God of the road

Do you remember the time when this idea of grooming the heir or the heiress was new? Well, I do. And after listening to a handful of raconteurs, who have been narrating these age-old stories of conglomerates showing their mettle in entrepreneurship and strategy, I learnt that the cycle of the younger generation helping drive the modernisation of the empire built by the tycoons of earlier generations is bound to happen. Then be it from among the glitziest societies’ power brokers to the titans of finance, crediting the next-gen from the same family to nudge into new businesses has become a part of credible books now. And that is exactly what has happened with the dark horse you see here, the Trident. It bears the same name from the Triumph family, shares DNA (with the modern Street Triple), and is here to pivot the middleweight naked for the brand.

Now, it is as plain as a pikestaff that this motorcycle isn’t in cahoots with the three-pronged spear of the youngest of 12 Titans, nor with the ‘god of the sea’. But, is it what the title reads? Well, go grab that hot cocoa! We’ll wait...

Alrighty then! Firstly, let’s tune ourselves to one note that the Trident hovers around Triumph’s philosophy of minimalism and modernism. It doesn’t lose its traditional British blueprint as well, especially when the brand itself says that they have kept it simple yet attractive. The splash of which is writ large with the round LED headlamp and instrument cluster on the head of the Trident. This neo-retro flavour is further accompanied by not-so-chunky fork pipes that run down straight to the front wheel. Close to this, Triumph has placed a closely packed radiator cowl that sticks a dot of 'Cool' on the chest of the Trident. High up is a round tank that is orbited by a big, bold yet lucid Triumph badge that contrasts the grip pads that makes its presence by the skin of its teeth. With just a few body panels and a single-piece seat in the top half - not to forget the underbelly exhaust - Triumph has made sure that the Trident looks out of the ordinary with seamlessly flown lines that smartly encompass the grab rails, a minimal lamp and a neat tail tidy that run towards the rear end and unite for an unusual stance.

Speaking of unusual; yes, it is a motorcycle that is bigger than the usual 400s. But, Triumph has closely knit and packed this motorcycle in a way that it could be an entrée for someone who has squeezed the juice out of anything less. However, it won’t wham you in like a punch on a palm! Instead, it will calmly melt you into this new experience of middleweight nakeds; as calm as a boat on quiet water, all you have to do is row; more on that in a bit. But before that, sit on the motorcycle and it will feel like an everyday motorcycle. 50kms commute will instantly pop in your head with a grin on your face. All thanks to its apt handlebar - which isn’t too wide or narrow or too deep down to the T-plate - the slightly rear set foot peg and seat height that is enough for an average Indian. However, push those foot pegs and slide a bit towards the rear and the Trident will take a deep breath to take on the curves ahead on the tar.

While at it, the 660cc motor is nothing less than training wheels that spits out a maximum power of 81hp and a maximum torque of 64Nm. How? Allow me. You see, it shares its DNA with the Street Triple, which means the outside of Trident’s engine is the same, but, the inside has been honed down for you to learn, a simple step before going all out. Hence, unlike the Street Triple, Trident’s focal point isn’t the accelerator, but the engine. You can strike out the accelerator and be all munificent that you want to be, since the engine redlines earlier than its sibling. No, it doesn’t mean that early redline is early power or more power, no! It simply means that Trident’s gearing is kept short. Hence, Triumph hands over a motorcycle that clutches the generosity of the accelerator with a home rule of riding at low speeds on high gears. Ergo, it will not get you to the top end in a whack, but you will relish the meaning of the word ‘fast’ at every mile, spoonful at a time. For dessert, tag along the sweet sounding exhaust from the triple-cylinder engine and the overall experience on tar - be it on the highway or by today’s definition of rare commute - is nothing less than fulfilling. Of course, if it is too much for you, you’re free to switch the riding mode from Road to Rain as well, which is one of the two riding modes. This switch milds down the overall behaviour of the Trident. But hey! The renewal of this freedom is kept at 16,000km. Yes! That’s the service interval of the Trident.

Now, I know that you’ve noticed that the Trident doesn’t come with a Sport mode, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t sporty, no siree! Apart from its slightly rear set footpegs as stated earlier, the suspensions are aptly set on the firm side, which offer just the right amount of resistance, rebound and cushion to ride responsibly at its (and your) limits on straights and on crooked miles as well. But what translates anything going under the belly, to the suspension, then you and back, are the Michelin Road 5 tyres that understand and grip the road so well that all it gives you is the new meaning to the word confi-dance; or perhaps a word itself. Erm...Anyway, this entire dance of course, is impossible without enough force to stop and the brakes on the Trident do contribute to the aforesaid dance as well.

So! The Trident simply looks out of the ordinary. Read that again. Why? It looks simple, but out of the ordinary, that’s why. With those looks, the ride is sweet too, it sounds right out of a sachet of saccharine. At a setback of Rs 7 lakh, ex-showroom, it doesn’t really seem to compromise on the quality. The more you'll ride it, the more you will get from every penny. And since it costs less than its siblings, it gives you access to the same sophisticated and humble Brit legacy that whispers ‘value’ in India. Hence, with those looks, ride, sound, legacy and VFM, if this doesn’t sound like your first naked middleweight motorcycle, please tell me what does. I’ll wait...