Tell us about your ride: A family ride in 'tequila gold'

Editor's note: “Tell us about your ride” is a series featuring patrons of Laconia Motorcycle Week.

LACONIA — John Allen, by his own account, is “one of the lucky ones.” 

“I wasn’t one of those dads who, when they had children, had to give up the bike,” Allen said, chuckling. 

Allen and wife Patti have one daughter. Though she is now grown, John remembered fondly the first time he took his daughter for a ride on his motorcycle. She was eight years old, and it was just for a spin around the family driveway. 

From the outset, riding was part of family life in the Allen household in Connecticut. As his daughter got older, when preparing to take his motorcycle out for a scenic ride, Allen said he would make his wife and daughter flip a coin. The winner of the coin toss would get to accompany him on the ride. 

“I always let her win,” Patti recalled. 

Riding, on snow and pavement alike, is a longtime passion for Allen. He was originally drawn to his 2014 Victory Cross Country because of the brand: Victory Motorcycles is owned by Polaris, a prominent snowmobile manufacturer. 

“I’ve been riding Polaris when I go snowmobiling for decades, so I knew the Victory would be a good bike for me,” Allen said. 

The paint job, according to Allen, had little to do with it. 

The “tequila gold,” with black flames design, on the bike is not a custom design by Allen but the factory paint. 

Allen, whose riding companions teased with claims that he loves being the center of attention, admitted that he found the design attractive and smiled when he said it caught people’s attention at rallies and other outings. 

“He thinks it makes him look cool,” Patti said.