Trippin' Triumph
TRIPPIN' TRIUMPH
Low dough, high style
I’M NO JAY LENO, BUT talking with Yoshi Kosaka, I felt like the “Tonight Show” funnyman trying out fresh material. This guy just loves to laugh. Kosaka is a free spirit, the type of person who cuts out on a high-paying dental-engineering job in his native Tokyo to move to Los Angeles and open a bike shop, where he collects motorcycling memorabilia, fettles vintage roadracers and builds customs such as the Triumph bobber shown here. No showcase for modern-day parts and accessories, the Garage Company (www.garagecompany.com) is stocked full with all sorts of neat two-wheel knick-knacks, from books and decals to posters and oddball parts, all from days gone by. Initially, the 50-year-old ex-
motocrosser was simply looking for a place to house his 30-plus bikes. Soon enough, folks started nosing around and asking if anything was for sale. Next thing he knew, Kosaka was heading up a business. Now, he’s at his third address, each larger than the last. The Triumph came to Kosaka as a basketcase. “It started as a 1952 650 Thunderbird,” he explains. “One of my customers tried to finish it, but he gave up. I bought the bike almost five years ago, and finally finished it last year. It’s a backyard special, nothing fancy. Everything’s chopped, welded, sanded, flat paint. I really wanted it to look old school.” Other than paint, the frame went untouched, while the engine got a standard rebuild. “Nothing
hopped-up, easy to start, easy to ride,” Kosaka says. “Most people want a big camshaft, high-compression pistons, big carburetor. That’s good for racing, not for the street.” The restcast-off headlight, cut-down Z-bars, Ceriani fork, peanut gas tank, reshaped oil tank, red-rimmed wire-spoked wheels shod with whitewall rubber, and just-right pinstriping-is all about creating something fun on a sacklunch budget. “Do you see the bicycle footpegs?” Kosaka asks with a giggle. “They’re from the Thirties. I picked them up at a swapmeet.” I ask about the hot-rod skull shift knob. “Ah, that came from my inner shelf,” he happily confides. “That’s where I keep the good stuff. “I have all kinds of books
showing stock Triumphs,” he continues, “but customs are about personal taste. I like making something that is my own. I’m always looking for something different—that ’s my target. If you go to a Honda dealer, you can buy regular stuff. My shop % is different.” A hip retro flyer such as this couldn’t possibly be for sale, right? Wrong: It recently sold. “A young kid bought it,” Kosaka says. “I think he lives in Hollywood. I don’t know who he is, but he has a lot of money!” Laughing, he adds, “That’s okay, I can build another one.” -Matthew Miles
