Triumph Bonneville

Book excerpt: Triumph Bonneville: 60 Years is a celebration one of motorcycling’s most iconic and beloved bikes. First manufactured in Great Britain in 1959, Triumph's legendary model resonates deeply with motorcycle enthusiasts worldwide who love its style, sound, performance, and undeniable coolness. It's no surprise that Triumph was Steve McQueen's favorite ride. The Bonneville's story is one of successes and challenges as Triumph grew steadily in the post-World War II decades to become America's most successful "import" motorcycle marque. Triumph won every championship worth winning, owned the world speed record for fifteen years, and wooed Hollywood's hottest stars. Bonneville was Triumph’s halo machine, one of the highest performance motorcycles of the 1960s. However, as competing marques eventually eclipsed the Bonneville in the 1970s, Triumph management struggled, leading first to bankruptcy and then to the demise of the company in 1983. Triumph was resurrected by British industrialist John Bloor in the late 1990s to become a twenty-first century global success story, which includes a revived and thoroughly retro-contemporary Bonneville range.