Following the passionate response to the ‘1959 Legends’ custom edition Les Paul Standard Reissue guitar and Bonneville T120 motorcycle, Triumph and Gibson have partnered once again, to provide further support for the Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride, in the form of three additional guitars, each signed by a famous musician, and each with a custom painted guitar case inspired by a legendary Triumph rider. The “Saints of Speed” custom guitar cases will be painted by the world-renowned guitar artist James Willis.
Gentlefolk Prize (open to participants raising over $250 USD)
- Epiphone ‘Inspired by Gibson’ J-200 guitar, signed by American country music star Big Kenny
- Custom Triumph-inspired “Saints of Speed” guitar case, painted by James Willis
Highest Team Triumph Global Fundraiser
- Epiphone ‘Inspired by Gibson’ SG Standard guitar, signed by Canadian musician Clayton Bellamy of The Road Hammers
- Custom Triumph-inspired “Saints of Speed” guitar case, painted by James Willis
Spirit of ’59 Prize (open to participants raising over $59 USD)
- Epiphone ‘Inspired by Gibson’ 1959 Les Paul Standard guitar, signed by English rock legend, Billy Duffy of The Cult
- Custom Triumph-inspired “Saints of Speed” guitar case, painted by James Willis
Donated to support The Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride, in its global charity efforts to raise awareness and funds in support of men’s mental health and prostate cancer, each of the Epiphone ‘Inspired by Gibson’ guitars pays homage to a Gibson music legend and each comes with the signature details and features that made them famous.
The custom hard case that comes with each guitar will be painted by famed Nashville guitar artist, James Willis, as part of a new “Saints of Speed” numbered series of custom cases, each commemorating a legendary Triumph rider. Willis is a multi-bike Triumph owner and will be participating in this year’s Gentleman’s Ride on his Scrambler 1200 XC motorcycle.
Further celebrating the connection between music and motorcycles, the guitars will be signed by musicians that are also passionate riders, each participating in this year’s Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride. The Epiphone ‘Inspired by Gibson’ J-200 will be signed by American country music artist Big Kenny, of Big & Rich. The Epiphone ‘Inspired by Gibson’ SG Standard will be signed by Canadian recording artist Clayton Bellamy of The Road Hammers. The Epiphone ‘Inspired by Gibson’ 1959 Les Paul Standard will be signed by English rock musician Billy Duffy of The Cult.
These additional prizes allow the Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride to further support fundraising across the world by rewarding fundraisers in unique categories, including the annual Gentlefolk prize, eligible for participants which raise over $250 USD. New prize categories for 2022 will be the Spirit of ’59 category, for any rider which raises over $59 USD, and the Team Triumph prize, for the highest fundraiser that has joined the official Triumph team or a Triumph dealership’s fundraising team.
Triumph and Gibson Partnership
- Inspired by the shared historic significance of the year 1959, with the legendary 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard, the ‘holy-grail’ of guitars, and the equally iconic original 1959 Triumph Bonneville T120, the original British superbike and arguably the most famous name in motorcycling
- Celebrating the timeless connection between music and motorcycle culture,
and the passion that Gibson and Triumph designers share for beautiful design,
precision, performance, and world-class craftsmanship - Driven from a mutual ambition to support the global charity efforts of The Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride, uniting motorcyclists through fundraising to support men’s health
Gibson Guitars and Triumph Legends Custom Cases
- Numbered “Saints of Speed” series custom guitar cases, each commemorating a legendary Triumph rider of the winner’s choosing, will be hand painted by famed Nashville guitar artist James Willis.
