Archive for ‘60’s’

June 12, 2011

Chopper Triumph

The late 60’s and early 70’s was the time when the chopper culture entered it’s golden, glitzy, chrome-laden, and psychadelic colored era. Here’a couple of examples of the style.  Not necessarily raked forks all the time, but a semi-bobbed style. This one has a super open-road portrait stretching into the distance. Insect-like headlights, but a comfortable riding geometry.

U-shaped bucket seat, peanut tank and raked hardtail frmae; that’s chopper style. The british twins were used as much as the harley v-twins are seen today in these custom specials.

Crumb-esque drawings add to tne light hearted nature of the lifestyle…
…keep on ridin’!

June 9, 2011

A perennial favourite

Beautiful loose sketch from some brochure in the 60’s, A sense of light adventure to be had astride a Meriden twin. Won’t go too far or fast with her skirt though!

May 26, 2011

A Model Escape

Here is an accurate 1:12 model of the bike used by Hilts to escape the Germans and the Stalag Luft. Actually a Triumph TR6, painted and detailed a little to replicate a wartime BMW R45 bike of the time; probably its because this is the model Steve and his pal Bud rode to great effect across the SoCal dessert. Nevertheless it is still one of the most classic bike scenes in ANY movie!

Below: a replica built for the Imprial War Museum exhibition on the G.E. in 2005/6 – A 1960 T110.

May 7, 2011

A hare or hound?

 Great shot of young lady enjoying the speedy thrills of an old farm bike; in this case a Triumph.

April 26, 2011

Ooh those curvy Bonnie lines…

Of the Triumphs of course…
High Noon!
 
Truly the Ultimate.. still!

April 24, 2011

Nacelle

April 17, 2011

Tom, Dick and Harry….

…and Hilts, the Cooler King. Taking on the Germans in his famous motorcycle escape in my favourite film. An ensemble cast topped by the great Steve McQueen.

April 9, 2011

of Malcolm Uphill and the Triumph Bonneville

From http://www.triumphbonneville.com/ – a site dedicated to the T140 and TR7:



“The best lap could be around the 103mph mark” predicted Paul Dunstall, for whom Ray Pickrell had put in a storming circuit of the 37.73 mile course at 99.39mph on a Norton twin, but Dunstall’s favourite was Triumph’s Malcolm Uphill,on a 60bhp 650cc Triumph Bonneville…



The production TT introduced in 1967 was no reprise of the worthy but often dull Clubman’s races. Rider’s were top names and engines were tuned to last for the three laps it would take to boost sales and prestige for the coming season. British Manufacturers might have lost the battle for the smaller capacity classes, but big twins like the Commando and the Bonneville were still competitive on the track and in the showroom.



Uphill ignored the pressure and still likes to recall how he eased off once he was sure of a win.
“The 100mph lap didn’t mean much to me at the time”, he says. Far more important was the £50 prize, £70 in trade bonuses and the £300 Triumph Bonneville MAC232E-his fee from Meriden.

Hunched well forward on the howling twin,pudding basin hemet bobbing above the steering head, Uphill flew through the speed trap at the highlander pub at just under 135mph. His standing start at 100.09mph looked effortless until spectators realised the scraping sound was Malcolm cornering on the Dunlop K81’s until his fairing touched the road. A faster second lap and a ton plus race average looked certain until this cool professional throttled back to finish with 99.99mph. It was the Bonnevilles finest hour,and a feat immortalised by Dunlop on the sidewall of every K81 the ‘TT100’.


As well as the Thruxton 500 in 1969 he also dominated the NW200 road race in Northern Ireland.

Fantastic shot of him at speed, classic lines of the Triumph blurs the scenery.

March 10, 2011

Batgirl on her Batbike

Batgirl!

February 20, 2011

60’s in the 70’s

In an attempt to stir nostalgic values to the 750 Bonneville in the seventies here they advertise with sixties imagery, harking to diners and hot-rods, sunsets and black & white photo’s; the chinzy 80’s airbrush look detracts fom the bike, coloured to look like the ’68 zenith Bonnie.  Note the NVT logo used for this Calirornian dealership (Norton Villiers Triumph); the conglomeration of the remnants of a once sucessful British motorcycle industry.