TRIUMPH’S Street Triple was launched last July and has by far exceeded the company’s expectations. Sales of the middleweight street-fighter have rocketed in a period that is seeing Triumph returning to its ‘Golden Age’ of the 1960s. In 1967, the company sold around 47,000 units and, with more than 45,000 sales in the first nine months of this year, Triumph is definitely back in business.

But lengthy waiting lists for the Street Triple mean that buyers worldwide have not got their bikes and the production line is at full capacity. The bottleneck appears to be the manufacture of cylinder heads and crankcases, but with the news that Triumph is expanding production in Thailand, the demands are being addressed and they’re doing everything they can to increase capacity.

However, that’s not stopped them charging full steam ahead with the introduction of the bike the designers wanted to build in the first place - the Street Triple R, which has taken just 16 months to complete from conception to its launch on the legendary Isle of Man.

The standard Street Triple is living proof that ‘cheap and cheerful’ doesn’t have to mean you’re faced with an annoying compromise as regards performance. True, it does begin to unravel when pushed beyond the realms of regular road riding and on track. It is limited by its very nature, despite being a barrel load of laughs.

But this new and uprated version is, quite literally, the icing on the cake and, at £6,220, it’s only £500 more expensive than the standard bike. So, what do you get for your money? Far more than you would if you trawled eBay and upgraded your existing Street Triple, that’s for sure.

After living with my standard bike for the best part of a year, I’m still finding it hard to fault. The handling and stopping power’s more than capable of dealing with some pretty involving riding, but Triumph always knew that some enthusiasts would demand a great deal from their bikes.

So the company has upped the spec’ with improved brakes, suspension, new handlebars and a choice of two colours (Matt Graphite and Matt Blazing Orange) and labelled this feisty new fighter the R. You’d be forgiven for thinking Triumph had merely stripped the Daytona 675 of its performance parts and whacked them on the urban Street Triple, but to an extent that’s actually true.

The front brakes have been donated from the fully faired sports bike in their entirety. The radial master cylinder, discs and pads are all from the Daytona. According to Triumph, the initial bite has been increased by 40 per cent and the stopping power by 20 per cent. Those claims are borne out in the saddle - the difference is quite noticeable and there’s extra feel and confidence. The front and rear suspension are both fully adjustable, also derived from the Daytona, but changes have been made to suit the Street Triple R.

While the 41mm USD forks have a similar construction and style to the Speed Triple, the internals have been revised to be softer than the Daytona, but stiffer than the Street Triple. On my test ride, I indulged in a lap of the TT course (despite the island’s drizzly rain) and where my Street Triple would have wallowed over the bumpier sections from Ginger Hall to Ramsey, the R swallowed the imperfections and inspired me to push even harder.

But challenging John McGuinness’ King of the Mountain title and his 130mph lap record would have to wait! Not only can I barely even comprehend the level of skill and circuit knowledge he has, the grey rain clouds and soup-thick fog prevented me from riding to my own personal limits or those of the bike.

Launching a bike on an island that boasts no speed limit across the Snaefell Mountain road should’ve been like a red rag to a bull. But in such tricky conditions, my pace was far more akin to 1908 and Triumph’s first win at the TT, when Jack Marshall raced a 3.5 bhp single cylinder and reached the blistering pace of 40.49mph!

Nevertheless, the R still managed to stretch a thirty-seven and three-quarter-mile smile across my beaming face. Its new suspension has resulted in subtle changes to the steering geometry and the bike is now marginally raised at the rear. The new two-tone seat height is 5mm higher but it’s actually 15mm taller than the Street Triple when the rider’s onboard (due to a stiffer spring in the rear shock).

It’s barely noticeable when you’re pottering about and the riding position nigh-on mirrors the standard bike’s uber-easy stance. But the R’s handling is sharper, it’s more eager to turn in and more responsive to a quick push on the bars to chop direction. Flying as fast as I dared over the misty mountain, the bike held its line and refused point-blank to waiver. I thought my Street Triple was fun, but this bike’s ridiculously successful in accomplishing whatever you choose to throw at it.