2011 Triumph Speed Triple

Triumphs for 2011

November 16, 2010 – Looking through my notes — or listening to my recorded notes, I should say — I realized that all of the excitement at the Triumph display wasn’t just surrounding the new pair of Tigers (info).

By the way, does anyone know what will happen to the existing Tiger 1050?

Triumph sort of ruined the whole Adventure Touring thing when they turned my beloved 1998 Triumph Tiger “Steamer” into a…whatever it is now.

Not sure if that will continue, but I’d guess not after all the Tiger 800 buzz.

Anyway, the crowds were definitely most interested in the new Tigers and with good reason. Adventure Touring bikes are supremely popular in Europe, with the BMW R1200GS ranking as the best-selling motorcycle in the UK for 2010 and, I believe, 2009 also.

It’s also a huge seller in Italy; my recorded notes indicate that Hendrik von Kuenheim, the General Director of BMW Motorrad, said that the R1200GS is the top selling bike over 500 cc in Italy, home of $5.67 per gallon gas!

So Triumph is on the right track here, even if the “new” Tiger is more than derivative of the also-popular BMW F800GS series.

Triumph Speed Triple for 2011

OK, back to the Speed Triple… If I had to guess, I’d say that 80% of the crowd was buzzing around the Tiger twins, while maybe 15% more were checking out the new Speed Triple, which has been redesigned for 2011. It looks like a modern rendition of the old Speed Triple, no surprise there, but perhaps the style is wearing thin, because the crowd just didn’t seem as interested.

Triumph Scrambler and Bonneville

And on the opposite side of the Triumph podium, it was like a ghost town. The still very good-looking and iconic Bonneville was represented in a few new colors for 2011, including an all-white Bonneville SE with an optional Alcantara seat that was looking very nice.

My retro-keen eyes fell on a matte khaki green Scramber though, completely outfitted with knobbly tires, the single seat/luggage rack option; the matte black headlight stone guard with matching engine and sump guards; and a beautifully retro leather saddlebag on the left-hand side.

I hadn’t thought much about the Scrambler before, but I have to say, this one looked sweet and like it stepped right out of the Great Escape, no doubt about it. It seems strange that of all the luscious bikes at the EICMA show, I can’t get this one out of my mind. Just may have to do something about that…

2011 Triumph Photos

So here are more Triumph photos, starting with the new Speed Triple, then the Scrambler and finally the various iterations of 2011 Bonnevilles and a quick look at the Sprint GT, which is a mild refresh of the Sprint ST and probably one of the best sport-touring deals going right now.

The Sprint and the Scrambler (and the Bonnie) actually seem very old fashioned in this age of fly-by-wire throttle control, traction control, electronic suspension and all of the other can’t-tinker-with-it technology.

Let’s give a cheer for bikes like the Sprint GT, Scrambler and, say, the Suzuki DR650, which probably aren’t long for this world as technology worms its way in to everything on two wheels.