Taking the Triumph Speed Triple On A Coastal Outing.
Written by Varad. Photography by Ishaan Bhataiya.
There wasn’t much choice when I sat down with Triumph for a nice long ride feature across the western coast. With new 2016 models on the anvil, there were limited 2015 media bikes in Triumph India’s kitty for us to have some fun with. Out of the iconic Bonnevilles, the race-spec Daytona and out-of-stock Street Triple, my options were limited. It was right then that the brand new Speed Triple in white made its appearance – the mighty 1050cc litre-class naked offering from the British marque. With 127 horses and 105Nm of torque on tap, I blindly agreed to it being the weapon of choice for our little escapade. The sheer lure of horsepower, one might say.
Reality didn’t hit until I ventured into the deeper sections of the Western Ghats, away from the wide smoothness of the NH17 Mumbai-Goa highway, along with my photographer, who chose to travel on his own bike. After leaving Mumbai, our first stop was the Fern Samali Resort in Dapoli. An early realisation occurred – riding the Triumph Speed through the broken roads ahead of the Harihareshwar ferry boat route and climbing upto Dapoli – all that horsepower and torque of the Speed was more than a handful on the tiny coastal roads. It wasn’t exactly pleasurable either, navigating the 214-kg beast over bumpy, broken sections of tarmac, and sometimes no tarmac at all. But at the end of the day, those extra horses and plentiful torque enriched the experience as like no other bike could have managed. After all, whoever complains of excess cheese in their fondue?
The Fern Samali Resort at Dapoli was perfect after a long day’s ride.
The gorgeous Fern Samali resort was the perfect abode for a night’s stay after a hard day’s ride as there was little rain which meant we were more active on the gas and resultantly more tired at the end of the day. What followed was a lazy dinner that included some sumptuous fish curry from the chef’s favourite offerings. Back in the room, we put our cameras, GoPros and gadgets on charge and headed straight to bed.
The next day was a long ride to Ambolgad, probably the most distance we would cover in a day within Maharashtra. And, doing that on a coastal road full of undulations and broken patches astride the biggie Triumph Speed Triple 1050 wasn’t exactly easy. Not to mention containing the violent urges to wheelie out of every corner overlooking the seashore! Bliss.
So off we started our ride, heading towards the Dabhol Jetty. We did lose some time at the ferry as the local administration there apparently had a special entry guest list which clearly didn’t feature us. But at least I wasn’t stopped at the gate for being a stag! From there on, we decided to halt as little as possible, but the sights on the coastal route overlooking Ganapatipule beach were too compelling. We could not have missed the picturesque setting of the white Triumph Speed Triple 1050 strutting its might and charm against the grainy sand and frothy white waves overlooking the charming stretch.
A few photography stops later, we were on our way back towards our day’s final spot – Ambolgad. What must be told here is the amount of fun one can have on a naked motorcycle like the Triumph Speed Triple, especially riding on snaking roads that the coastal highway so generously lays down for all bikers. Roads encompassed by the mighty Arabian Sea on one side, lashing across the sandy beaches and hosting the fishermen brethren, while flaunting lush green mountains adorned in all their monsoon glory on the other.
So far, throughout our ride, the sea and the hills never left our side as the whistling whine of the Speed Triple echoed through the mountain roads, with the the undertail twin exhaust occasionally letting out a mighty roar that only a litre-class naked can deliver. This is an emotion often experienced riding past the massive bridges that cross over the wide creeks found aplenty on the coastal route. It was a surreal experience, every time.
The night’s stay at Ambolgad was at the Samindar Resort, the only place of its kind in the locality. As we reached there after sundown, thanks to losing time at the ferry and some photography spots, we could barely witness its ambience. We quickly changed and headed for dinner, which included some of the best Malvani prepared Surmai fry and Pompfret I have ever had.
While I was still reminiscing over the delicious seafood from dinner, the morning greeted us with a gorgeous coastline that makes up Ambolgad and its scenery. A circular beach devoid of any habitation and a crystal-clear view of the sea marked by a few shipping vessels far ahead in the horizon. Calm, serene and free of any sort of disturbance. I really wanted to stay put for a few more days. But, we had to move on, promising ourselves to return with more time in hand.
From there, we headed straight for our favourite ride out spot – North Goa. Taking over the cliff-edged mountain roads with innumerable hairpin bends and sharp corners riding from Devgad, Kunkeshwar and then down towards the coast to Malvan, with the landscape changing from long strewn golden hay lit up by the sun to the shimmering ocean glancing over between the cliffs and edges from time to time. Occasional overcast skies teased us with gentle rain that didn’t last for long before opening up the cloud cover for sunrays to light up the road ahead for us. Truly magical.
We crossed the Maharashtra border into Goa, the sea always nigh, and rode through Arambol, Ashwem and Morjim. Our final stop was at Vagator where we parked our bikes at our crib for the day – The Jungle by The Hostel Crowd, a backpacker’s hideout. We then went for a quick bite and sip at the all-time favourite biker bar in North Goa – The Mango Tree. Made some new friends there, who were more than enamoured by our ride log details so far and even more excited to know we were heading further to Mangalore.
