Gord Hatch roars along a country road near the town of Comox, British Columbia on October 24th, 2005. INSET: The 1965 BSA A65 rests in front of the Pacific ocean, on the East coast of Vancouver Island.
Gord purchased the bike in 1971 in Enid, Oklahoma, while there with the U.S. Air Force, and states it was "quite rough," with no fenders, no mufflers, and a hand-painted tank. Gord stripped the bike down, and gave it new seals, bearings and rings, and then had the tank and side covers painted. Since that time, a new set of pistons, two sets of rings, and one set of valves and guides have been installed. Updates to the bike include a conversion to 12 volts, Boyer ignition, Podtronics, halogen headlamp, 7 inch TLS front brake, and two-into-one exhaust. The smaller tank was fitted to help reduce we! ight when Gord used the bike in competition hillclimbing, but these days this Thunderbolt strikes only on the pavement.

GORDO IN COMOX sez:
"Brit bikes have soul."

Photo by: Terrance of Cascadia

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