Mars Born | if you were born off planet what would you want to experience on Earth? Well, haring along on an old Triumph would be pretty much high on the list. This is a scene from The Space Between Us which is about a solar traveling teenage lad who visits his pen pal down on terra firma. It was a box office bomb but it ponders a cool thought.
Double Oh Seven | The latest offering in the long running James Bond franchise had its first trailer released yesterday. No Time To Die stars Daniel Craig in his fifth and final outing as the MI6 agent. Of course action will ensue with amazing stunts which include a couple of Triumph motorcycles. A Scrambler 1200 and the all new Tiger 900 are given a run for their money is chase sequences. The DB5 gets a healthy nod in the action too of course.
The Cooler King | Our man Guy Martin is to recreate the classic Finland scene from The Great Escape made famous by Steve McQueen. In blue torn down sweatshirt and khakis he’s to jump a barbed wire border fence on a green Triumph Scrambler. On Channel 4 December 8th.
F Stop | The Original celebrity photographer Terry O’Neill passed away yesterday. His portraits of the spotlight denizens from the sixties through to the eighties are considered iconic. Clockwise from upper left: Robert Redford, Julie Andrews, Steve McQueen and Mickey Rourke.
The Leather Boys | classic early sixties biker film depicting a fictionalization of the rocker lifestyle in the UK. Gritty kitchen sink drama.
Herding Cat | Today is playwright Sam Shepard’s birthday. Born in 1943 he acted in, wrote, directed and won numerous awards for dozens of plays. I remember him for his role in The Right Stuff as iconic supersonic pilot Chuck Yeager. Shepard died in 2017 aged 73
SF Streets | Steve McQueen launching his Triumph over one of the inclined street intersections of San Francisco. Probably taken during down time during the filming of Bullitt.
Happy Birthday Matt Damon! 49 today. Broad smile whilst filming for The Bourne Ultimatum riding a lightly customized Montessa Cota by Honda 4RT260 trials bike.
Prehistoric Pratt | Toy bike from Matchbox of the Triumph Scrambler ridden by Chris Pratt’s character velociraptor handler Owen Grady. I need to elbow room in my wall display…
Muffler Man | frame from opening scenes to Easy Rider depict a looming Ax Man. These fiberglass behemoths advertised car mufflers in the sixties but we’re sometimes repurposed for other city symbols. Typically a silencer would be supported between the giant paws of the lantern jawed gargantua – but other items can be substituted too, such as the double headed axe that this chap is wielding.
Wyatt & Daryl | the final episode of the first season of Ride With Reedus sees The Walking Dead actor cruising through the Everglades and down The Keys on a pair of Triumphs. Norman is like a kid in a candy store riding alongside the iconic Peter Fonda. ‘Gators, Hemingway and tales from the road.
Is it a Byrd? Bassist Chris Hillman looking hip on a Triumph back in the sixties. I was listening to McGuinn, Crosby, Clarke, Clark and Hillman with their Easy Rider soundtrack earlier when preparing the evening meal.
Ruddy ‘Ard | That there’s versatile actor Tom Hardy sat on a Triumph Thruxton on some city street corner. Effortless cool.
He’s Dangerous | The official trailer for the sequel to Top Gun was released today. Called Top Gun Maverick it stars Tom Cruise as the titular character – this time an aged fighter pilot rather than a brash young jock. Kawasaki motorcycles feature again. A brief sighting of the original Ninja 900 as well as a speeding Ninja H2. The Need for Speed.
Poop-Poop | one of the great environmental books to read is Kenneth Graham’s tale from the riverbank: The Wind in the Willows. Mr Toad of Toad Hall always finds the adventurous side of life as can be seen in the latest animated offering being released this summer. In the trailer he’s haring along a country lane on a vintage motorcycle only to come a cropper.
“The Open road, the dusty highway, the heath, the common, the hedgerows, the rolling downs; Travel, change, interest, excitement! The whole world before you, and a horizon that’s always changing! ” Toad
