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I'm test riding a Rocket Three Roadster on Monday, I'm looking for a bike to cruise with the misses on, she doesn't like speed so I just feel frustrated when taking her out on the 'Busa. I'll be keeping my old bike for one-up shenanigans, track days and sprints. I hope the RIII has enough grunt to at least make it interesting for when I want to go for a solo blast without "accidentally" hitting 160mph every time I touch the throttle. Whatever I buy it must have some performance - I will not tolerate a pig slow bike!
Has anyone ridden one? All the Triumphs I've owned have been lovely to ride - I hope this is no exception. What are the alternatives? I've not looked into this sector before.
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That bike has always fascinated me, I seem to remember it has crazy amounts of torque. Have considered something in a sports tourer (VFR800, CBF1000,) should still be entertaining 1 up but just a little more sedate that a Hyper bike.
Boris
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Boris, I think you'll find the bike you want in the Triumph range, either the fabulous Sprint ST or the addictive Tiger 1050, I know the latter can be purchased with £2+K of extras (heated grips, hard luggage, sporty exhaust and Cat 1 alarm) for RRP at one particular dealer (I suspect you'll even get a bit off that,) On bumpy British roads either bike would be quicker than most sportsbikes – Triumph have a knack of setting up suspension perfectly for real world road riding. On my old 955i Sprint I was never dropped by anybody on anything on typical British roads, on bumpy roads in particular the bike would glide over bumps at knee down lean angles that would have R1 and Ducati riders in near crash situations. On the track it felt a bit soft but I could live with that.
I love my Busa for the shear performance – if only Triumph didn't drop their hyperbke because I love modern Triumphs and their superb (IMHO untouchable in the real world) triple motors.
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I take it your a Triumph fan then. I can barely justify the two bikes I already have nevermind spending more to change. But when I do I ill certainly not write of a Triumph straight away.
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Although I don't own one now (recently sold it) I have had two in the past (both various flavour of the Sprint) and have ridden quite a few - I love them, real character which is hard to find with a modern motorcycle and is one of the reasons I'm attached to my Busa - a very rare beast - a Jap bike with that X factor to ride.
I can honestly say I had more fun test riding a Tiger 1050 for two hours than I had in 30K miles on my R1 - don't get me wrong the R1 was brilliant but it didn't feel special. I still don't know how I managed to avoid buying that Tiger - perhaps, like you, the full garage had a lot to do with it!
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Just got back, well, it's certainly a big bike, but supremely comfortable in terms of riding position. In a typical Triumph manner the steering is sweet and the bike goes exactly where you point it - no dramas - even at footpeg sc***ing angles, though it must be said there was plenty of spare tyre left after the footpegs touch down. The rear suspension is obviously slightly lacking in travel, it feels a tad unsophisticated over the bumps mid-corner, however the sumptuous seat hides the deficiencies of the suspension to some degree. The bike remains neutral if you brake mid-corner, front, rear or both. I think the front lacks a little bite, the standard ABS means you get no more than a protesting howl from the tortured front rubber when you grab a fistful anyway.
The gearbox was surprisingly sweet, but the shaft drive (although displaying absolutely no shaft reaction on/off throttle) did not like pulling tall gears from tickover, transmission shunt became very intrusive when doing so - shame coz the motor (unsurprisingly) had no problem trying to pull from tickover. On to the motor, fitted with optional naughty exhausts, it offered a seductive growl right through the rev range. The bike definitely isn't superbike fast, but it's quick enough to entertain, the weight of the bike meant full-throttle starts were no problem, no wheelies to worry about, just a hint of wheelspin. This means a less than ably ridden sportsbike is possible cannon fodder off the lights, as a lot of riders haven't the bottle to give it some in first gear.
All in all a thoroughly entertaining motorcycle. I can definitely see myself buying one, the only problem is the Busa felt tiny and cramped after getting off the Rocket! I've ridden other cruisers and hated them, slow, ploddy and agricultural. The Rocket Roadster has attitude and is genuinely able round the bends, even if you're a sportsbike fan you can still have a bit of fun and yet cruise two up with the misses when the need arises. This is the bike Triumph should have released in the first place. The original Rocket is not quite cruiser, not quite, er, Roadster!
Edited by SteveLee on 24/05/2010 at 13:09
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Have you tried sitting on one with your misses on the back even in a showroom. The backseat doesn’t look particularly generous and the foot pegs a little high, but then for all I know she may a 19 gymnast.
Boris
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Not far off, she's slim and does yoga! :-) The stock seat is more comfy than it looks, however I'd specify the gel touring seat and sissy bar to keep her happy. She thought it was good - it's certainly no Goldwing in terms of pillion comfort. The sissy bar comes off in 5 mins just four bolts - good coz I hate them!
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