– wonderful imagined future of the mischievous Calvin and his sardonic pet tiger Hobbes on an adventurous escapade. The flights of fancy Calvins imagination drew the pair of them into are legendary in Bill Watterson’s strip published in worldwide newspapers between 1985 and 1995.
At about the same time BMW was introducing the Gelände/Straße GS range Triumph was grasping a straws during its business death throes. One model that hinted of what was to come was a slightly modified 750 Tiger named the Trail. 21” front wheel, single seat, high pipe, off road gearing. You can nearly see the looks of latter model Tigers in its DNA. Growing up I always loved the look of the dirt oriented front fender.
Another motorcycle blogger is Vanessa Ruck who enjoys extolling the virtues of two-wheel travel. Particularly with an adventure bike such as the impeccable Tiger.
Head down the road. Aim for the horizon. Take your wits, your sense of exploration and a heady dose of adventure to venture out into the yonder.
– est. 1897 | one of the stops on this ride through an unseasonably cool June afternoon had us stop in at this old stable located along Hunt Club Road.
– the return leg of Saturday’s ride brought us back along the delightful Gilmer Road. A leafy road that winds through Lake Country passing horse farms and old railway lines; passes barns and crosses multiple county roads ready to explore.
Old Roadhouse at the intersection
– one of our stops for a leg stretch was at this abandoned crossroads building. You can imagine hoarded of Harley Davidson bickered swarming around at this corner on a Sunday morning before roaring around the backroads then heading back to Milwaukee after a spin around the Moraine’s.
– stopping off near the rolling hills of the Kettle Moraine area of south east Wisconsin. Quiet roads through the idyllic rural dairyland. Old barns, oak woodland and small hamlets scatter through the patchwork countryside formed from the rocky remnants of a continent-wide glacial retreat.
.. wish I was on a gravel road through the Rockies with the occasional arboreal vista across blue layered slopes.
Arid Adventure
Someone has taken the road less traveled with their Tiger and accumulated layers of desert, otherwise known as experience. This image reminds me: I need to get some knobby tires ordered…
A pair of intrepid adventurers with their Triumph combination somewhere in Alkebulan (Mother of Mankind) during a 1932 trip across the continent. It’s Frank Flood and Jim C. Wilson who rode from the Nigerian cost to The Red Sea. The original dual sport travelers. Short sleeves and pith helmets.
… back in the fifties Mr G G Evans rode his Triumph Thunderbird through Europe and on through North Africa, along the Suez and down into South Africa. I wonder if this journey was inspiration for Ted Simon fifteen years later as Jupiter?
Lovely development sketch by industrial designer Ian Wride. He earned his degree at Newcastle Polytechnic (now Northumbria University) and has been involved in several major makes over the last decade.
Some fresh air was thoroughly enjoyed today with a splendid outing around Lake Geneva. Blue skies with a few scudding clouds driven by stiff winds. We stopped in at Yerkes Observatory near Williams Bay. Still getting to grips with the “GoPro”.
A young plumber from Salford was beckoned to the gritstone crags of the Peak District in the fifties. Along with other working class types they opened up the climbing scene, once a dominion of the upper classes, to the everyman. Along with Don Whillans, Joe put up many test-pieces in the UK, Alps and greater ranges. We would occasionally see him in his latter years when we were out craggin’ on Stanage Edge up from Sheffield; or over at Llanberis Pass in Snowdonia. A true legend in the climbing scene.
