Twirl? That’s the description I’ve often heard for the sound a Triumph triple cylinder engine makes. Well to be honest, that’s just flat out wrong. Now I’ve had a few Triumph triples over recent years and I noticed ‘the sound’ the second I rode off on the new street Triple. It’s interesting as I haven’t seen it mentioned anywhere in recent press but it’s pretty annoying sometimes, well it is to me. Imagine the sound of a regular 600cc four cylinder motorcycle…okay got that? Now, add in a bit of quality car stereo whine. You know, you’re in some old car and when the engine speeds up the stereo whine increases with the engine speed. That’s what the speed triple sounds like at low rpm.

So I’m riding away from the Triumph distributor and I’m thinking to myself...that’s an pretty annoying noise, what’s this? The gear selector and rear brake lever are mounted a bit too far inboard, that’s annoying too, are those rain clouds? God I hate rain.” Things weren’t going so well. I was annoyed and moaning like a disgruntled wet and hungry Kazakhstani cave marmut; and I’d only traveled a couple of kms. Then I rode around a corner. Well did I cheer up. At the entrance to the corner I was a grumpy reviewer…at the exit I was a complete idiot. After the next corner I was a grinning idiot.