![]() Eventually I found the unfolding pillion pegs and got a bag squeezed in between them and the grab rail. ![]() It was bloody hard to find somewhere to hook the ocky straps next morning. ![]() In my shed full of minimalist motorcycles, the Rocket was right at home. There ’s nothing on it anyway, just a seat on a huge power plant with a sprung wheel at each end and some monster stoppy things. There ’s nothing on it that doesn ’t do a job. Visually, it ’s one of the most integrated pieces of engineering ever. The sheer balance of a brilliant handling and braking package wrapped around so much muscle is breathtaking.Īn hour later I ’m having a beer in the shed looking at this Rocket ship with stars in my eyes. This one was easy to leg over, first gear clicked in cold and by the time we were home I was loving it. Two lights up front and three pipes out the side is about the only familiarity it retains with the original Rocket though. No need for electric landing wheels here. And possibly because the dimensions aren ’t out there in semi-trailer land like so much modern touring tackle, it was as easy to paddle around as the Norton. However for something so alien, it also felt familiar, partly because that ’s the same sensibly minimalist instrument pod as the Triumph Scrambler I ’d tested last year, which meant doing the computery things was easy. I love the old girl, but no wonder the new GT felt svelte and instant everywhere by comparison. This isn ’t one of those cherry restorations, it ’s an antiquated piece of shit that squeaks, farts, rattles and leaks – we ’ve got so much in common. It ’s the only thing us survivors of the 70s do well.ĭisclosure, I rode a 1972 Norton over to pick up the Rocket 3. Hey, it ’s your $35K plus motorsickle, I ’ll have a go at anything. Maybe I mouthed too much because Triumph pulled out a demo and said ‘go find out ’. Flying backwards on a wheelbarrow really wasn ’t going to crack the GT thing. That big rear wheel floating on the end of a bar, a front end like a boxer ’s nose, the solid trunk, hard on the eyes for someone who ’s been riding since bikes had sprung seats.Īnd they call this one a GT? Hah! Grand Tourer? As in long days, big miles, comfort and luggage capacity. Honestly? I ’d read the reports, talked to the testers, heard all the good guff and still, to me, the Rocket 3 looked like something Pixar drew up for Buzz Lightyear Does Drugs. Roothy’s grand tour on the Triumph Rocket 3 GT. Over 980km in 11 quick hours, Roothy puts the 2500cc Rocket 3’s GT suffix to the test.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |