Five years after Triumph introduced the popular 1050cc Sprint ST sports touring bike, the British marque has introduced a new model with greater practicality and more emphasis on the 'touring' aspect of 'sports touring': the Triumph Sprint GT.



"The Sprint GT blends all of the great performance and style of the Sprint ST with some additional comfort and storage space that sport touring riders are looking for" said Jim Callahan, North American Marketing Manager for Triumph Motorcycles.

The GT features a newly-styled and better performing front fairing, a comprehensive three dial instrument panel with a large, traditional analogue speedometer and tachometer while the third dial hosts the readout for the onboard computer where the rider can scroll through fuel consumption, range-to-empty, journey time, average speed and clock functions.

Performance is handled by an updated version of Triumph's legendary 1050cc triple. With 130bhp on hand, the Sprint GT offers excellent real world performance, with development focused on power delivery in the mid-range rather than chasing peak power.

The bike also features new 31 liter saddlebags, standard ABS brakes, a 200-mile fuel range, an optional top box that is capable of accommodating two full-sized helmets, and a 12 volt power supply that allows 'on the go' charging of electrical items such as laptops and mobile phones.

Photo: Triumph

The result is a motorcycle with a different feel to the Sprint ST, biased more towards the 'touring' side of sports touring than the Sprint ST's 'sports' - equally at home on demanding roads as for a long two-up ride cross-country.

Priced at $14,399, the 2011 Sprint GT is expected at dealers in the fall.