What a fantastically ridiculous thing the 2020 Harley Davidson CVO Tri Glide is

THE worst part about being a biker isn’t having to ride home after work in the lashing rain.

Nor is it that sinking feeling when you realise that speed ­camera flash was for you. Nor is it dropping your brand new helmet or even being knocked off by a senseless driver.

No, the very worst thing about being a biker is knowing that one day, your bones and your brains will be too old to keep up with your passion for motorcycles.

Getting old and balancing big heavy bikes go together like oil and water. So what do you do if you’re not quite ready for a bus pass? You get a trike of course.

Trikes offer none of the practicality of a motorcycle, or creature comforts of a car, but they have handlebars, and everything you look at from the seat forward will remind you of your glory days.

They make no sense at all, but then neither do motorbikes. We spent a day testing the 2020 Harley Davidson CVO Tri Glide and what a fantastically ridiculous thing it is.

Before we explain what it’s like to ride, we need to mention the ­numbers. All of them are huge. Ready to ride, the Tri Glide weighs in at 577kilos. That’s a lot.

The 1923cc Milwaukee Eight motor burps out more torque than a Ducati Panigale. At 3,500rpm, you have 124ft lbs at your disposal, more than enough to keep the Tri Glide moving at a reasonable lick.

The spec of the Tri Glide is mind- blowing, heated seats for you and your passenger, reverse gear, cruise control and a host of other trinkets are all on hand to make every ride a special one.

It benefits from the new RDRS (Reflex Defensive Rider Systems), so there’s traction control, cornering ABS and torque control.

The paintwork is a mile deep, the Sharknose fairing looks outrageous and passers-by literally stand and stare as you ride past.

It’s a different kind of fun to what we’re used to and we can definitely see the appeal these things have for older bikers.

Apparently, they sell like hot cakes in France but at a cool £44,995 we doubt that we’ll be over-run by them on the streets of the UK.

But if you do see one remember to chuck the pilot a nod, they’re one of us.

•  John is editor at SuperBike.

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