Tiger By the Tail

Seven months or so after I rode with Brian Mock for the first time, the Milpitas native bought a 2018 Triumph Tiger 800 Adventure. He still rides the snot out of that same Tiger, despite other bikes catching his fancy. And after trying several dual sport and adventure bikes myself, I bought a 2007 Triumph Tiger 1050 this past July to level the playing field. Too many damn fine roads to ride in California!

So it was surprising that we hadn’t shared a long ride on our Tigers until this past weekend, when Brian recommended the Carmel Valley Loop, 200-plus miles of scenic northern California vistas and choppy roads.