OFF-ROAD ACTION
‘Sunshine on scramblers’
It would have been pointless to tackle the unlit twists and turns of the B660 in the cold, dark drizzle at the end of day one, so we went back and did it in the glorious sun and blue skies the following day.
And on the drying tarmac surrounding Kimbolton both bikes came into their own: the perky, upright, aggressive Ducati confirming itself as the most performance (and offroad) orientated offering in this 800cc Scrambler class. It’s one, arguably, for more experienced riders seeking to rekindle the style and spirit of big 70s trailies such as Yamaha’s XT500.
But the faithful, unflustered Triumph impressed even more, now having enough oomph to hold onto the Duke’s coat-tails but delivering a more relaxed, versatile and, arguably, stylish ride through this twisty route on the border of Cambridgeshire. Admittedly, the Street Scrambler, despite its added 10bhp, is still no firecracker (there’s the all-new 1200 version for that). But as a pleasing, more practical and arguably more stylish take on the breed, and one that now has the performance and spec to keep up, the new Street Scrambler very tempting indeed. And even more so when the weather decides to play ball,