RE: Which Bike?? a personal testimonial

[Bruce McCurdy <bmccurdy@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

John

I ride almost every day and have for most of the last ten years.  During
that time I have owned four bikes and ridden over a dozen others.  I have
recently ridden the Thunderbird Sport.  Even with the aftermarket "sport"
pipe (which sounds great, admittedly), the performance is nowhere near that
of the ST.  The ST is simply the finest all-around motorcycle I have ever
had the pleasure to ride.  I love this bike so much that I already fear that
I will never be able to replace her.

In all fairness to you, I add these criticisms.  The fuel sensor is a joke,
you will refuel by odometer like the rest of us.  The suspension could be
described as too soft if your intent is to explore the sport side more than
the touring side, but that is not an opinion I share.  I can see how others
who ride very aggressively might say so.  I think they mistakenly chide the
ST for not being more of a full-on sportster, when what they need is a
Daytona.  I ride pretty hard and I do just fine.  And I'm no lightweight,
I'm pushing 250 pounds.  Still, when I crack the throttle, and not even that
hard, my baby pulls and pulls and pulls, all the way to redline and with me
grinning wider and wider with each passing second.

This bike was built primarily to be ridden.  The TBS, with all due respect,
was built primarily to be seen.  It is truly lovely, and if I could afford
three bikes, it might make the stable.  But if you want one bike that will
handle almost any task with grace and confidence while also filling your
soul with a sublime satisfaction, this frisky little filly is your answer.

*************
Bruce McCurdy
SF Bay Area
'99 Black Beauty



- -----Original Message-----
From: owner-st@xxxxxxxxxx [mailto:owner-st@xxxxxxxxxx]On Behalf Of
Jwheinzer@xxxxxxx
Sent: Sunday, December 19, 1999 8:33 AM
To: triumph@xxxxxxxxxx; triumphclassics@xxxxxxxxxxx; ST@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Which Bike??


Hi Triumph Folks!
Seems like it's been a slow weekend on all (3) Triumph lists I belong to, so
I thought I'd introduce myself as so many others have done recently. And, I
apologize right up front to you 'multi-list' members that are receiving this
more than once, but I wanted to cover as wide a base as possible.
I have been riding and owning motorcycles for over 30 years, mostly Euro
bikes, BMWs, Guzzis, Laverda, Ducati, MZ, Norton Triumph, etc. Have had 3-4
from Japan, but couldn't warm up to any of them, even the well spoken of
VFR-800.
My current ride is a Thunderbird Sport ('99 red/black solo seat, fly screen,
off road pipes, centerstand). I love the bike for what it is, but I am not
sure it is the best choice I could have made for the riding I do. To further
complicate matters, when I had the TBS in for first service, my dealer lent
me a '00 Sprint ST. WoW!
What a bike....while the styling may be described as somewhat sedate, riding
the bike was pure bliss. When I got back on my TBS, I felt like I was riding
a 30 year old motorcycle! Don't take that the wrong way - no put down
intended - it's just my impression. They're different bikes built for
different purposes. My TBS is wonderful for the solo rides in and around the
back roads of  rural Pennsylvania where I live, but on occasion when I ride
with my friends (BMW K1200RS, R1100 S), we like to cover the near by
interstates at 80-100+ mph blasts, and for this, the TBS was just not made.
Mostly, the wind blast becomes too intense at speeds over 80 or so, and in
the cold winters here, the ST's fairing would be a blessing. My dilemma is
this: I have a chance to buy a '00 ST and I would be getting what I paid for
my TBS, it's almost too good to pass up. Of course I would like to keep the
TBS AND buy the ST, but it just can't be done.  I know in the end this is a
personal choice as are all things related to this nutty passion of ours -
any
thoughts, comments, opinions, flames, greatly appreciated.

John Heinzer
Coatesville Pa.
'99 TBS

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