Tiger 1200 Rally Pro on the prowl at 24 Hour Trial
Triumph’s Tiger 1200 became the world’s first big adventure bike to enter and complete the Australian 24 Hour Trial held in South Australia, with the Rally Pro version ridden by two-time Isle of Man TT winner Cameron Donald.
Of 138 entries only 91 completed the event, with the Tiger 1200 Rally Pro standing out among the field of lightweight enduro machines and Donald bringing the machine home in 74th place.
Cam Donald’s team-mate for the race – also riding a Tiger 1200 Rally Pro – was Donald Owen who unfortunately hit a deep, square-edge hole hard and was unable to continue after 16 hours. The impact saw the weight of the mandatory extra lighting fitted to the bike upset the instrumentation which meant he could not restart the motorcycle.
Cameron Donald
“Physically, that was one of the toughest things I’ve ever done on a motorcycle.To ride out there in that terrain on these bikes over four six-hour laps for 24 hours was such a battle. It was brutal. A lot of people told us we were crazy, not expecting us to finish a single lap let alone four laps to finish the race. The weight of a 1200 cc adventure bike didn’t make it easy against lightweight enduro bikes, but I was constantly amazed by how well the new Tiger 1200 got through the terrain. There were boobytraps everywhere including ledges four-feet high and bulldust two-feet deep, often hiding rocks and roots. You had to be careful in the tight, technical terrain but, once it opened up, the Tiger was unstoppable. In a race as gruelling as the 24Hr trial, we threw so much at the Tigers, but they were supremely capable and absolutely shined. I’m gutted both bikes didn’t finish, though, and that just drives home the how hard the event actually is.”
The 24-Hour Trial, historically known as the 24-Hour Reliability Trial, has been running since 1924 and is Australia’s oldest motorcycle race. It comprises four six-hour laps with each lap consisting of 12 competitive sections, which are timed (the rider with the lowest cumulative time wins), and 13 transit legs. Three evenly spread fuel stops allow 15 minutes for basic motorcycle maintenance and rider sustenance. Outside assistance is not permitted.
Bike preparation for the race was minimal. The Tigers were fitted with Triumph accessory upper protection bars; aggressive road-legal knobby tyres for maximum traction and an 8.0-inch LED light bar for additional night-time visibility (as per race regulations). Centre stands and pillion mounts were removed for increased clearance.
Lighter and more powerful, the 2022 Triumph Tiger 1200 runs the new T-plane triple, and shaves off 25 kg compared to the edition.
With the new Rally Pro, this brings for the first time a dedicated 21-inch front and 18-inch rear tubeless wire-spoked wheel set-up, plus Showa semi-active suspension with longer travel, tuned for all-terrain riding, off-road and on.
The Tiger’s new frame is 5.4 kg lighter than the previous design, features a bolt-on aluminium rear sub-frame and bolt-on pillion hangers. Additional weight savings comes from the new aluminium fuel tank and all-new tri-link swingarm, which is 1.5 kg lighter and stronger than the previous single-sided set-up, while incorporating a smaller and lighter shaft drive and bevel box.
The new Tiger 1200 variants also comes with new seat and tank ergonomics, where the seat has been slimmed down at the front, where it meets the tank.
All models within the Tiger 1200 line-up have an extensive level of protection for a more secure and comfortable ride: handguards are standard for all models, aluminium skid-guard is fitted as standard on the GT Pro and GT Explorer, while an aluminium sump guard is a standard fit for the Rally Pro and Rally Explorer.
Additional protection is provided on the GT Explorer and both Rally variants by the engine protection bars, while the Rally Explorer also comes with fuel tank protection bars. These items can all be added as accessories to the models where they are not standard fit.
Triumph Tiger 1200 pricing:
- Tiger 1200 GT Pro – Standard colour – $29,990
- Tiger 1200 GT Pro – Metallic colour – $30,290
- Tiger 1200 GT Explorer – Standard colour – $32,600
- Tiger 1200 GT Explorer – Metallic colour – $32,850
- Tiger 1200 GT Explorer – Twin colour – $32,990
- Tiger 1200 Rally Pro – Standard colour – $31,800
- Tiger 1200 Rally Pro – Metallic colour – $32,050
- Tiger 1200 Rally Pro – Twin colour – $32,190
- Tiger 1200 Rally Explorer – Standard colour – $33,950
- Tiger 1200 Rally Explorer – Metallic colour – $34,200
- Tiger 1200 Rally Explorer – Twin colour – $34,350
Visit your local Triumph Motorcycles dealer for more information or visit the Triumph Motorcycles Australia website.
