The Speedmasters & Americas seem to generate either love or hate when viewed by Triumph traditionalists. At the same vintage Brit iron event, one attendee literally ran over with the look of a gleeful 10 year old on his mug and said "I want to chop one of those Speedmasters, (I replied "me too" and stuck out my paw) and another tried to keep us Hinckley types from riding along with one of the group rides.

Funny thing is, I believe the love / hate thing has been this way for every make whenever a change comes along over time. Remember anytime BMW tried to install anything but a boxer mill? Hoo hoo - did that cause a riot among the faithful each time.

I suppose we grow accustomed to new & different. True confessions - I actually like the look of the Victory motorcycle space ship thing, except for that trunk. Trunk gotta go, and paint must be black. Would I buy one? Not with an air cooled V twin, but that's a sad story for another day. When I first saw the Dodge pickup nose of recent years design, I wondered - is that how they want it to look, or did maybe the lead designer have a seizure just prior to the clay department taking it? After x years, I don't even notice them.

The estate where I work - by the road, a mid 1700s colonial, then a modern wing with 12 - 12 roofs and skylights, then a 40' in diameter two story glassed in / screened in octagon. It took a few years to get that octagon so I could look at it in the daylight, but it all kinda makes sense now, maybe, sort of, um...