I was planning on buying a Ducati Monster 620 Dark. I had the cash in my hand, and the bike picked out at the Yamaha/Ducati dealership on South Lamar. The rumor was that Lyle Lovett bought his 998 there. I had been there a couple of times before when a friend was getting parts for his Paso, and I ogled the TDM 800 and GTS 1000 both which stayed on display for a long time. This time I was after a Monster. So I waited, tried to catch the eye of a salesman, waited some more, then drove up Lamar across the river the BMW/Triumph dealership (where the Lambo dealer is now located). I eyeballed a Thunderbird, but a salesman quickly put me on the back of a slightly used 900 Tiger, which I dropped in slow motion on the test ride. I was forgiven, and rode away in my newly used Triumph partly out of shame. They even tossed a t-shirt into the deal. I became a loyal customer of Triumph and the dealer. Not to get all “Jay Leno never bought a Ferrari because the dealer was snooty,” but maybe Ducati was a lifestyle (like Harley-Davidson, or Corvette) that I wasn’t right for me. Things have changed. Years later, when the Ducati dealer moved to my neighborhood at the old D&L Suzuki dealer, they were nothing but gregarious, and tried to get me into a Multistrada, and convinced me to buy my future wife an Arai.

It was a tall bike, which made commuting feel more like heading cattle. It was fast enough, and I bought a GIVI tail case that matched the saddle bags that made the bike a reliable grocery getter, though it became a bit of a sail in a crosswind. I recall having some electrical gremlins, but nothing too serious. It never stranded me.

I rode it to a co-worker’s funeral. She was a fan of motorcycles, but I don’t recall her ever riding one. After the service, I walked up to the Tiger and a fellow mourner called out “Yo, when I saw that bike I thought Pamela Anderson was going to be there.” I was confused, and he mentioned Barb Wire. Triumph engaged in aggressive product placement in the late 90s to early 2000s, and Pam Anderson’s award winning performance on a double for my commuter ride was part of that. Skip to 1:35 below for the hot hot Tiger action.