Hello All,
I just joined this forum yesterday, so here I am introducing myself.
My name is George and I live in the Boston, MA area. I'm 65 and have been riding since I was 16. My first bike, which I bought new from a friend, was a 1970 Triumph Trophy. It was a nice single cylinder bike to learn on. In 1982 I was considering purchasing a used Triumph Bonneville. A friend of mine, who follows all things motorcycle related, said to me "Ah, but have you considered buying a Norton?" Had to say I didn't, and really wasn't very aware of them at the time. However, knowing how knowledgeable my friend was on the subject of motorcycles I decided to give them a look. Found a 1975 Norton Commando at a shop called Ron's Cycles in Leominister, MA (long since closed now) and fell in love with it, bought it right then and there. Additional bikes came and went while I owned it, but that Norton was always my favorite. I unfortunately/reluctantly sold it the summer before this past one (2019). I developed some back problems and thought I would never ride again. I seriously considered for a while replacing the Norton with a Triumph TR6 car. Just needed to have something old and British with a manual shift. Since I would need some money to purchase a TR6 I reluctantly sold the Norton. Then one day another friend of mine asked if I wanted to go on a club ride with him, said I could use his other bike, a 2002 Triumph Bonneville, since I no longer had a motorcycle. The club we belong to is the Mass. BIA (Massachusetts British Iron Association). It's a club for people who ride British Bikes. I would imagine some of my club members would be on this forum. I took him up on his offer, had a great ride, and said "Damn, I shouldn't have sold the Norton!" So, here I am, in the market for another bike. So now, that first friend of mine, who turned me on to my Norton, says to me "Have you seen the Triumph Speed Twin?" Yet again, I find myself listening to him about a bike I admittedly did not know much about. So, I've been doing much research, and from what I've read and seen (many UTubes on this model) the Speed Twin reminds me of a modern version of my Norton (British, light weight, the way it handles, the upswept exhaust, which my friends learned not to get behind me at a red light due to recieving that blat, blat, blat of exhaust in their faces, and it even comes in black, my Norton was black with gold lettering). I would like to have the opportunity to demo/test ride one, however I can't seem to find one. Triumph dealerships seem to be few and far between, and what ones there are seem to have only one, or at most, two Speed Twins for sale. Certainly none available for a demo. If anyone on the forum knows of somewhere I could demo one please let me know. I be much appreciative. I'd also like to hear about any Speed Twin owners' experiences, likes, dislikes, etc. concerning the Speed Twin model. Also, for any Speed Twin owner that has installed one of those small windscreens, do they do anything or are they more for looks?
thanks,
George
I just joined this forum yesterday, so here I am introducing myself.
My name is George and I live in the Boston, MA area. I'm 65 and have been riding since I was 16. My first bike, which I bought new from a friend, was a 1970 Triumph Trophy. It was a nice single cylinder bike to learn on. In 1982 I was considering purchasing a used Triumph Bonneville. A friend of mine, who follows all things motorcycle related, said to me "Ah, but have you considered buying a Norton?" Had to say I didn't, and really wasn't very aware of them at the time. However, knowing how knowledgeable my friend was on the subject of motorcycles I decided to give them a look. Found a 1975 Norton Commando at a shop called Ron's Cycles in Leominister, MA (long since closed now) and fell in love with it, bought it right then and there. Additional bikes came and went while I owned it, but that Norton was always my favorite. I unfortunately/reluctantly sold it the summer before this past one (2019). I developed some back problems and thought I would never ride again. I seriously considered for a while replacing the Norton with a Triumph TR6 car. Just needed to have something old and British with a manual shift. Since I would need some money to purchase a TR6 I reluctantly sold the Norton. Then one day another friend of mine asked if I wanted to go on a club ride with him, said I could use his other bike, a 2002 Triumph Bonneville, since I no longer had a motorcycle. The club we belong to is the Mass. BIA (Massachusetts British Iron Association). It's a club for people who ride British Bikes. I would imagine some of my club members would be on this forum. I took him up on his offer, had a great ride, and said "Damn, I shouldn't have sold the Norton!" So, here I am, in the market for another bike. So now, that first friend of mine, who turned me on to my Norton, says to me "Have you seen the Triumph Speed Twin?" Yet again, I find myself listening to him about a bike I admittedly did not know much about. So, I've been doing much research, and from what I've read and seen (many UTubes on this model) the Speed Twin reminds me of a modern version of my Norton (British, light weight, the way it handles, the upswept exhaust, which my friends learned not to get behind me at a red light due to recieving that blat, blat, blat of exhaust in their faces, and it even comes in black, my Norton was black with gold lettering). I would like to have the opportunity to demo/test ride one, however I can't seem to find one. Triumph dealerships seem to be few and far between, and what ones there are seem to have only one, or at most, two Speed Twins for sale. Certainly none available for a demo. If anyone on the forum knows of somewhere I could demo one please let me know. I be much appreciative. I'd also like to hear about any Speed Twin owners' experiences, likes, dislikes, etc. concerning the Speed Twin model. Also, for any Speed Twin owner that has installed one of those small windscreens, do they do anything or are they more for looks?
thanks,
George
Welcome, from Northern California.
TO TT from Mississippi.
