Another MotoHistory article on Bill Gately and Bonneville Performance that was posted five years ago today.
Triumph's Track Attack
(3/18/2005)
Motohistory has been following the progress of a project aimed at returning the Triumph brand to American dirt track racing (See Motohistory News & Views 11/7/2004 and 1/25/2005). From 1958 through 1981, the brand won 65 championships and three Grand National Championships, but has not been a factor for the last quarter century. Bill Gately (pictured here), a Triumph enthusiast, owner of Bonneville Performance, and the guiding force behind the project based on Triumph's new Bonneville vertical twin engine, displayed the completed machine 
at the Powersports Expo in Indianapolis in February, then fired it up in anger for the first time at Barberville on March 6 with AMA national number 12 Jason Tyer in the saddle (pictured below).
Gately reports, “We did very well for our debut. In fact, in the first heat race Jason got the hole shot from the outside pole over four of the top ten riders. He had three bike lengths on the pack until we hit the rev limiter coming out of turn 2 and shut down the engine. I had the ignition box hacked and the limit changed months ago, but the program 
obviously did not take. We had to race the rest of the evening at 3/4 speed, but this will be fixed before Houston.”
Despite its ignition problems, Gately was very encouraged by the motorcycle's first outing. For you Triumph fans who want to see it run, the bike will race next at the AMA Hotshoe half-mile at Houston April 1 and 2, and at the Joliet Grand National on May 21. For the complete schedule of 2005 dirt track races, click here. Gately is working on a second machine set up for mile tracks.
Photo of Triumph at Barberville courtesy of Bill Gately.
