VOLUME 62 ISSUE 1 JANUARY 7, 2025 P57
but that matters hardly anything
as the short throw and tight
gearbox give lovely, fast gear
changes as you click a gear
higher and keep the motor sing-
ing between 4000-6000 rpm.
Short
shifting is the name of the
game with the Speed Twin, with
lots of unrelenting drive matched
to that trademark Triumph flat
drone exhaust note.
Get the 1200 singing above
this mark, however, and there's
still plenty of performance to be
had from the SOHC parallel-twin,
but when speed really begins
to increase, that's when you'll
find the limits of two separate
systems—one electronic and one
mechanical.
Focusing on the latter, the
lower-spec Marzocchi fork will
begin to reach the end of its
performance threshold rather
quickly, as do the brakes. Keep
the speed to a reasonable pace in
which braking is more of a grace
-
ful act than a forceful input like
it can be on the RS and the 1200
will oblige. However, hard braking
sees the fork push through the
stroke a little too fast for ultra-
sporty riding, and it's something
More weight over
the front gives
the RS some
seriously sharp
handling.
