very smooth and laid back. The new 1400 Guzzi
Tourer was awesome and handled very well, the
Thruxton was very crisp, the V7 was a looker with
its huge chrome tank, the Aprilia Dorsoduro was
so much fun with tons of torque, great suspension
and handling. I also enjoyed the Tiger 1050 which
had tons of all the good stuff, but a run on the
MV F3 800 confirmed the MV was for the
experienced only.
The one bike I missed out on that day was the
Triumph Trophy 1200, and when I looked around
all that was left to ride was a gloss black T100. I
had ridden a very hot ‘Anniversary’ model two
years before so climbed on the stock bike and
off I went, but this time I felt it was a bit gutless
and not very comfortable. Or was I just becoming
a bit of a motorcycle snob? The Hinckley
Bonneville had been the top selling Triumph
model worldwide since its introduction in
2000 as a 790cc 360-degree twin, and had
spawned other derivatives along the way as it
grew to 865cc. There was the T100, Steve
86 KIWI RIDER
McQueen, Bonneville A2, SE, New Church, Spirit,
50th Anniversary Special, Ace Cafe Special, 110th
Anniversary, Thruxton, Paul Smith Signature
Special, Thruxton and T214 all up until 2015. And
also the 270-degree cranked Scrambler, plus
America & Speedmaster cruisers.
So fast forward to December 10, 2019 and I am
driving to a building job in Wanganui East and at
a roundabout on the footpath outside Aaron’s
Model Shop, I see a black & white T100 on the
footpath with a price sticker on it. After a quick
enquiry I headed to my job, but was back within
two hours putting in a cash offer. Within 24 hours
a deposit was paid and on Decemeber 20 I rode
it down the street towards home.
Is it the perfect bike? No, but it’s what I could
afford. Does it go well? Yes. Does it handle well?
Yes. Comfortable? Yes. Look good? To me, yes.
My T100 might look a bit rough around the edges
to some, but every time I take this bike out
on a 200km ride I come back a little bit more
impressed each time.