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T120 Tt Bonneville Special, 1968, The Earth shaker. The cafe…
Sale Title:
Auction House:
Auction Location:
Auckland
Date:
18-Mar-2009
Lot No.
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Description:
T120 Tt Bonneville Special, 1968, The Earth shaker. The cafe racer's favorite since its launch in 1959, the Bonneville continued as Triumph's top-of-the-range sports model after the switch to unitary construction of the engine/gearbox in 1963. An alloy cylinder head equipped with twin carburetors helped the Bonnie motor produce 46bhp at 6,500rpm and the model was reckoned good for a top speed approaching 120mph., The Usa had long been Triumph's most important export market and to cater for local tastes, a Bonneville Tt Special (also known as the Competition Sports) was introduced in 1964. The Triumph twin was already a formidable force in American flat-track racing and basic street drags. With this, the Tt Special's stripped-down look, smaller fuel tank and short, open exhaust pipes echoed the style of a hard-core racer. A crankcase under-shield, tachometer-only instrumentation (optional), larger-section front tyre and an absence of lighting further distinguished the Tt; it came with lowered overall gearing which reflected its primary intended role as a dirt bike. By this time, the Tt Special engine produced 54bhp courtesy of 11.2:1 pistons (up from the T120 roadster's 9.0:1) which made it a natural choice for none other than Evel Knievel. It should also be noted that the machine requires aviation fuel to run effectively., Knievel first decided to jump the fountains at Caesars Palace on 17 November 1967. To gain an audience with the casino's Ceo Jay Sarno, Knievel created a fictitious corporation called Evel Knievel Enterprises and three fictitious lawyers to make phone calls to Sarno. Knievel also placed phone calls to Sarno claiming to be from Abc-Tv and Sports Illustrated inquiring about the jump. Sarno finally agreed to meet Knievel and the deal was set for Knievel to jump the fountains on 31 December 1967. Knievel used his own money to have actor/director John Derek produce a film of the jump at Caesars. To keep costs down, Derek used his then-wife Linda Evans as one of the camera operators. It was Evans who filmed Knievel's infamous landing . On the morning of the jump, Knievel stopped in to the casino and placed his last hundred dollars on the blackjack table (which he lost), stopped by the bar and had a shot of Wild Turkey (on the house) and then headed outside where he was joined by several members of the Caesars' staff, as well as two scantily clad showgirls. The rest, as they say, is history, or was that show business...?, The Bonneville T120 Tt Special is nothing short of a hell bike - loud, agile and entirely dedicated to roughneck speed, it is a rare machine these days for the same reasons. These bikes were all ridden hard and most were ridden into the ground so it is with some surprise that we are able to offer this great example.
Estimate:
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Price:
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Category:
Unclassified