January 2021
Brian Barrett, GPR’s easternmost member, has moved from Ontario back to his childhood home of Grand Falls, Newfoundland. He reached out to me with several emails detailing “The Life of Brian” and his motorcycles. Here’s Brian’s story, in his own words.
To see Brian's photos, click here.
Hi Nancy,
I left Newfoundland at 17 years old and flew out of Gander to Toronto with a suitcase and $73 in cash. It's not "Come From Away", but I reserve the movie rights if it makes it to the stage, lol…
My motorcycling story starts back in 1973 after finishing high school here in Newfoundland and followed my older brother Terry to Ontario for work in Toronto. In the summer of 1974 we had both earned enough money to buy our 1st motorcycles. Terry had bought a brand new Kawasaki 250 dirt bike and rode it all summer with no driver's license, lol. I was the smarter guy and got my driver's license first and then bought a bike. I bought a used 1970 Triumph TR-6 from Classic Cycle on O'Connor drive as we lived in Scarborough.
I was in the parking lot of Wexford college on Pharmacy Avenue practicing how to handle the Triumph when a Metro police car came over and asked what we were up too and after the 2 cops realize we were causing no trouble, I asked them if they would pretend to write me a ticket to send back home to the folks for a joke and they agreed.
Well my motorcycling days only lasted for the summer of 1974, as in the fall I was involved in a motorcycling accident at Kennedy and Lawrence and was hit front on as a car turning left didn't see me and I went flying over the car. I suffered a broken leg in 2 places and spent the fall in a cast and on crutches. The Triumph suffered severe front end damage but I did get it repaired only to have it stolen from the apartment building parking lot. That was the day's of no headlight policy and unsatisfied judgment insurance in Ontario. I got a settlement from the accident as it wasn't my fault and decided to buy a car for the winter. But when the bike was stolen the cops told it was probably in hundreds of pieces and sold. That was the end of my motorcycle riding days until 1989 when I bought the 1974 Norton Commando 850 and went to the winter motorcycle show at the Ex and Paul Green signed me up for the CVMG and I've enjoyed over 3 decades of motorcycle shows and camaraderie with the Great Pine Ridge section.
I enjoyed over the years going to many of the motorcycling shows in southern Ontario such as Paris, Lindsey, Oakville, and Port Perry as well as the winter shows.
I eventually got involved in organizing some of the shows and since my other passion is Aviation. Since also being a member of of the Canadian Air and Space Museum, I got involved in their Wings and Wheels events and was able to marry the two hobbies together. For many years I organized the vintage motorcycles attending the Wings and Wheels events and then took on the Brampton Fly in Event when my good friend Ruben Tang retired from motorcycles and it was a natural for me and a pleasure to organize a multi-sectional ride in event with the WW1 museum.
I acquired the 1936 Norton Model-50 from a fellow member of the GPR, Peter Wilson in September of 2009 and the odometer had only 13 miles on it. Unfortunately the bike had no spark and with the help of my good friend Keith Newton and Ken Rosevear, the bike was eventually sorted out and running and never totaled the parts and labour cost, lol. I have over 1200 miles on the Norton now and have enjoyed taking it to many shows and our Sunday breakfasts at Famous Sam's.
I then acquired in 2012 a brand new Triumph Thruxton 900 and I felt that I had the perfect herd. A new, an old and a very old motorcycle.
I was equally blessed with work where I took 3rd place in 1988 in my 1st Ontario Fuel Challenge and was driver of the year in 2005 for Southern Ontario and in 2012 awarded with my 2nd million mile accident free award driving tractor-trailer tanker of dangerous goods in central Canada and the Northern United States. I started working at Praxair when I was only 17 as a labourer and took 2 driver training courses at George Brown attaining my Class A, getting my tractor-trailer license. Also I worked my way up to the local Union President and doing many positions in between. After over 44 years of service, I retired at 62 because of a family matter and returned to Newfoundland to help take care of my elderly parents. I have been home now for two and a half years here in Grand Falls-Windsor Central Newfoundland and enjoyed riding my motorcycles and was trying to see if there was any intrest in organizing a CVMG section here in central. But there are very few vintage motorcycles here and 2020 Covid hit and the opportunity to meet potential members came to a grinding halt, so I still remain a member of the GPR section and enjoy receiving my mailed copy of the newsletter. I did attend a Flying Boat museum in Botwood and was the first one to be allowed to show my 1936 Norton inside the museum for their summer festival Botwood Days since the museum showcases planes from the 20's, 30's and 40's.
I've also traveled up to a mining town called Buchans that started mining for copper in the very early 1900's and they have a bit of an outdoor museum with railway, excavation equipment and firetruck.
I've also traveled down to Twillingate where they have a lighthouse and beautiful ocean views. And lastly I've travelled out to the Avalon Peninsula and went to Signal Hill in St. John's where Marconi sent the 1st trans-Atlantic message to Europe. The other exciting thing I saw on the Avalon peninsula in Grates Cove were icebergs and I was fortunate enough to take pictures of one that I can clearly make out the letter "N" for Norton in old English script which brings me to the end of my Motorcycling Story for now.
Wishing everyone safe travels and eventually this Coronavirus pandemic will pass too, making it possible for everyone to get back together and resume a normal life.
Cheers Brian Barrett
from the" Rock "