The next day, we explored more of North Goa before heading out to the newly-established The Fern Kadamba Hotel & Spa in Old Goa. Lavish and contemporary, this was probably the most luxurious stay we had on our entire journey. Sadly though, being lovers of the roads meant we had to push off the next day towards Gokarna for some more sea time.
Crossing picturesque South Goa and entering the Karnataka border, we were greeted by the rain gods rather too enthusiastically. Even as it poured down, with no more than five feet of visibility, the roads were an absolute delight to ride on despite the unnerving weather. And, to aid that were the super grippy Metzeler tyres on the Speed Triple that simply would not give up on traction, but instead helped in building confidence despite the heavy rains.
Honestly, I was dying to let go myself berserk on the twisty roads but the rain gods just wouldn’t budge. Finally, after crossing Karwar, overlooking the majestic Karwar Naval Base, we got some respite from the heavy downpour and I started to really exploit those whopping 127 horses on the Triumph Speed Triple. Helped by the pliant suspension taking over the minor road undulations with ease and allowing me to keep the rhythm on, the Speed Triple was in its sheer element at that point. Together, we danced on the wide and winding roads of Karnataka, something that we couldn’t enjoy much on the narrow stretches back in Maharashtra.
No wonder then that our calculations to reach Gokarna by sundown were oddly misjudged as we found ourselves at the Kudle Beach Resort well before sunset. But we had nothing to complain about as the view from the resort was absolutely breathtaking, even though we witnessed rainclouds inching towards us, their shadows floating onto the ocean ahead.
After a full day of soggy riding, we sat down under the canopy overlooking the ocean and checking out the day’s photos, sipping on some hot cup of tea and discussed what a fulfilling day it had been. Soon, it was dinner time and after some scintillating Mangalorean-style seafood curry and rice, we hit the bed as the next day was going to be our longest day of the ride.
Why, you ask? Because, well, Gokarna beach has no network coverage and it is impossible to get out to the main town in the pouring rain as cabs don’t come easy. The next day, as we headed towards Mangalore in the morning, a frantic phone call told me I was needed back in Pune due to some emergency. We had planned to stay in Mangalore at the end of the ride, but the emergency back home meant we had to cut it short. But, the ride was supposed to be from Mumbai to Mangalore. Burdened by the holy grail of digital media, the hashtag #MumbaitoMangalore, we decided to complete a loop via Mangalore, sadly minus the stopover. So, off we went via Murudeshwar and Udupi onto Mangalore. At the Mangalore border, we grabbed some utterly yummy mutton curry-rice, once again authentic Mangalorean style hospitality, before heading back towards NH4. A plan that was ideally reserved for the following day after having halted in Mangalore. But, never mind.
Post the brunch at Mangalore, we began our climb back towards joining the NH4 via Shivamogga and then landing up at Devangere. From there, it was a straight highway haul back to Pune via the NH4. A place where the Triumph Speed Triple was once again in its element, munching down miles effortlessly at Triple digit speeds. Sitting upright, comfortably lodged in the spacious and cushy saddle of the motorcycle, I had little to worry about. A gentle twist of the throttle would haul the Speed Triple past the big lorry and a little enthusiastic right wrist would result in unintentional wheelies. I swear, all those were unintentional. All the way through. I mean, who pops wheelies in the middle of the national highway intentionally? What a noob!
After a few food and fuel stops at Hubli, Belgaum and Nipani, we crossed the Maharashtra border and made our usual stop at McDonalds near Kolhapur. The Triumph Speed Triple gathered a lot of eyeballs here, along with innumerable selfies and unassailable questions such as ‘How much horsepower?’ and ‘Where are you coming from?’ Our response to the latter was usually followed by an amazed ‘Haaawwww!’ and other such sounds of astonishment. By then, darkness was closing in and without any further delay, we continued our journey towards Pune. Covering over 900km in about 12 hours comfortably, the Triumph Speed had been a mighty good companion, bringing me back home safely on the final day.
The week-long ride had seen the Triumph’s flagship naked endure almost everything that it wasn’t built for, and much that it was. Rocky, pot-hole-ridden stretches in the Konkan, countless slow-paced hairpins (a big task for bulky machines I tell ya!), traffic-packed Goan streets and long sweeping corners in the interiors of Karnataka under pouring rain. And then, a whole day’s non-stop highway hauling back to Pune.
Maybe a compact, lightweight machine like the Triumph Street Triple or a middleweight 600 would have made this a faster journey and been easier on the body. But then, it wouldn’t have been such a rewarding and mind-numbing experience as a motorcyclist. I didn’t bring a knife to a gun fight, I brought along Excalibur.
Elite, sharp, powerful.
The post White Pearl appeared first on ColumnM.