A new breed of style

I was always looking forward to the end of winter, the longer days bring with them the warmth and colours that make everything more enjoyable. Spring in Victoria Australia signals the beginning of the good times, a progressive mix of exciting event’s all lead up to the summer months and Christmas holidays.

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Winter for me was dedicated to getting my PS13 out of its half-finished state, my mood fluctuated with the progress, the light at the end of the tunnel was 2 wheels and sunset, relaxed at the thought of making decent progress I just wanted to enjoy the freedom that two wheels offers.

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Sadly the dream of using my new KTM 350 SX-f through the spring and summer months was over, a change in the marketing direction meant the bike had to go back to the warehouse, the loss of the one bike that was truly capable left a dent in my spring time two wheeled fantasy.

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The very next day I received a phone call from Triumph Australia, following on from our Street Twin adventure Dean and I were offered a spot on the Thruxton launch, Deans job was to shoot for three days and mine? have a good time and enjoy the ride, it’s a deal!

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The idea behind these launches is to introduce and explain the all new Triumph Thruxton and Thruxton R, a chance for select group of people to understand the bike and its capability’s. Its not something I was super comfortable doing but I needed two days on a motorcycle so badly.

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The time that Dean and I spent on our Street Twins was one of the best memories we have in recent times, simple modifications made them our own, but it was the well-engineered and equipped motorcycle that Triumph built that made the trip a success.

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To hit the road with your phone on charge, a detailed display of all parameter’s on the dash, ABS, traction control and enough power to make cruising a dream and the odd wheelie a possibility was a welcome change for us two.

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We skipped the Bonneville T120 and went straight into the Thruxton launch, the bike itself is a work of art, the finish, the components and the overall style of the bike is possibly the best there is. Throwing a leg over the bike reveals a slim and compact bike that feels just as good as it looks, the tanks shape and finish flows into the well laid out controls, it’s a sign that Triumph understands their heritage, understand their future and understand that style doesn’t have to be compromised in the pursuit of performance.

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As the initial excitement of stepping onto the bike plateaued it was quickly heightened again when the engine fires to life. I scroll through the information on the dash and turn off traction control, I also change the MODE from Rain to Sport, this function changes the response of the fly by wire throttle, ready to go!

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As we set off on our adventure through the Victorian high country its quickly apparent that the High Power (HP1200) engine has the torque I have always wanted, the front end lofts through the first three gears and winds out till everything’s a blur.

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We spun up about 400km through some amazing county side, each corner gave me more confidence in the bikes suspension and tyre combo, factory fitted items such as Ohlin’s, Showa, Brembo and Pirelli tend to do that.

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As day one came to a close we sat down and went through the technical features and build process that this bike goes through, the term High Pressure Die cast seem to come up fairly often, its apparent that after looking at the bikes finish Triumph has stepped up the game in terms of a factory finish, you have to check out the bike to fully understand what I mean.

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Day two started in the outskirts of Wodonga, the Murray Valley Motorsport Training Facility, a small racetrack that was built for the Motorsport school is open for hire, I have seen some of these places in the past and didn’t expect what I was about to experience, the circuit was perfect, I couldn’t wait to get out there.

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I threw on my leathers for the first time since setting my land speed record on the KTM 350, I fired up the Thruxton R and started to circulate, it was my first time on a racetrack with two wheels, I had a lot to learn and enjoyed every minute, although the Thruxton isn’t a race bike it was still at home on the circuit, it is truly that one bike for every occasion, it also makes every occasion look good too!

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Thanks to the Triumph crew for the invite, thanks to Dean and Ben for the photos and thanks to all the other guys for the good times, for more detailed technical specifications check out the Triumph website.

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