Had a good one Just after Covid subsided, was like the first nice weather after the lockdown. And I went for a ride down into yorkshire a week day if i remember probably a wednesday .
Anyway, i was on my old 1996 triumph Sprophy 900. a Triumph trophy with Black Sprint fairing and panels etc.
Had a good run down not much on roads, stopped near Lowes and ended up having a ride from there over to Redcar and down the coast to scarbourgh and a run Straight back up to the A1 north and back home.
Was packed out with folk in scarbourgh and i decided to call at a cafe at the north bay and have a cup of tea then home.
Was a few bikes in at the cafe there, was talking to a lad on a Triumph bobber he had apparently bought accident damaged and repaired has his locked down in his shed project. Wile we were stood chewing the fat an elderly gentleman in his 80s i would say was looking at the line of bikes and he walked up to us and Proudly announced "I had a Triumph years ago". We both Looked interested in what the chap had and the Other lad asked " What Triumh did you have then sir". We were expecting a T500 or who knows a sprung hub he was old enough to have had one of them.
The Old chap Grinned and announced " a 500 ES2". Oh well that did not go down very well, and Both being way too polite to mention Norton made the ES2 Not triumph We nodded interestedly .
He went on to say how he used to ride to the dances With his Friend who also had a Norton and how the time on that Norton were some of the happiest times of his life.
The conversation went on and he was a nice chap and explained his exploits as a young man on his Norton.
The Lad on the Triumph bobber who would have been in his early 50s at a guess, Chimed in " Are you sure it was a triumph and not a Norton"? The old chap looked confused and a little pensive then replied, " Oh it was a Norton all right But same family as the Triumph as the last i heard Norton Villiers and triumph were all the one firm NVT. ".
He was of course correct and The other bobber chap looked like he was going to correct him, and i quickly repplied to the old chap, "Thats Right they were the same company at one poin t but since then tthey are independent of each other at the moment have been some years now"2.
The Old chap looked Quite sad and asked " Norton are still on the go though?"
"oh yes i replied they are still there have had issues but still there".
" the old chap Gave a beaming smile and said " Good i am really pleased about that i like norton and its nice they are still around isnt it"?
"Yes it is" i replied. He reached out and shook hands with us both and his parting coment was " thank you both very much its good to talk about motor bikes good day".
And he walked off. When he had Gone the other chap asked 2 Was he right about Norton villiers triumph were they the same company?" . "yes they were the same company for a time in the late 70s early 80s".
he replied " I did not know that and there is me thinking the old guy is loosing the plot and all the time it was me ". we both laughed. for a time we both thought he was confused possibly down to his age, but in fact he was a very nice chap and in fact as sharp as a razor and he knew his way around motorbikes too by the sounds of it.
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