OffRoad Pro and a Custom setting, and the XE
version also has lean angle sensitive TTC and
ABS. But I was so wet and cold riding home,
I didn’t change the settings as I should have,
and spent some time fighting the bikes desire
to squirm out from under me. Again, I learnt
a lot about the ability of this new Scrambler,
it is a total joy to ride, seriously fun in every
situation even though its tall stance is
reminiscent of the 1200 Tiger. Off road 1st
gear is also too tall for my liking; the engine
has torque to burn and the length of each
gear is astonishing, and I imagine hopping
over logs could be quite a workout, although I
didn’t try that on my rides. The defined limits
of control gave me confidence when others
about me headed for home.
I thought long and hard about who this bike
is for – look its not perfect – the pipes are
too high on the right and cause some heat
to warm the leg if you aren’t wearing knee
high boots, and, sitting aboard, the upper
pipe heats the right thigh too. Again those
twin pipes are a problem when standing
up and negotiating off road tracks, as they
stick out just a trifle too far, and I found it
hard to understand how panniers could be
accommodated. But if you’re going to tour
this ain’t the bike. Not really. This bike is
what you ride fast on roads and get to real
backroads and tracks and actually use the
immense capabilities of the machine, to
uncover the joys this country still has to offer
in pure rider experience.
And that’s my overall takeaway, the perfect
Kiwi bike for experienced all round riders. I
once described the Scrambler as a big happy
dog. I still feel the same, but the big dog
has teeth now, and it provokes even more
pleasure tackling terrain with it. The engine
has 500 more revs before redline than the
earlier 1200, and it delivers as sweet a note
and more. All the mod cons are catered for,
heated grips, and great Brembos, its not
too heavy at around 206kg and it handles
brilliantly. Has Triumph actually delivered
the bike that the great Steve McQueen might
have owned? That is, a genuine dual-purpose
street and dirt machine? Certainly, and it is
still the bike I most miss not having in my
shed permanently.
It is, simply, magnificent.
PETER ELLIOTT
KIWI RIDER 65