FEATURES
RIDDEN & RATED
Triple Threat 24
The latest Triumph Daytona 955i does both names proud.
LONG-TERM TEST
22,000-Mile Sprint 28
And you thought your jogging
regimen was tough....
ON THE ROAD
The Big Empty 30
A great ride to the Great Basin.
SEATBAG BUYERS GUIDE
Trunks for Your Junk 38
Travel solo or have a luggage rack? This is your bag.
PROJECT BIKE
Operation Silk Purse 48
OK, the Kawasaki ZZ-R1200 is prettier than a sow's ear, but....
ROUND THE WORLD REDUX
The First Half 52
Ted Simon relives Jupiter’s Travel's 27 years later.
RIDDEN 8e RATED
58 Backroad Blitzer 58
The 2003 Lightning XB9S may be the
best Buell ever.
DEPARTMENTS
8* GUEST EDITORIAL
The Visor of Eternal Youth
10* RESPONSE
14 • KICKSTARTS
Vincent Rebirth
16*RIDING AROUND
Ridden & Rated: 2002 Suzuki
VL1500 Intruder LC
20-STAYIN' SAFE
The Theory of the Right Bend
22* ROAD TALES
Traveling Solo
61*2002 EDITORIAL INDEX
62-MODEL APPAREL AND
ADVERTISER INDEXES
64* FAVORITE RIDE
Desert Friday
66* RALLIES & CLUBS
Hogstock
63* TECH Q&A
Wrong Way Wear
SHOP TALK
70* Gear: Belstaff Discovery Jacket
71 • Gear: BMW Multi-Trailer
72* Gear: Clover Satsuma Jacket
and Cruiser Pants
73* PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT
75* RIDER SHOPPER
82* RETROSPECTIVE
Norton N15CS 750
You're rolling down your favorite backroad, the
wind ripping, the engine howling, pavement streaking past you in
a gray blur. You've been here before, at speed, but previously you
were being bounced around, teeth clenched, apprehensive, hanging a
couple fingers on the brake lever. Today, however, you're on the 2002
riumph Daytona 955i, and the bike is in its element—which allows
you to be in your element.
Since Triumph's rebirth in Hinckley, England, in the 1990s, only its sportiest
models have carried the Daytona name. These included the 750cc triples and
l,000cc fours of 1991, then the modular 900cc triples and l,200cc Daytona
fours starting in 1993. In 1997, Triumph introduced a serious 955cc
sportbike, confusingly designated the T595 Daytona after its devel-
opment code. The model (which introduced an aluminum frame,
single-sided swingarm
and fuel injection to the
Triumph line) was
later renamed the
Daytona 955i. It
was refined in 1999
with a new shock,
engine parts and
* updated graphics.
For 2002 the
Daytona 955i has
; undergone its
most significant
revision, and
the result is a
tremendously
satisfying back-
roadbike...