I've got an 06 Speed Triple and love it. Though I'm also an admirer of Super Dukes and got to ride a friend's on the weekend.
I know it's totaly subjective but I much prefer the S3's looks, While some dislike the big Bug-eyed headlights, I like them and tend to see them as Iconic. But the Duke is an unusual and interesting looking bike and to me that still counts for a lot.
To sum it up very briefly I find the Super Dukes handling a bit more precise, if it was a balls out race across a twisty mountain road I reckon the duke would win due its flickability. In more open stuff I honestly don't know which bike's handling would be best. To me it seems like the KTM was designed primarily with the tight stuff in mind. Not saying there was anything wrong with it, But in the open stuff it wasn't as impressive. I should add bike setup can have a major effect on all this of course.
I've also got a motard and the KTM reminds me of it in some ways, which is a good thing and a bad thing. The seat is fairly hard and narrow and flat (compared to the S3), which is great for moving around the bike but not so great for comfort for the rest of the time you're not racing. Personaly I love the 1050 S3's seat. The "hump" is in the perfect spot for me (though I've heard others that disliked it) It's great for taking pressure off your arms under hard acceleration or when playing the hooligan doing wheelies.
I prefer the S3's power and power delivery. Don't get me wrong the KTM has plenty of power, but the Triumph not only has a bit more but its spread further across the rev range. A lot of Super Duke riders may disagree because the Superduke's power delivery hits a bit harder creating an illusion that it has more power than it does IMHO. In other words I think the S3's has friendlier power delivery, I suspect the Duke has a lighter flywheel or something which makes it feel as though it punches above its weight. But I reckon I could blast speedy's front wheel into the air across a broader range of revs than the Dukes.
For general riding, launching a few attacks on the sportsbikes in the twisties and playing just the hooligan I'd prefer the S3.
But if your goal was to trim every last possible second off of your lap times in the twisties the KTM would probably be the one.
So the reason it hasn't swayed me from Triumph is that while I LOVE zapping through the mountains, it's not the only thing I like doing on a bike (and the S3's no slouch in there by any means). Kinda explains why my motard doesn't see a lot of use I guess... And those Bug Eyes
I'm interested to hear from anyone who owns both bikes if they think I've been fair to both bikes.
