KIWI RIDER JANUARY 2018 VOL.2 | Page 74

Words: Peter Elliott / Photos: Geoff Osborne I put off writing about the new Triumph T120 for nearly a year. It didn’t seem fair. I thought that I would show bias, or at the very least, a not-very-journalistic lack of impartiality. E very motorcycle review is a product of knowledge, of experience, both on the current bike and from former machines, and the impressions they leave you with. It is subjective, and could hardly be anything else. So, what the hell! Up front I admit, the motorcycle I own and return to every time I wave goodbye to a new machine, whether exciting, mental or just pleasant, is my own Triumph T120 Black. Probably the most telling thing about this motorcycle, and of course the newer iteration of it in the 2017 livery, is that I always anticipate and enjoy the return. Nothing yet has made me dissatisfied or ready to move on. To me, that’s the greatest testament I could give this bike. But that may not be so for you the reader. Fair enough. So, let’s get some simple detail out of the way. The riding position is square. I am upright, with excellent visiblility, and any riding pressure in the