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It’s got ‘swagger’; easy to live with;
grunty engine
Not the fastest bike on the ‘strip...
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The Speedmaster is a comfortable, powerful, easy-riding bike with real presence and
power. I could ride it for very long periods, tour it, cruise the town, or turn up at a
biker meet, all with a swagger of cool and without breaking a sweat
Make no mistake, the Speedster is a large
bike and at 245kg is no lightweight, but it
doesn’t feel like that on the road, it’s super
easy to manoeuvre given the low seat
height, and it’s beautifully balanced.
For personal preference you can order the
bike from new with styling kits. ‘Highway’
comes with black waxed-cotton panniers
and mounts, windshield, comfort seats
front and rear, passenger back rest with
luggage rack, back pad and engine bars.
While the ‘Maverick’ becomes a single
seater with brown quilted comfort seat, flat
low bars, Vance and Hines pipes in black,
a mudguard plate and removed grab rail.
But there are other configurations too, such
as bar end mirrors, black spoked wheels,
mid-mounted footpegs and controls, and
‘ape hangers’ with cable conversions.
World’s your oyster, really.
The Speedmaster is a comfortable,
powerful, easy-riding bike with real
presence and power. I could ride it for
88 KIWI RIDER
very long periods, tour it, cruise the town, or
turn up at a biker meet, all with a swagger
of cool and without breaking a sweat.
And it may not be built for the dragstrip,
ladies and gents, but it sure can haul arse
when given its head. Still not sure about
those ‘beach’ bars though. They’re good
round town, okay on the motorway, but
they feel a bit ‘grandfatherly’ in traffic. Were
I to own it, I’d go with the bobber bars and
the mid-position footpegs and controls.
But, all in all, the Speedmaster is a terrific
new addition to Triumph’s fleet, ticks its
own boxes, is a real treat to ride, and
dangerously easy to love.
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