2005 Triumph Thruxton 900

The past is a glorious place to visit, for a brief time at least. But the past can also teach us much and one lesson has stood the passage of time - that the raw essence of motorcycling transcends all technology. And all that's really needed, for many, are an engine, two wheels and a pair of handlebars. No more, no less. A fact the Thruxton 900 proved so elegantly. Drawing on the Spartan cafe racing machines of the sixties and taking its name from the near-mythic racing Triumphs from the same era, its 865cc, air-cooled, twin-cylinder engine looks and feels like a motorcycle engine should - real. Wrapping the motor is a precisely crafted chassis that inspires confidence, thanks to fine-tuned suspension and delivers total control, thanks to quick steering and powerful brakes. The Thruxton 900's silhouette sends nape hairs instantly on end; the steeply angled clip-on handlebars, rear-set foot pegs and evocative seat hump connect the past with the present. And looks so right. And like the saying goes, handed down through the ages; if it looks right, it is right.