VOLUME 57 ISSUE 1 JANUARY 7, 2020 P75
A little more weight
goes with the GT, but
it's unlikely you'll notice
a small increase on a
bike weighing nearly
650 pounds dry.
fully adjustable Showa shock, with
remote preload adjuster for carry-
ing a passenger or luggage.
Hauling up the 2020
Triumph Rocket 3 R & GT
In normal use both versions of the
Rocket 3 were unexpectedly
capable in terms of stopping,
steering and overall handling,
and vastly more so than the
old bike, thanks partly to the
monster Avon Cobra Chrome
tires fitted to both versions, with a
150/80-17 inch front matched to
a 240/50-18 inch rear. Specially
developed for the Rocket 3, these
gave improbably good grip—espe-
cially the rear one when asked to
put a good proportion of all that
torque to the tarmac leaned over
exiting a turn. The 47mm Showa
BPF cartridge fork is adjustable
for compression and rebound
damping, and delivers 4.7
inches of wheel travel, though
I'm sure there's further suspen-
sion available via the fat front
tire's sidewalls. The fork sits at
a 27.9° rake with a massive 5.3
inches of trail, despite which,
neither version was anything
near as heavy-steering as I
expected, even with the lengthy
66-inch wheelbase. For whatev-
