Iron Mike-Mike Duphiney

[th_01]

Mike will be missed.  He was always a pleasure to talk to at all the events I've met over the years.

Tom

[SLDMRossi]

Truth be told, he wasn't just a Guzzi guy. He was one of the Guzzi greats, who blessed us with his presence...

Steven Rossi
East Haddam, CT

[CalVin2007]

  I didn't know Mike,but this is one of the coolest Guzzi pics I have ever seen. Godspeed,Mike...you have the respect of your peers. Well done.

  Terry

[chuck peterson]

One Sunday am it's near freezing, and drizzling, so I drive my car to breakfast at Marcus....Mike pulls in with ice sickles hanging off the front fairing...

[chuck peterson]

A couple CT guzzi guys spend the weekend riding near Middlebury, VT...Mike gets up at o-dark thirty, rides Bridgeport, CT to middle VT, three or four hours,.so that....he can ride with us back to CT on Sunday morning, for the heck of it..

[BillinPA]

Sorry to hear of his passing. He was one of a kind. Mike and I shared an interesting ride at the WV rally once. We walked a couple miles to a store to get supplies. On the way back a school bus stopped,  the driver knew.we.were.there for.the rally and offered us a ride back. We got a.good laugh from the crowd when we pulled in the lot,.. in the (appropriate for us)  short bus.
Can anyone say how old Mike was?

[azguzzirep]

My warmest and deepest condolences to Mike's family and friends.

I never met the man, but from what I have read, he was a true Guzzi-ist. A man among men.

May he have eternal peace.

Tom

[Zoom Zoom]

Sorry to hear of his passing. He was one of a kind. Mike and I shared an interesting ride at the WV rally once. We walked a couple miles to a store to get supplies. On the way back a school bus stopped,  the driver knew.we.were.there for.the rally and offered us a ride back. We got a.good laugh from the crowd when we pulled in the lot,.. in the (appropriate for us)  short bus.
Can anyone say how old Mike was?

That was a moment in Guzzi history that will never be forgotten. What a sight THAT was.

I believe Mike was in his mid 60's.

John Henry

[Arizona Wayne]

I met Iron Mike a couple times in the `90s when in the South & S. Dakota Guzzi National. He was a character.  I had bought a Convert. w/a chrome roll on centerstand I had no use for so I sold it to Mike.  He said he was going to make copies of it and sell them.  Now I wish I had that CS since I have another Convert.    Mike was the real deal. 

Yes, it's interesting how so many of us Guzzisti come from different backgrounds but you rarely know what it is unless it somehow comes up in a conversation.  It's like we all want to be incognito  for awhile, escape from our normal life, unless we're retired and it is our new normal life. 

[AZRider]

"Shaggy Mike," as I always called him, was among the reasons I became a Guzzi guy.
 
I got to know Mike when I moved to Connecticut in the middle 90's. I used to come to Marcus Dairy nearly every Sunday, and Mike was ALWAYS there on two wheels. There were days where Mike's wine-red Cal III and my Honda were the only bikes under the eaves. And on the days that I relented and took the truck, Mike's Guzzi was still there. I had tremendous respect for Mike, Alan, Tom, and the entire Guzzi crew. I was in my twenties, they were in their forties, and they looked like the motorcycle men I wanted to become when I grew up.

When I got my own Guzzi, I was welcomed by Mike and his friends. A year later, I sold the SPNT and bought a California EV that I still have. Several times, Mike helped me keep that bike roadworthy when I couldn't afford dealership prices. Every time we talked, I learned something.

Mike is still a role model to me for his humility, determination, generosity, and especially his ceaseless riding. I will miss his crazy laugh and his stories too amazing not to be true.
Ride on, Shaggy Mike!

[TOMB]

Obituary for Michael F. Duphiney

Michael F. Duphiney, age 65, of Bridgeport, passed away Tuesday, February 23, 2016 in Bridgeport Hospital. Mike was born June 27, 1950 in Waterbury, son of Frederick and Rolande (Cote) Duphiney and had been a Bridgeport resident most of his life.

He was a United States Navy Veteran of the Vietnam War and worked for NAPA Auto Parts. He also was a part time carpenter, welder and jack of all trades. He was always fixing or building something for some one.

Known by his biker friends… as "Iron Mike," his passion in life was riding his Guzzi Motorcycle all over the United States and had on many occasions won the "Iron Butt" award for "Furthest Rider" when he rode from Connecticut to Italy, Texas where the Guzzi Conventions were held.

Survivors, in addition to his parents, include his brother Jimmy Duphiney and his wife Virginia of Monroe; sister, Claudette Howard and her husband Andy of Oxford; brother Bill and his wife Patty of Stratford; longtime companion, Drucinda Moshier; best friend Tom Bailey and several nieces and nephews.

A memorial service will be announced.

To send flowers or a remembrance gift to the family of Michael F. Duphiney please visit our Tribute Store. http://wrmcdonaldfuneralhome.tributecenteronline.com/obituaries/obituary-listings?obId=784242#/obituaryInfo Main St. Stratford Ct
Brother address
William Duphiney, 94 Kings College Pl, Stratford, CT  06615.

[TOMB]

Mike's parents address is :

Mr & Mrs. Fred J. Duphiney,  1460 Elm Street, Unit 327, Stratford,  CT 06615
 
They will have a memorial service later in the year..probably when it is a lot warmer up there.

TOMB

[Zoom Zoom]

Tom, thank you for the link.

John Henry

[Tony/CT]

For years I had been stopping by Marcus Dairy on my BMW and rarely got into conversations with other BMW riders. I bought my first Guzzi in 2002. When I pulled into Marcus Dairy, I hadn't shut the engine down before Mike and Tom were waving me over to their table. That's the way it is with group. One morning I was speeding down the highway to Marcus Dairy at an illegal speed when Mike casually cruises by me holding a cup of coffee in his left hand, with a big smile on his face. A great guy and a wealth of Guzzi information. He will be missed.

[AZRider]

Thanks, TomB