Triumph 3TA 350 'ISDT Style' 1962

Cool enough for Steve McQueen.

Dust off your leather jacket and rock up to your local event on this extremely cool British classic.

Beautifully tailored with an aesthetic nod to the oldest off-road motorcycle event on the calendar, this bike will make a super addition to any collection.

A Triumph 3TA, with its 350cc twin 4 stroke, first registered in April 1962.

Purchased in 1998 as a ‘box of bits’ road bike by the Trials Secretary of Durham Classic Motorcycle Club. He carried out a rebuild, replacing any missing items with authentic and age-appropriate parts. He completely reconditioned the original engine.

The following owner continued the build, with subtle changes to reflect the ISDT style bikes of the past, adding, amongst other things, the Siamese high level exhaust system.

The ISDT – a (very) brief explanation.

The British Auto Cycle Club held a Six Days Trial competition as far back as 1905, with the earliest International Six Days Trial results recorded in 1913.

These early events took place on the dirt track ‘roads’ of the era and were designed to test the reliability and stamina of machines and riders, competing as a team, over a six-day period.

Teams from across Europe battled for the ‘International Trophy’ and the ‘Silver Vase’, and as the event progressed, so did the competition, with teams from the USA plus women’s and junior teams included.

Legendary actor and accomplished motorcycle rider Steve McQueen was part of the American team contesting the ISDT title in 1964. Many British-made bikes found their way into McQueen’s collection and, of course, who could forget Captain Virgil Hilts epic fence-jumping finale of the Great Escape on a heavily disguised Triumph?

England, Wales, France, Switzerland, Sweden, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Austria, and (the former) Czechoslovakia all hosted the event on numerous occasions, with Poland, Spain, the Isle of Man and the USA providing venues in later years.

With interruptions only from the First and Second World Wars, the event has been contested every year since its inauguration in 1913.

As time progressed, the routes became more difficult and technical, resulting in more and more modifications to the motorcycles, allowing for better off-road ability. Eventually, due to these changing factors, the competition title was changed in the early 1980’s to International Six Day Enduro, by which it is known today.

Purchased in 2021, the owner writes……

“I bought this bike after a chance conversation in the pub in the village of Cotherstone, near Barnard Castle, I was up there watching the Scott Trial in nearby Swaledale.

Chatting with two old boys in the bar, it turned out that they too were motorcycle enthusiasts. One of whom had this bike.

It wasn’t for sale, and I had not seen it, I simply mentioned that if he should decide to part with it, I would be interested.

I left my phone number and some weeks later, got a text with a video of the bike and a message saying that he was ready to sell and stating a ‘cash only’ price.

I took a trip to Tow Law, right up North. I was welcomed and shown the bike, and we chatted about it and other bikes he had over home-made soup.”