooth and responsive going through the gears even when changing at low revs, the blipper seamless and changing up and down with such efficiency meant I could concentrate on the wet roads as my journey progressed.
The simplicity of the ride gave me the opportunity to play with the TFT dash a little, changing whilst on the move from sport, to road, to wet, remaining in the latter for the majority of the journey. I need to have a hunt around this, with Bluetooth capability I have to find out to what extent I can make the most of this technology. What I did note from the off though was how low the dash sits, not necessarily a problem with your view of the dials, though granted you do drop your line of sight from the road ahead – more how exposed the riding position is, which meant I was not looking forward to a lengthy stint on the M5.
To my surprise the buffeting was negligible, despite being well loaded, sitting bolt upright and setting a decent pace I genuinely thought that I could ‘tour’ like this all day. I couldn’t believe it… And on arriving at my destination to join the chaps, parking amid a foray of adventure bikes, I was pretty-fresh despite this being the longest trip I had done for a very, very long time.
The following day I was the odd one out, cutting a low and small figure at the back of a line of big old bikes complete with Bridgestone A41s suited for the job of riding gnarly National Park roads with loose tarmac and gravel washed off from the fields. The Speed, complete with brand-new Metzeler Racetec tyres did pretty much everything that these adventurers did, and did it well. Another surprise really, and I am pretty sure that I have only scratched the surface of this brilliant package.