Video: Triumph's Scrambler 1200 competes in the Mexican 1000

Then, Triumph announced their intention to actually race Baja with the new Scrambler 1200. That’s an announcement you only make if you’re really confident in your new scrambler. 

Triumph was totally serious, and they secured Ernie Vigil, a racer and stunt rider, to pilot their bike in the race. (You might know him from videos like Monster Energy’s “City is My Playground” series.) If you need to send a large, torquey motorcycle down a treacherous peninsula as fast as possible, Vigil’s just the man for the job.

So how’d they fare?

Vigil and the Scrambler 1200 XE secured fifth place in their class (Modern Open) and 17th overall for bikes in the National Off Road Racing Association Mexican 1000. (Race results availabe here. Vigil was slated to compete in the Baja 1000, which runs on much of the same course, but he injured his ankle while training and was unable to appear at that race.) Vigil faced a field of specially built race bikes, mainly Hondas and KTMs, and still stayed competitive on a mostly stock Scrambler.

I can hear the objections already: “Mostly stock? What’s that supposed to mean?”

Here’s a breakdown of the mods done to the Scrambler before it competed.  According to Vigil, the Triumph got “an extended sump guard, softer bar grips, removal of ABS/TC functions and the fitment of a Metzeler MC 360 21-inch front tire and Metzeler Karoo 3 on the standard 17-inch rear wheel. Suspension settings were left as supplied on the standard showroom models.” The front bib mousse “failed spectacularly” on day two, but other than that, Triumph reported no issues at all with the 1200 over the five-day, 1,347-mile rally. Spurgeon already demonstrated that the Scrambler 1200 was a very capable motorcycle, and this is just another feather in its cap. 

In many forms of racing, it’s common to see stock vehicles transformed into unattainable machines that barely resemble their original forms. I respect Triumph’s decision to do just the opposite so that we, their customers, could see how the motorcycle actually performs. 

The Baja 1000’s origins go back to exactly the same idea. In 1962, American Honda had just received the new CL72 Scrambler. Eager to show it off, some Honda employees teamed up with Bud Ekins (yes, that Bud Ekins) to plan a route that would put the Scrambler to the test. Billy Robertson, Jr. and Bud's brother Dave actually made the run; Bud sat out because of his ties to Triumph. It was a sensation. Soon, everyone wanted a shot at the record, and four-wheeled vehicles joined the bikes in pursuit of the fastest time. The famous Meyers Manx really took off after it beat the Honda's time, and the rest is history that you can still watch today.

I feel that Triumph set out to break the popular idea that scramblers aren’t all that good at scrambling when they released this bike. Seeing as the (basically) stock bike was actually competitive in the Mexican 1000, and utterly reliable on top of that, I think they’ve made their point.