Triumphrat

sbpark · 07-22-2008

hey everyone. i reside over on the 'twin talk' and classic and cruisers' forum and own a 2007 blue checker thruxton, which i love very much, but have caught the touring and dual sport bug and can't seem to shake it.

my question is how many of you use your tiger for off-road use? i would love to have one bike for on-road touring and off road use. i am talking about rough roads, getting back to trailheads, jeep roads, off road stuff in the desert (but obviously nothing too aggressive), and loading the bike with camping gear, etc. are these bike equipped for that kind of riding? obviously the thruxton does neither of these, (but that's not what its designed for). i have the urge to ride further and further, but the thrux get's incredibly uncomfortable after 200 miles, 300 tops.

the other bike i am thinking about is the BMW GS 800 that is supposed to be coming out this fall/winter. probably geared more/better suited for off-road use, but has a smaller engine (but is lighter) and probably not as comfortable on the long hauls on tarmac since i believe it's a single cylinder.

any insight, comments, suggestions and advice are greatly welcomed and appreciated! thanks to all in advance!

scott

stanegoli · 07-22-2008

Scott I do a lot of dirt on my '06 Tiger.

If you want an idea of the kind of dualsporting you can pull off on a Tiger read my ride report at
http://www.triumphrat.net/ride-trip-...de-report.html

Stan

sbpark · 07-22-2008

****! that's exactly what i want to do on a bike! i almost want to sell my thrux and get a tiger sooner than later! (did i just say that?!)

scott

miker · 07-22-2008

I'm with Stan on this one, even though I've not done a lot of offroading on my 06 Tiger, I have on many other proper dirt bikes and can vouch for the fact that the Tiger is much more capable than most people give it credit for.

Mick

ruscook · 07-23-2008

If you're primarily talking rough dirt roads but generally 2-wheel drive capable, or roads requiring a bit more ground clearance than normal car roads, then I'd b more than happy to take my 08 Tiger on them - in fact I do :-).

The 08 has 17" wheels with road tyres, so it's not going to do the rough stuff anywhere near as well as the R1200GS or the older Tigers, but it has a nice compliant suspension and ergo's that make those roads relatively doable and of course, it performs the sport bit of dual sport very admirably.

I think the 08 Tiger, is a refined Speed Triple, as opposed to the hooligan the Speed Trip is.

Russ