Didn't Mean To Be Here So Soon...

Hi all - as an almost Triumph owner (pick up my Tiger 1200 this weekend), I thought it'd be good to join the UK forum to keep in touch with whats happening.

I bought the bike on Saturday, and as you may gather from the title, it wasn't entirely planned! I have been thinking about a big trailie/tourer type bike for over a year now; I currently own a Yamaha FZ1, which I rate very highly, but I get most enjoyment from touring. So, back to Saturday - I'd planned a ride out taking in A1 Moto in York for a look-see and a coffee, and then off into the Howardian hills for some twisties riding. At A1, I had a chat with a salesman (Stuart), and he said there was a Tiger 1200 XCA demo available - did I fancy it for a couple of hours....well, that was a bit hard to turn down. So, after giving him my license details, NI number (for insurance) and a parting "just so you know, I won't be signing anything today", I took the bike out.

The ride on the Tiger started slowly - getting off a fairly low FZ1 onto a Tiger is quite a step up - but I took it steady up to Castle Howard to stop for a coffee. Even in that fairly short ride along the A64, I noticed how quickly the bike turned into corners - it seemed so much faster to turn than the FZ1, which is probably due to the wide bars and high up riding position, but it was an eye-opener. After my coffee, during which I'd planned a route through the lanes in the hills, I took off on the bike again, and WOW!! The bike was amazing to ride, totally comfortable, the TFT display was great, but the handling was something else...I could've rode that bike all day.

So, got back to the dealers, and the guy asked how it was, at which point I just told him to start writing up the sales order - I wanted one! I did manage to resist buying a brand new one, and got an XRT ex-demo with 3k on the clock for a reasonable saving off new - so much for "I won't be signing anything today".

I'll be collecting the bike this weekend, and will no doubt be doing some decent rides after that, just to get to know the bike better...then its off to eastern France with some bike buddies in the first week in July - can't wait.

I'm looking forward to having a good look through the forum at other Triumph owners experiences and issues, and helping where I can. My first thoughts are what are other Tiger owners doing about mounting GPS on the bike - is it a RAM mount to the handlebars or nothing?

Cheers folks,
LeedsITGuy