- The Epiphone Inspired by Gibson™ J-200™ is a stunning homage to the King of the Flat-Tops – the world-famous Gibson™ SJ-200. Since its introduction in 1937 it has been the choice of “singing cowboys” like Tex Ritter and Gene Autry, as well as folk, rock and country royalty, including Emmylou Harris, Elvis, Jimmy Page, Bob Dylan, George Harrison, The Edge, and many more. Featuring a Super Jumbo non-cutaway solid figured maple body, solid Sitka spruce top, and two-piece maple neck with a mahogany centre strip, the Epiphone J-200 is built with all solid woods for outstanding tone. The visual elements have always been a big part of the J-200’s appeal, and the Epiphone Inspired by Gibson J-200 includes a Moustache™ bridge with curved block inlays, Crown headstock inlay and Graduated Crown mother of pearl fingerboard inlays, and a J-200 style pickguard with two-colour graphics.
Gibson J-200
- The Epiphone SG Standard from the new Inspired by Gibson Collection, recreates the legendary 1960s classic that powered the first generation of hard rock and heavy metal bands including The Who, Cream, AC/DC, and Black Sabbath. The guitar features the historic SG profile with “batwing” pickguard, a pair of Epiphone’s Alnico Classic PRO™ humbuckers, and 18:1 ratio Epiphone Deluxe Tuners. This Epiphone Inspired by Gibson Original model also has the Kalamazoo headstock, rolled neck for a comfortable feel, GraphTech® NuBone™ nut, era-appropriate wiring, and CTS pots. Optional hardshell or EpiLite Case is available.
SG Standard
- Made in partnership with the Gibson™ Custom Shop, the Limited Edition 1959 Les Paul™ Standard is Epiphone’s stunning recreation of the rare vintage classic. Featuring a mahogany body with a maple top with a AAA figured maple veneer, comfortable 1959 hand-rolled neck profile with long neck tenon, aged finish, Gibson USA BurstBucker™ 2 & 3 humbucking pickups, Switchcraft® selector switch and output jack, CTS® pots, 50s era wiring, Mallory™ capacitors, non-beveled pickguard, new Epiphone Deluxe vintage tuners, and a vintage-style brown hard case. It also comes with an Epiphone Limited Edition metal medallion toggle switchplate.
The Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride
- The 2022 Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride, which will take place on Sunday, May 22nd, represents a major milestone in Triumph’s sponsorship, marking 9 incredible years of support, with over 100,000 riders in over 900 cities across the world, raising over $31million USD for men’s mental health and prostate cancer awareness.
Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride
Prize Summary
Highest Global Fundraiser
- ‘1959 Legends’ custom edition Triumph Bonneville T120 motorcycle and Gibson Les Paul Standard Reissue guitar
- Hedon x DGR Kingpin Helmet
- ELF Prize Pack
2nd Highest Global Fundraiser
- Triumph Thruxton RS motorcycle
- Hedon x DGR Hedonist Helmet
- ELF Prize Pack
3rd Highest Global Fundraiser
- Triumph Speed Twin 1200 motorcycle
- Hedon x DGR Hedonist Helmet
- ELF Prize Pack
Gentlefolk Competition 1st Prize (open to participants raising over $250 USD)
- Triumph Bonneville Bobber motorcycle
- Hedon x DGR Hedonist Helmet
Gentlefolk Competition 2nd Prize (open to participants raising over $250 USD)
- Epiphone ‘Inspired by Gibson’ J-200 guitar, signed by country artist Big Kenny
- Custom Triumph-inspired “Saints of Speed” guitar case, painted by artist James Willis
Highest Team Triumph Global Fundraiser (includes Triumph Dealer fundraising teams)
- Epiphone ‘Inspired by Gibson’ SG Standard guitar, signed by Canadian artist Clayton Bellamy
- Custom Triumph-inspired “Saints of Speed” guitar case, painted by artist James Willis
Spirit of ’59 Prize (open to participants raising over $59 USD)
- Epiphone ‘Inspired by Gibson’ 1959 Les Paul Standard guitar, signed by English rock legend, Billy Duffy of The Cult
- Custom Triumph-inspired “Saints of Speed” guitar case, painted by artist James Willis
