Triumph On Tour

I feel pretty lucky in that Triumph Motorcycles is doing a USA tour with 15 cities and Charlotte just happens to be one of them. I am not really sure what to expect but from what I have read, we will get to see the new bikes for 2025 and talk with Triumph folks. I am writing this paragraph BEFORE I go but will come back (hopefully with some great photos) and update what actually went on there.

Went with some friends and got there about 6:30. Good location with easy parking (sidewalk right in front). The crowd was not that huge. IMHO opinion, Triumph did an extremely poor job of marketing this event. I am not sure if it was only this event in Charlotte or the entire Icons Tour. That is too bad since it is nice to see so many bikes all in one place (and the pretty girls do not hurt either).

We did get a swag bag. It contained a coffee mug, a couple of pins, a sticker, and pack of matches. The matches are actually quite cool. I like the pins and I will use that coffee mug as it is not some lightweight cheap mug...it has some heft to it.

The venue was small. They did have a very nice buffet. I was surprised the food you could get. Small toast with mozzarella and a few other things on top, kabobs, meatballs, cuban sandwiches, cookies, etc. Very nice spread. They also had a cash bar (dammit).

They had about 15 bikes there. The cool part is many of these I have never seen in person...only read about them and seen pictures. That is what made this event so cool. You can touch and feel. So lets get to the bikes.

When you first arrived, they have 4 bikes covered while the rest were being displayed (there was going to be a few "reveals" for the covered bikes).

TF 250-X

I have actually been able to see this motocross bike in person before. The big news for this bike is that Triumph is the Official Motorcycle Partner for the huge game Call of Duty - Black Ops 6. This motorcycle was left unchanged in the game (guess they really liked it as-is).

What I like about this bike is the weight - 239lbs wet (it holds 1.8 gallons of fuel). Very light! From what I hear and read, this bike is keeping up with the competition which is not bad for a debut bike.

TF 450-RC

I did not get a picture of this one (not sure why) but this was one of the revealed bikes. This bike was built in collaboration with Ricky Carmichael. It has many similarities to its younger brother. I am not a motocross guy so I am not sure of the differences other than the engine is bigger and its got different graphics. I am sure there is a lot more that Ricky added to the bike but still, it is a cool looking bike and hopefully will perform as good (if not better) than the 250 in the racing circuit.

Bonneville T120 Elvis Presley Limited Edition

Elvis loved motorcycles! The story is that he rode his friends Bonneville 650 and loved it so much, he bought 9 for his entire friend group (Memphis Mafia). Triumph pays tribute to this cultural icon with this limited edition. It is a nice looking bike and thought it was fitting since he loved bikes so much.

Rocket 3 Evel Knievel Limited Edition

I remember watching Evel Knievel on TV when I was a kid. He inspired countless kids to go out on their bicycles and motorcycles and do a lot of stupid things. It was GREAT!. My and my friends built dangerous ramps and try to jump as far as we could. Every time he was on TV, we were glued to that black white 13" to see what he will do next.

Evel did ride a Triumph Bonneville for his jumps. Looking it up on Google, he started his daredevil career riding Triumphs. The jump that made him famous, Caesar's Palace, you can see the Triumph motorcycle prominently displayed.

The Rocket 3 bike is quite impressive in person and really liked the Evel graphics. Another great tribute to a man who inspired countless children to do stupid stunts (and spend time in the ER).

Tiger Sport 660

I have not seen this bike in person and was quite impressed. I do have an affection for the Tiger line of bikes...lol. This bike just looked cool and sleek and fast. After seeing this, I thought to myself that this was the coolest bike there (I changed my mind).

Tiger Sport 800

This was one of the bikes to be revealed. So I mentioned how I liked the 660 (and I still do) but once they uncovered this one, I changed my mind. I really like the look of this bike and lines. So THIS is my favorite bike of evening.

Bonneville Speedmaster

When they revealed this bike, I really liked the design on this bike. It still has the classic look which I really do enjoy. This style just screams British to me. I would love to take this one out for a test drive to see if it suits me. I am tall and am just not sure it would be that comfortable. But anyway, it still looks really cool.

Scrambler 1200 Icons

This was the last bike to be revealed and it was worth it. I have always loved the scrambler and with the Icon touches, this bike looks cool. When I was trying to figure out which bike I liked the best, it was between this and the Tiger 800.

The Scrambler has the vintage cool look while the Tiger has the new sleek look. Both are fantastic bikes but in the end, I went with the 800. Not that I am bad mouthing this bike. In fact, I am looking at maybe getting one.

Summary

Overall this was a very nice event. I was really happy to get to see some bikes by Triumph I have ONLY read about. The Triumph line of bikes is quite impressive and I hope they continue to bring this tour to Charlotte.