2016 TRIUMPH SPEED TRIPLE R
FIRST RIDE
P64
that's made such a key contribu-
tion to the profitability of John
Bloor's company over the past
two decades. However, while
they'd much rather you didn't call
the result evolutionary, Triumph
management has resisted both
spending lots of money by com-
pletely binning everything that's
gone before and starting over
again—a as they've essentially
done with the Bonneville, albeit
retaining the same overall archi-
tecture—and at the other end of
the scale just splashing on a few
pounds of sterling merely making
a few minor touch-ups to the ex-
isting model to try to wreak a little
more revenue from it in the face
of its recently launched rivals.
Instead, what Triumph has
done is to radically upgrade
the existing Speed Triple, and
when you ride the new bike
back to back with the current
model, as I was able to do, you
pretty soon realize this make-
over is so transformational that
it essentially amounts to creat-
ing an all-new model. That's an
impression confirmed by the
morning I spent aboard a Speed
Triple R chasing Triumph test
rider Felipe Lopez through the
great hillside roads inland from
Tarragona on the sunny Span-
ish Mediterranean coast close
to Triumph's R&D HQ, followed
by an afternoon session at the
Calafat racetrack—Spain's oldest
permanent circuit, and a great
track for exploring the maneu-
verability and rideability of any
motorcycle. Add in the much
sleeker, sharper styling of the
new model, which thanks to
positioning the front end hard-
ware—new DRL lights, dash,
handlebar—notably lower so that
the fuel cap is now the high-
est part of the bike, definitely
regains most of the in-your-face
visual attitude that went missing
with the 2011 restyling job. It's
a generational change that was
partially triggered by the need
to meet the tough new Euro 4
noise and emissions regulations.
(Far left) A newly designed
tank is far more angular and
encompassing than before.
(Left) Beautiful red stitching—the
attention to detail is marvelous.
(Right) It's still got that brutish
stance the Speed Triple is known
for; it's just a little more refined.
