Triumph Speedmaster Final Ride | Aylesford, Kent

Good morning, welcome back to the channel. You join us in, I almost forgot the name, Aylesford, right in the Garden of England in Kent and today is the final day with the Speedmaster and I thought what better place to enjoy the absolute definition of a gentleman's motorbike than in an old Kent village as beautiful as this. It feels like it's just made for a location like this. This is the Medway River and this bridge apparently is one of the oldest bridges built across the Medway River, built in the 14th century. What a setting, beautiful with the houses going along the riverbanks, hub garden there and a more modern bridge there for cars. Okay we'll see if we can find a place for a bite to eat, have a little walk and explore around the area and you know you've come into the countryside when you see a street sign saying warning ducks crossing. I had to stop and show you this view of Aylesford because it is picture postcard beautiful. I was about to say it reminds me of a picturesque little French town but I've got to stop comparing everywhere to England to non-British places. It's just a beautiful spot. This is the car bridge and that's how close the car bridge is to the old one and I noticed earlier they've still got the old traffic lights from that bridge but they probably fairly recently just blocked it off so no vehicles at all can go. This is the problem we have, this bike was built for two people but for some reason there's no saddle on but wait, wait there. Monica doesn't know this. No way. Do you know I'm desperate to find out is this a comfortable bike for you? It looks so stupid. Is this even legal? I don't know. That's comfortable. Do you know I really wanted to do a pillion review of this bike and honestly it's really nice and comfortable. I really mean that. If Monica you'd be good enough to go on it I would love to just do a two mile ride with you on it. No sorry but I'm not doing that. Comment below is it illegal to do this? Of course it is. It's really comfortable they're genuinely six foot one and I can tell this would be all day comfort. Really really nice riding position actually. Well I did try and persuade Monica to come on the back of the bike but couldn't do it so I've got here first. There's no parking actually down in this little spot where we've come so Monica's at the top she will walk down I've just parked the bike up. I love these little independent places. Often it's really hard to tell if they exist at all but let me just flip around. This little spot here. Tiny little coffee shop type thing that's right on a canal with one of those I don't know canal doors that you have to open to let boats through but it's just a stunning little spot with a few tables outside. Park the bike up. I assume it's fine must be fine plenty of space but as I said no parking but just a really really nice little spot with all the canal boats down there beautiful old buildings around and down a one-way lane that just goes on for about a quarter of a mile and you think you're going to come to a complete dead end and then you get this. I've just made the biggest mistake. They do San Pellegrino ice cold San Pellegrino lemonade or warm latte on 27 degrees. I completely forgot to mention actually because I had such a nice message from someone saying from our last vlog they went down to the Deer Park Cafe which is in the I think it's West Sussex countryside where we went for the first vlog Speedmaster and they said they rode down on the motorbike with their partner on the back rode down there got to the Deer Park Cafe no seats available and saw another biker couple on one of the tables and asked them if they could sit there and they said to the other biking couple oh how do you know about this place and they said you watch Freddy Dobson's YouTube video and can you believe that I just love that type of stuff I am delighted that people actually for one watch the vlogs and two are willing to trust us that the places are nice it's a really nice feeling I've done about probably about 220 miles on this bike now in the past five days and over the weekend I rode over to my parents house and I'm going to say something that sounds a bit pathetic here because I was riding over to my parents on the motorway just wearing a full face helmet just smiling and I know it sounds ridiculous but that's what this bike's like you it just lends itself so well the upright riding position incredibly comfortable incredibly relaxing just feel happy to be alive just riding along with those bars out like that just soaking in everything the birds singing the smell of the freshly cut grass and everything it's just such a nice bike to live with and the fact that it's significantly smaller than for example the Harley Davidson Harley Davidson's it means that it's more relaxing riding on the tighter European roads it's easier to park and it's easier to filter because I had some pretty tough filtering when there's a massive motorway that was completely shut off and closed down and I had to get through some tight gaps and it's just so much easier filtering than for example the big Indian vintage or something like that although if I was commuting in London every day I'd probably change the mirrors because they stick out about that much extra on either side of the handlebar and that makes a difference for confidence with filtering so I'd probably have to change the mirrors if I owned one of these but it does everything extremely well it's a good filtering bike there's nothing wrong there you could actually use it for your daily commute into work including filtering so I was impressed with that buffeting motorway speeds I've had a few people asking like what's it like is it's the buffeting bad at motorway speeds 70 80 miles an hour no it's absolutely fine it's super relaxing I wouldn't put a screen on it it's just just a joy to ride you really do it makes you makes you happy to be alive I can't say enough good things about it it's one of my favorite bikes zoom in with your camera for that flag on the canal boat I think that's the Monaco flag in fact I'm sure that's the Monaco flag but what is a Monaco flag Monaco's flag what's it doing on a canal boat in Kent that's definitely the flag of Monaco I feel like knocking on the door and asking I knew I knew I knew what that flag was on a little canal boat in Kent I thought it was Monte Carlo checked it's not I thought maybe it could be Poland it's not Gibraltar no way it's the Gibraltar flag so my guess is that person living on there is a Gibraltarian so cool look flag of Gibraltar I love those little things on boats you think what's the story why is there someone from Gibraltar living on a canal boat in Kent it's brilliant