The Vintagent has a nice write-up on the 50th anniversary of the Triumph Bonneville (1959-2009). My Favorite part:
Conceived to tame the hunger from the American market for bigger and faster motorcycles, the addition of a twin-carburettor cylinder head to the Tiger 110 model proved to be a resounding success. The timing was perfect; Texan Johnny Allen had just taken (in 1956) his streamlined T110-powered cigar to the Salt Flats of Bonneville, and claimed the World Motorcycle Speed Record at 214 mph. The machine was unsupercharged, and used a surprising number of 'standard' components - including the engine, gearbox, and wheels, although it drank a bit of nitromethane to compensate for the thin air of Utah's high desert.
Edward Turner, Managing Director of Triumph, certainly knew how to capitalize on a bit of free press, and after a publicity tour in England for Allen's streamliner (see it on BBC TV!) christened his new design after the location of this latest triumph. True, he did a bit of legal tippy-toes to keep lawyers from General Motors from scotching the whole project, but the name stuck fast, entirely eclipsing the now-humbled Tiger from which it sprang.
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