Last June, Triumph Motorcycles held a birthday celebration, and it wasn’t just any old party. Triumph held a Ride Across America, a cross-country ride in which participants traveled from the east coast to the west coast with fifteen planned stops along the way, finally ending in Pasadena, California. Our pal Dennis Gage riding his own Triumph Trophy 1200, and his son, Sam, found the group at a stop in Verona, Wisconsin, and had the chance to enjoy one of the many “birthday parties” that took place. And while Dennis was there, he saw some great bikes and met some fantastic Triumph-ridin’ folks.

First, Dennis caught up with Michael Vaughn, CEO of Triumph Motorcycles of America, Ltd., and he told Dennis that recently Triumph has experienced a 40% increase in growth. Michael added that much of the credit for the success goes to John Bloor, the owner of the company. It was John’s promise that two new or revamped models would appear each year, and with such bikes as the new Triumph Tiger, and the retro Triumph Bonneville, the company has attracted a new and younger market of enthusiasts while still retaining those who remember Triumph’s past glory as a leader in the motorcycle industry. Speaking of new and old, it wasn’t long before Dennis had to make his way through the crowd to see some of these spectacular Triumphs and to meet their owners.

First, Dennis found Neale Bayly and his 2002, yellow and black, Triumph Tiger. This rad kitty is a 955 cc, 100+ horsepower, big bad cat! Next, Dennis found Andrew Kay and 2001 Sprint ST. Andrew bought his first Triumph in 1958 and he has been hooked ever since. Talk about dedicated riders, to participate in this celebration, Andrew left his home in Florida and rode all the way to New Hampshire to start the journey. Then he will then ride all the way to California, and then finally back to Florida! He estimates that he will have traveled some 9,000 to 10,000 miles upon completion of the trip. He also told us that he is well prepared and already has a new set of tires for the return ride waiting for him in Orange County, California! There was also, Knut Lombard from Middleton, Wisconsin, and his sleek and rare 2002 Triumph Daytona Centennial, and we also ran into Sherri Daley, a teacher, whose first bike was a Triumph 250. Finally, Dennis had a chance to talk to a couple of members of the staff, Jemme Carson, and Greg Casey, the ride coordinator for the event. We must say that they did an outstanding job in choosing the scenic highways and byways for this great birthday celebration.

We had a great time at this birthday party and the hills of southern Wisconsin made for some spectacular summer riding. If you would like to learn more about Triumph’s Ride Across America, you can find it on the web at http://www.amadirectlink.com/news/Triumph.asp . And of course, if you would like to learn more about Triumph Motorcycle, you can check them out at www.triumph.co.uk . Until next time, remember, “Keep the shiny side up and Ride On!”

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