this is literally just across the canal we were sitting there for a drink about two minute walk away we've walked the other side and you've got a beautiful seating area I guess there's a pub here and somewhere to park the bike so if you just cross over we'll try and link this place in the descriptions where you can so you can see there are two great spots and you've got a car park with this one as well quite interesting actually the other side of this dam that's not a dam what do you call it canal the other side of this canal everyone's got the little boat mooring but then they've also got a piece of land and I'm looking now and on the land they've got tables chairs little grassy area some even have a few little vegetables and stuff but it's like a garden and your house is the boat and I just see two men opposite just pottering around their garden you know it's an interesting life the boating the sailing life never really caught on I don't know why I've never been in a position to do it but my granddad loved it he sailed around the world twice on a sailing boat when he retired sunk a couple of boats including one in Japan where he was picked up by fishermen and almost died I see the appeal I do maybe one day I'll give it a go so this is it the final ride with the Speedmaster and Monica if you just want to capture this because I've had it for five six days now and it is one of the most stunningly beautiful bikes I've ever seen I know I said in the first video but now I've done over 200 miles with it I've enjoyed it things that get me about this bike it is one of the most beautifully simple bikes to ride some bikes a bit like my charm speed triple you almost have to mentally prepare before a long journey because it's intense but this bike it's just such an easy rider you just get on it you jump on you sit back you soak everything in it is beautiful it's got cruise control which I think is the simplest cruise control that I've ever used on a bike some of them have a button and then a lever you have to push I so complicated I actually have to read a manual and I can't be bothered this one just ride along push that and cruise control and I was in cruise control for 80% of my journey to see my parents and it's just glorious riding but there is one point only one point on the bike that I thought wasn't quite up to Triumph's normal standards and I have tried to be you know to find something and that's the rear lights it's pretty much the only thing I could find plastic rear light there indicators are fine but that I think should be a bit more special apart from that I just can't find anything else it's it's just more than I thought this bike could be it's better than I thought it could be I like it more than I thought and I've had a few people message saying they've gone to a dealership they've tried the bike out just at the dealership sat on it but they couldn't get used to the handlebars because they feel so alien to what they're used to and I do get that because when I first sat on it I thought oh oh wow how am I how am I going to get used to these handlebars like that it feels like you know you're from the 1950s or something they're so close to your knees and so lean back and it took me about 30 minutes to get used to it because initially I did think oh this this doesn't feel like the handling will be you know to feel feel some you won't be able to feel it with handlebars like this but oh my god you get used to it quickly really do a day's riding on this and you feel completely at home it makes complete sense it may not be enough to get that feeling from the first test ride but it will come if you have a day with it now I wouldn't change them they're absolutely beautiful almost forgot to say the range I did 99 miles and filled up this morning just because I knew we had a long ride and for 99 miles it said I had a range of 31 miles left so you're looking at about 120 130 miles range and about an hour ago someone very kindly came over and said they were watching the vlogs and he said he was considering a bobber but the range is only about 80 to 90 miles or so so just from what I've heard I haven't researched I think I think this will be a significantly better range and in general if you look at this bike what's it up against Indian Scout probably I would say and tell me if you disagree the Harley Davidson Sportster which is about to come out at the end of this year but I think this bike now has a very relevant position in the market it's it's very English and it's it's got its own character it's no longer just you know shall I go for the Scout Bobber or the Harley Sportster or I guess Triumph do an okay you know an okay Speedmaster no this is an amazing bike now this will more than do itself justice compared to the Harleys and the Indians I've had quite a few people messaging me saying that they would take this over one of Harley's or Indians offerings I'm not saying any one of the three is better but what I am saying is that it's got its own very very specific very definite character now it's an English gentleman as I said before and it's a very very real reason to buy this bike now even more so in my mind than the 865 Speedmaster that came before this because this engine fits so well with this bike and for me personally this is a far far superior looking bike than the outgoing model I just think Triumph have done such an incredible job and it's often an overlooked bike and it really shouldn't be it's a stunning machine for the day DMD75 helmet very good helmet for summer riding because it's got a big field of vision and those vents are brilliant don't fall summer gloves I don't think I've worn these for some reason on YouTube they are the racer gloves Ronin French company these are the coolest motorcycle gloves I own they are very very good summer gloves jacket shirt RST RST Kevlar shirt 120 pounds comes with back armor Kevlar lined it's a really good simple jacket worn it all around Italy and Spain for about a month solid riding and it's a very comfortable thing jeans per jeans SK11 slim fit stonewashed blue simple classic well designed they're the safest jeans I own but they are on the warmer side because they're double layer so when it's about 27 to 30 degrees they are warmer than a single layer jean but super safe and the boots Aviator something completely forgotten the name insert here but that's it we're going to get back because we've just seen on the forecast there may be lightning and a mini thunderstorm so we're going to ride back but thank you so much for following me on this love story over the past six days I can't tell you how much I like this bike thanks so much for following please do subscribe to the channel give the video a like and I'll see you in the next one