A few weeks ago, a group of 8 of us went on a motorcycle touring holiday. The trip had been planned several months before and given the name “Wild Bogs” – the “Bogs” standing for “Boring Old Gits” as only one of the party was under 47 years old!
My chosen mount for the trip was a Triumph Rocket 3 Classic, perhaps not the most sensible, but comfy and with that 2.3 litre engine providing plenty of torque for the mountain roads in the Massif and Pyrenees mountains that border Andorra and Spain.
We left Dover, England at 8.00 am having covered 130 odd miles to get there. Fortunately the weather in England was warm, and the early morning, a Sunday, gave a clear run into the dawn.
After just over an hour on the ferry, we arrived at Calais, France, and having filled up with fuel in Dover immediately set about blasting our way to leMans for our first stopover.
The weather was cool but sunny on that first day and we stuck to the motorways for this 270 mile run. This was the first time I had really used the Rocket, having bought it a few months earlier, but with only 375 miles on the clock when I left home on this trip. The bike felt great on the French motorways as we all took liberties with the speed limit!
That’s what I love about France, so many of the roads are virtually empty, and have good surfaces. The bike is like an armchair, in that it’s comfortable and one can move ones feet around the foot boards, thus never suffering cramp or stiffness.
Because of its weight, the Rocket is extremely stable, never suffering “wind bump” when overtaking large trucks etc. This gives huge confidence, particularly when one has to hit the brakes as the braking is progressive with plenty of feel, and hauls you to a stop easily and quickly.
We arrived at leMans without incident, although this could have been different as I nearly dropped the Rocket when pushing it off the petrol pumps with the side stand down. I tripped over the side stand, but just managed to keep from falling over completely, using every ounce of strength to keep the 800lb plus behemoth falling over.
Reflecting on the day’s events later in the evening, I realised it had been fairly unchallenging day in that we were on main roads all the time, (something I was to appreciate later in the trip), but the bike had been superb for blasting from Calais to get to our first hotel stop. The power has been exhilarating, but unlike, say, my previous machine, a Honda Blackbird, I never felt the bike urging me on and on, the Rocket feels settled at any speed, but if you do open the throttle, it responds in a similar way!
The Rocket just does what you want, as you want it.
At least that’s how I felt at the end of the first day!
Similar Posts:
- French Motorcycle Tour – LeMans to Montlucon
- A Motorcycle Trip Around France
- French Motorcycle Trip – Day 3
- A European Motorcycle Trip – Andorra
- Jacky Ickx – Monsieur LeMans
