small motorcycles

With nearly every other motorcycle brand in the world producing small displacement motorcycles and selling them by the millions, Triumph’s decision to finally enter the fray is long overdue. The two highest-selling categories in U.S. motorcycle sales, according to several brand reps we have contact with, are off-road/dual-sport/adventure, and small displacement street. For our purposes, we’ll define small displacement street as road motorcycles 500cc and smaller. And Triumph just announced a pair of entrants for the 2024 model year- The Speed 400, and Scrambler 400x.
It’s about time.

Dynamite In Small Packages

by Rob Brooks | Aug 23, 2022 | Ride Life | 5 |

I’m hard on the throttle exiting the wide sweeping curve known as “The Bowl”, trying to click up through the gears as fast as possible before the brake/downshift zone and the left hairpin that is turn 1. As I drift wide so as to dive deep into turn 1’s apex, an 11-year old named Cooper undercuts me on the inside, passing me on a 110cc Ohvale like I’m standing still. “That kid’s good,” I muse to myself as he rockets away down the back straight.

Slow Bike Fast

by Ted Edwards | Aug 11, 2021 | Legendary Bikes, Nuts & Bolts, Ride Life | 18 |

Deposited like an ambulance delivering two terminally ill patients, a pair of ancient Honda Trial 90s were dropped off in front of my house silently; no fanfare, no excitement, no hurry or joy, unloaded quietly, then slowly rolled into my garage, their future operating room. Last licensed and running when President Clinton was entangled with Monica Lewinsky they languished outside for dozens of years worth of northwest sub-zero temps and triple digit heat. Decrepit and decaying, my job was to get them running. I promised their owner I could. I opened my mouth again.

Struck By A Meteor

by Rob Brooks | Apr 6, 2021 | Bikes & Gear | 11 |

An admission up front- as much as I’ve been looking forward to sampling this brand new offering from Royal Enfield, I didn’t have high expectations. Heck, it’s a single thumper 349cc for Pete’s sake, making all of 20 horses to the rear wheel, and would be the smallest street bike I’ve ever ridden. I planned to ride it mildly, and report on it as the small displacement stepping-stone bike to their 650cc Twins that I perceived it would be. Talk about mistaken first impressions!

Triumph Unveils The Trident 660 Triple

by Rob Brooks | Oct 30, 2020 | Bikes & Gear, Industry & Racing | 0 |

In a worldwide web premier, Triumph Motorcycles unveiled the all-new Trident 660 Triple, the roadster they’ve been hinting at since August. With a spectacular online introduction, Triumph rolled out the 2021 model, the newest entry into the brand’s lineup, and their smallest in the fleet. Targeted squarely at the middleweight “street fighter,” naked sport bike category currently populated with the likes of the Honda CB650R, Kawasaki Z650, and the Yamaha MT-07, Triumph just lit a stick of Trident dynamite and tossed it middle of the fray. Price-wise, the Trident should fall right in the middle of these, with MSRP looking to be around $7995-8120, depending on configuration, of which there are four at the moment on their website.