NEW TIGER XCA IS FUN FUN FUN FUN
THE FACTS
Don’t tell anyone in case they think I’m weird, but as I was riding my Tiger the other day, I found myself singing the Tigger song from Winnie the Pooh.
You know, the one that goes: “A Tigger’s a wonderful thing. Their tops are made out of rubber, their bottoms are made out of springs.”
Mind you, it’s hardly surprising, since Tigers and I have had a long love affair.
I rode the 955cc version from Chile to Alaska, and the 1050cc model all the way around Australia. When the 800cc version came out in 2010, I immediately pronounced it the best handling bike I’d ever ridden.
And in 2014, when the boffins at Hinckley sat down to improve it, they drew up a short but crucial hit list.
That was to make the bike more refined, better off road, more comfortable and with a longer range.
I rode the XCX for a year, had loads of adventures on it, rode hundreds of miles a day in everything from blazing heat to torrential rain for days on end, and ended up loving every minute of it.
In fact, the only thing that stopped me bursting into tears when I had to hand it back to Triumph was the fact that I swapped it for its successor, the XCA.
It’s got traction control, switchable ABS, and three rider modes, covering pretty much every condition that you’ll encounter both on-road and off.
Standard equipment includes heated rider and passenger seats, heated grips, LED fog lamps, and an uprated 650W alternator with three auxiliary sockets that can power everything you need from heated clothing to GPS systems.
Of all of them, the heated grips and seat have been the most welcome so far, keeping me toasty on even the coldest days.
I’ve got a top box and panniers on mine, and between them there’s more than enough capacity to take me, my first wife and the cat around the world.
Particularly since the right pannier is now the same size as the left, sitting clear of the exhaust rather than fitting around it as with previous Tigers.
On second thoughts, stuff the cat. He can stay at home and watch old Furball XL5 re-runs.
Although I was so sorry to see the XCX go, I’m loving the XCA the more I ride it.
I know, I’m just a Tiger tart. Winnie will never forgive me.
Geoff Hill’s new novel, The Butler’s Son, is out now on Amazon. Triumph Tiger 800 XCA