Club Member Bert has achieved a milestone that everyone recognises - doing 100,000 miles on a single machine. Bert has ridden all over the UK and into Europe, attended countless shows and won so many trophies that he ran out of room to house them.
Since buying the Thunderbird in 2012, there have been a number of modifications to the standard offering. The most striking is the paint work. With it being a Thunderbird, the Thunderbirds theme seemed appropriate and different, and of course a bit of fun. The Airbrushing was done on new panels so the bike was never off the road. When they were completed it was just a matter of swapping them over. The airbrushing was done by Airbrush Art (Colin McKay) down in Ashurst in the New Forest. He was chosen because of the work he'd done and because he was a fellow club member.
The bike has been all over the U.K. riding and attending biker rallies as well as fitting in a two week tour of Southern Ireland, a one week tour of Northwest Scotland, and a long weekend to the race circuit in Anglesey. A favourite destination has been the WW1 battlefields and cemeteries in Northern France, Belgium, and Holland. It's also been to Northern Spain for a week in the Picos mountains and a two week tour to the now defunct TriDays in Austria travelling through France, Germany, Switzerland. That's all contributed to reaching 100,000.
Servicing has always been done at a Triumph dealer. There have been hardly any bike related issues, mainly normal wear and tear. It has gone through about 20 rear tyres, a clutch cable, and front and rear discs. The dealer doing the servicing is Pure Triumph of Wellingborough, every 6000 miles from new, which has helped keep the bike running as new.
Bert has some great tips for keeping your bike spotless... and his is certainly spotless despite the 100,000 miles. If you are out in the winter with salt on the roads wash post ride, do not leave for the salt to corrode. Do not clean chrome with abrasives such as Solvol Autosol as this will take a small amount off the surface. Bert has always used a premium wax polish - it will make your bike shine without taking off the top surface. He uses alloy cleaner i.e. Solvol Autosol on bare aluminium only. In a nut shell just wash clean & polish as you do with everything.
Bert gets what the TOMCC is all about. It's about getting out on the bikes with like minded members who want to have a bit of fun in these highly strung times – fresh air, a sense of freedom and wonderful countryside.
