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2007 Triumph Daytona 675

Posted by Brad Puetz

Monday, 04 December 2006

Page 2 of 3

My first week with the bike was scheduled for some street riding. Since most of my time on a motorcycle is spent on the track I was looking forward to getting back on the street and dodging little old ladies, import car wannabe racers and cell phone users. My first plan was to call every vixen I know and see if I could impress her with a ride on the shiny new Triumph. Seeing as I've spent the last few years wrapped in a fair bit of plaster due to some on-track incidents, the returned calls were few although I did get one taker (sucker!).

The next plan was to head up to Trabuco Canyon and do some solo riding after spending a few minutes checking for any hidden cameras on the Triumph. I mean this whole concept of complete strangers just giving me a brand-new bike to ride is still a little foreign to me. It must be some kind of a setup, possibly for a hidden camera reality show with the sole purpose of making me look like an idiot. With no camera to be found the only thing left to do was try to come back with the family jewels intact after what will surely be many a wheelie attempt.

Pulling out of the parking lot I notice the Daytona sits very high and forward. It's also very narrow in the middle thanks to the compact nature of the triple and makes my personal sweetheart at home seem like quite the porker (not you honey, the GSX-R). Now I consider myself a pretty mellow rider on the street. No 80 mph wheelies, rolling stoppies or anything resembling stunt riding. I wear my pants way too high and tight with far too few tattoos to fit into the stunt crowd, but this bike had me trying to play the role. The Triumph gets the front wheel up easier than any other middleweight I've ridden and was an absolute riot on the street. Fancy a wheelie or two? Just roll on the power and instant Starboyz. I mean the bike has so much grunt it seemed almost rude not to wheelie it.

Once we hit the canyons, the Daytona once again impressed. I had never been on this particular route before so more than a few corners had me coming in a little hot but the Triumph seemed to take it all with ease. This bike is extremely flickable and the excellent brakes kept me out of trouble on a few occasions. The extra torque was especially nice when negotiating sections of the road for the first time. You could power out of a corner a gear too high and the motor would just pull you through making you look like a pro. My only real complaint would be the heat generated by the undertail exhaust. It's definitely noticeable. If you ride in colder climates or are moving at high speed it's fine, but if it's hot and you're sitting in traffic it gets a little toasty. The mirrors although nice and stylish are great for a view of your own shoulders but that's about it.

After a few days on the street we took the trip up to Las Vegas Motor Speedway for a Fastrack Riders track day to test it out on the track. I was entered in the race group and turned more than a few heads heading out on track riding a bike with full mirrors and lights in a group lined with race bikes. I even hit the blinker entering a few corners to really confuse the people behind me.

To no surprise, the motor that was so great on the street was equally as good on the track. Twist the throttle on the 675 and you will wonder why every company isn't building middleweight Triples. The power is very seamless and although there is an abundance of torque down low you can rev the bike out as well and it still makes useable power. The fuel injection which was suspect on Triumphs in years past is now spot on.

LVMS has many hard braking areas so solid brakes are essential and the Triumph did not disappoint. The Nissin radial mount brakes were excellent with great feel and stopping power. Steel braided brake lines come standard on the bike and are attached to radial-mount front calipers with a radial pump master cylinder. Front discs are 308mm while the back sports a 220mm disc. The extra engine braking that comes with a triple took a little getting used to but I soon became accustomed to it.

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