History of The Triumph Thruxton Bonneville

from: www.myclassicbikes.co.uk

Triumph showed a pre-production model of the Thruxton Bonneville at the Earls Court Show in 1964.  The intention was to produce a machine that would be capable of winning the prestigious Thruxton 500 Miler endurance race.  The bike was developed from the T120 Bonneville and made available to the home market in limited numbers.  Only fifty two Thruxtons were ever factory built to the original spec in May 1965.  This was enough to meet the FIM requirements for production racing.  There were however some standard machines that were later upgraded to Thruxton spec.  We know that our machine was one of the original factory Thruxtons, supplied to Pat Keeble Motors (Leiston Ltd.)
Ironically in 1965 the venue for the 500 Miler race was switched to Castle Combe due to the deteriorating condition of the old aerodrome track at Thruxton.  The factory effort was rewarded with a win at the first attempt for Dave Degens and Barry Lawton on a Thruxton Bonneville prepared by Syd Lawton.  Unfortunately our machine was retired from this race with a broken con-rod.
In 1966 the race venue was switched again, this time to Brands Hatch, where Triumph Bonnevilles dominated by taking four of the first five places.  This success continued to the end of the decade when the 750’s took over.
The 500 Miler endurance races were by no means the only events entered.  We know that our machine was also ridden by George Collis and Mike Chatterton at the Barcelona 24 Hour race in 1965 (click here for the picture).  That same year Peter Butler rode the bike in the Hutchinson 100 and we also think that George Collis rode it at Silverstone.   it’s probable that at some stage the bike put in an appearance at the Isle of Man because of the unusual gearing found on the bike during restoration.
If anyone has any information that might prove or disprove any of the above information please contact us.  We’d love to be able to confirm some of the history and provide more information about the riders.  Any photographs would also be gratefully received.