1964 Triumph Other

TR6SC DU8682

Clear

One of Only 60 built 1964 Triumph TR6SC Engine Number: TR6SC DU8682 Frame Number: TR6SC DU8682 In 1964, Bud Ekins put together the first American team to contest the ISDT, held that year in East Germany. It consisted of Bud, brother Dave Ekins, McQueen, Cliff Coleman, and John Steen. Bud, the Triumph dealer and longtime stalwart of the brand, elected to run in the 500-cc class with T100SCs for himself, Dave, and Steen, while a pair of TR6SCs were destined for Coleman and McQueen to run in the 750-cc class. The ISDT that year was grueling, with constant rain, unfamiliar terrain, and world-class competition. McQueen was at a disadvantage right from the start, as he’d raced and practiced in the arid California desert. And yet they were immediately competitive, ending the second day tied in points for the lead with Britain. McQueen told a reporter, “At this stage, I was definitely lined up for a gold medal and going hard. Part of the last run of this second day was over an open road cutting through a forest. I was dicing with the British champ, Jon Gills, a marvelous racer, and we were moving along at full chat in the rain. We could figure where the highway would bend by watching the way the trees lined up. But we got fooled because at one point the trees marched straight ahead while the road turned. We came into this turn, full turkey leg, at about eighty—and began sliding for traction. I went off the road and down into a cart truck, taking a fall. I saw marks where other riders had got themselves into the same kind of trouble. My cheek was cut from the goggles but nothing was broken, so I picked the twigs and leaves out of my ears and looked around for my bike. The tail pipe was smashed. I groaned, flipped a tool out of my back pocket, and bent the pipe back into usable shape.” On offer is one such TR6SC. Although rather butchered over the course of nearly 50 years, the bike is an early 1964 TR6SC, one of only 60 made in that year, and a complete matching numbers example to boot. Stored for many years, the bike was recently brought out to the light of day, and with some re-commissioning was made to run, and it runs pretty well. The bike retains an original slim tank, that was repainted some years ago in burgundy. Many of the cycle parts appear to not be original to the bike, as it was converted from a full off-road competition machine to a simple road bike. The bike starts fairly easily and runs OK. Brakes work and suspension feels ok, but it will need further re-commissioning at the very least, or, because of it rarity and importance in the history of Triumph, a restoration, returning it to the hugely successful Competition weapon of such a romantic era in motorcycling. The bike comes with a clean, clear California title.