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Phone (603) 974-2183
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Best Lunch date ever
I was Skyping with my 12 year-old son Liam the other night and I asked if he had a hot lunch date that weekend. He wasn’t sure what I meant, so I told him what a lunch date was and figured he might get the joke and understand the reference. That led to me explaining that it may not be a bonnie young lass (pretty young lady for those of you non-celts) that he’s dining with. It could be an old man. As long as he has the appointment it could be anyone, and yes while a pretty young lady is certainly tops on the list for most young men, an old man can be quite the company. Assuming he is the right old man. That explanation was followed by the raised and twisted left eyebrow signaling that something was either wrong with my explanation, or something was wrong with the ears, nerve endings or synapses that tried to sort out what was said. “What? You don’t think a young man can have a lunch date with an old guy?” I said. “Uhm. No. That makes no sense. Why would you have a lunch date with an old man.” Ahh. I thought you would never ask. The best lunch date of my life occurred when I was 19. And my date was a much older man.
It’s funny because it’s one of those things that was amazingly special to me at the time, but I knew none of my friends or family understood. In fact, to this day, I haven’t told many people. It’s certainly worth bragging about in the right group, but that group is a niche group in a niche group. Let’s test it out. I had lunch with John Penton. There I said it. Does that mean anything to you? Most likely – No. If you got it, I already know something about you. You are a motorcycle enthusiast AND you know something about off road racing. That, or you know motorcycle brand history. How did I meet Jack for lunch and what did I learn? Read on to find out.
I had a good friend whose father raced cars. Think formula cars – open wheels, long slender bodied cars with the engines behind the driver. This kid’s dad decided to sell his cars and race karts for a few years with his son. They teamed up and raced all over New England and New York and even went to places like Pocono and Daytona. When my friend was old enough his dad decided it was time for them both to switch back to full sized race cars. When that happened, it was time for them to sell off the kart stuff and get a new car hauling trailer. They went to a company called Hi Point. They were in the trailer business, but specialized in motorcycle trailers. Car haulers were new to them. Of course I knew who Hi Point was. I was a kid who grew up with dirt bikes. I had a Husqvarna XC250 in my shed. I had sold off my KTM 125 MC5 just a few seasons before. My boots were Hi Point brand. Yes. I knew Hi Point. I also knew Hi Point was founded and owned by a guy named John Penton.
John was born in 1925 and grew up like most normal kids. He didn’t have a racing heritage in his family, but when he started racing as an adult he did well - and became a champion, innovator and eventual AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame inductee. John raced in grueling off road events that pitted men against wooded trails (not motocross tracks) with fallen trees, river crossings, deep mud and sand and a few harder things to traverse thrown in for good measure. He founded Hi Point when he tried to get ski boot manufacturer Alpine Stars to create a special boot suited for off road motorcycle racing. The boot became Hi Point and a motorcycle racing apparel company blossomed. Of course it grew into all sorts of parts and accessories and is a huge distributor of high end parts and accessories. Of course Alpine Stars started its own direct offerings and is now a large manufacturer of motorcycle road racing apparel (Yes, my road race boots are Alpine Stars).
John raced Husqvarna’s and was the East Coast distributor of the brand. He also raced motorcycles under his own name – Penton brand which later curiously morphed into KTM brand motorcycles. This always bothered me. What was the deal with Penton / KTM? Who was who? How did they get here? I had no idea that one day I’d get to ask John Penton himself.
That brings us to the lunch date. My friend’s dad told me that not only was he getting the first car hauler, the damn thing was being delivered by the owner of the company. “Wait a minute. Do you mean John Penton?” I asked. “Yeah, the dirt bike racer. Pretty cool huh? You’re into the dirt bike thing. The owner is retired and loves traveling the country. So for a fee he’s towing the trailer out here and then he’s going to stop at a race somewhere on the way back to Ohio.” Holy Crap! Yes, I skipped class that day. Strength of materials. Chemistry 102. Who needs that? I’m having lunch with John Penton! And that’s exactly what I did. I got the call when he was an hour from Danvers Massachusetts (he was on the Mass Pike in the Worcester area). I high tailed it to my friend's house. The only one home was his mom. Seriosuly. No one else cared that John Penton was going to be there. It was me, Dave’s mom and eventually John Penton.
I could bore you with details about his arrival, but eventually I got to sit down and have a ham sandwich, some soup and a large glass of Pepsi with championship rider, business developer and motorcycle creator John Penton. I asked him about Husky. Everyone pronounced it differently. Bike guys said, Huss-ka-varn-ah. The guys who sold chain saws said, Husk-varnah. How the the hell do you pronounce – and then I said it – in front of John Penton – I blurted out “Huss-ka-varn-ah”. I felt like the kid in a Christmas Story who said “OH Fudge! (but I didn’t say fudge)”. John looked back across the table at me and put his finger to his lips in a “quiet” jesture. “Say, Hoos- varna”, he said. I had to call him on it, so I jokingly said, “So all the distributors and power equipment dealers are saying it wrong?”. John washed down a bite of sandwich with a sip of his drink and said, “Well, I don’t know who taught them how to say what, but I’ll bet I’ve been to the factory few more times an penned a few more deals with the manufacturer than the guy who sells you a bike or chainsaw.” OK. Fudge it is.
Next I picked his brain about KTM. Who were they and how did they get here? He said he wanted a smaller lighter bike. He saw that the future of motocross and enduro racing in the States would be 125cc. He wanted a 100cc and 125cc MX and 100cc and 125cc Enduro bike, but Husqvarna refused to investigate a prototype. They said 250 and open class were the classes to be in. Their 360 was due to become a 390 – 400 plus very soon. Bigger – not smaller – was the future in the factory’s eyes.
While in Europe for a race he met an engineer who came from a small bicycle and moped manufacturer called KTM. Note KTM stands for Kronreif, Trunkenpolz, Mattighofen. Kronreif was a major Share holder, Trunkenpolz was the original owner /founder in the town of Mattighofen, Austria. They had some little bikes that did well in some races, but they grew dated and were not capable in the current day of International Trials competition. Mr. Penton and KTM stuck a deal to build a 125 powered by a new Sachs motor and new frame with new suspension. He told me they also decided using the Penton name in America would have more meaning so for the first several years they would not only be distributed by Penton’s family, they would also bear the Penton name on the fuel tank. Today KTM is not a household name, but ask any experienced motorcyclist (no, not the CEO who bought a Harley as a trophy bike – he doesn’t know squat) just who KTM is and they’ll tell you they’re orange, make all the right noises and go fast.
So, when I look back at all the chance meetings in my life and think of all the folks I could have had lunch with, Jack Penton rules the roost. Even if it's hard to explain to a 12 year old kid.
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