Triumph Speed Triple R

     I'm stacking on the miles. That’s because 1) I love riding this motorcycle, and 2) I’ve had a few assignments outside Los Angeles County that I opted to ride to. Before I could shove off on my f rst overnight trip, I needed to reinstall my Ventura luggage system. Fine, except the L-brackets—the structural pieces that bolt to the bike’s subframe and support the rack and Mistral packtriumph speed triple rwere bent in the crash. No problem, because Ventura (www.ventura-mca. com) sells components individually, allowing me to order up new L-brackets for $174. triumph speed triple r

     Back with my rack and pack, I realized something that may have contributed to that rear-ender incident. There’s no doubt the driver who hit me wasn’t paying attention, but I may have been hard to see; the tail pack is tall enough that it obscures the big ref ective stripe that spans the back of my

Aerostich Roadcrafter suit. As a quick f x, I outlined a triangle in red ref ective vinyl tape on the back of the pack. It def nitely makes the bike more visible from the back, even in daylight, plus it matches the R’s red subframe and rim strips. Nice! I don’t want to look like a construction site, though, so I’ll probably add some auxiliary LED brake lights as a more elegant, permanent f x.triumph speed triple r

     I logged an easy 350 miles cruising to and from El Cajon, CA, to ride the Suzuki Hayabusa discussed elsewhere in this issue. With my MFW Vario footpegs offering more legroom and the Mistral pack serving as a backrest, the trip went down in comfort. After stepping off the ’Busa, the Speed Triple didn’t feel quite as fast, but the upright riding position is more comfortable for longer rides, and I made the entire return trip to Santa Monicatriumph speed triple rabout 150 milestriumph speed triple rin one sitting, averaging an all-time high of 47 mpg.triumph speed triple r