IMAGES: JONNY ' TOO TALL' GAWLER
The Thruxton story goes back when Triumph was a way bigger Tmanufacturer than it is today. Back in the 1960s, the 650 Bonneville was making a splash, both here and in the colonies of the US and Australia. Then, in 1965, the Meriden-based firm began production of the Thruxton variant of the bike. Named after the Hampshire circuit, the limited-edition special allowed the bike to compete at the famous Thruxton 500-mile production race. In 1969, it filled the first three places, so that by Monday the race continued – this time to Triumph dealers across the globe.
Many moons later, by buying the rights to the original global player’s name, John Bloor gave birth to the second coming of Triumph. His first 1991 bikes bore names of past offerings, with the Trophy and Daytonas selling well enough to help Bloor’s Hinckleybased company expand production. In 1994 the promotional value of racing proved influential once more. Following a one-off race at Donington, with the field all using the newly introduced Speed Triple, the reputation of the muscle bike was impressively boosted. The subsequent bun fight that was the Triumph Speed Triple Challenge race series further increased the model’s popularity – even with me racing in it…