It all started about back in 09 when I was waiting for a group ride to start out at Chestnut Ridge Park. I was shooting the shit with another member of my team about his collection of old British crap, how my dad had old British shit that would now be a nice healthy 401(k) if he kept them, and what hills were we going to tackle today. Then it got to bikes.
“Yeah, I’ve got a few old British bikes I putz around with.”
“Cool. My old man had a few” “What do you have?”
“A Triumph Speed Twin, 2 Nortons, a Honda Scrambler, and a Vespa.”
“That’s cool.” “My old man had a 69 Triumph Daytona and a 71 Commando he sold back in 2000-ish.”
“Yeah, I bought my one Commando back in 2000, locally”
“Where did you buy it from?”
“Someone in Boston was selling it.”
At this time the gears in my head started to turn
“Did the guy look like me with 30 years and a mustache?”
“You know, now that you mention it, he did!”
So it was my old mans old bike he sold about 9 years ago that somehow I just happened to cross paths with almost a decade later when we ended up on the same cycling team.
Casually I would ask if he wanted to sell it back to build up the other one he has with a pretty strong engine, not really ever putting too much stock in it coming through. It was something as casual as asking if he wanted to dump it as we were in a pack of riders and him telling me he would think about it. After about 4 years he agreed to sell it back to me and it came home about 2 months ago. I am still baffled by the fact that of all the people who could have bought it in the world, it was someone who I would cross paths with years later through dumb luck. Plan is to do something like this for his 65th, without crying like bitch farts and getting all emotional
Enough of this faggot story. Here it is. It’s as it left the factory with the exception of the repro Dunstall pipes I bought for it back in 98 when he had it. It needs a good cleaning but its all there, triple numbers matching 71 750 Commando. Oh, yeah, I’ve never ridden a 2 wheeled object that doesn’t require me propelling it with my body either. Nothing better then a drum brake equipped bike to learn on:tup:
Grandson hate