The 1937 Mercury, with 596cc Scott twin-cylinder
two-stroke engine, and all-aluminum body construction. One of perhaps 6
built by Mercury Motors of West Croydon, Surrey.
BMW, host of the Concorso d'Eleganza di Villa d'Este, have graciously provided a 'sneak preview' of the motorcycles to be displayed over the weekend of May 26/27 at the Villa Erba, exclusively for use on The Vintagent. The second edition of the Concorso di Moto promises an exceptional viewing opportunity; the grassy park at Villa Erba will be dotted with 'one-offs' and 'sole survivors' among the simply stunning and rare machines - which fairly describes all 36 of the entries.
The grounds of Villa d'Este on Concorso day (Jaguar XKSS and Lancia B20 Aurelia convertivle shown)
The motorcycles are classed by era and category; the Roaring Twenties, Stylish Thirties, Swinging Fifties (while 'sixties' is the usual tag for 'swinging', in this case it seems we have a clever pun on the universal adoption of 'swingarm' suspension in the 1950s), Design Studies, etc. A few of the machines, which especially set The Vintagent's mechanical heart beating, are included for your delectation. A full list of the Concorso machines can be found here.
Not to neglect the Lightweights; this 1960 Maserati T2/50/SS would look lovely next to the four-wheeled 3500GT of the same make!
2011 was the first time in its 'since 1929' history that two-wheelers were included in this most prestigious of motoring events, and the response - as seen in last year's report - was universally positive. Acclaim from both invited guests and the general public for BMW's spectacular display have encouraged a bit of pre-publicity this year, and best of all, the public has an opportunity to see the motorcycles in situ over the weekend, which is not the case with the automotive Concorso.
Swiss mix; 1921 Motosacoche 403 Supersport, a very advanced 495cc OHV racer
Limited space at the Villa d'Este means the ultra-swank Saturday event is strictly limited to entrants, BMW brass, and the press, while on Sunday the cars join the motorcycles on the grass at Villa Erba, and anyone can spend the afternoon strolling between the assembled rolling sculpture. Arch-enthusiasts within an easy flight to Milan should mark their calendar, but if that's impossible, stay tuned to The Vintagent, as full coverage will be forthcoming later this week, from a Judge's perspective (that's right, we've been upgraded).
Sketch for the 3-cylinder, inverted-engine Nembo Super 32 of 2012, 1814cc !
The Velocette Owners Club of North America (whew) is renowned for its hard-riding members, whose annual week-long ride/rally has been racking up a thousand miles per year since 1983. While the riding season in California is nearly year-round, the Spring Opener informally opens the riding year for the club, and has been hosted by John and Sue Ray from their home in, variously, Santa Cruz and more recently, a hilltop outside of Napa.
Jeff Scott enjoying the -finally- repaved roads northeast of Napa
It isn't that the roads in Cali are the best in the world - often they're in sore need of repair, and deferred maintenance in the cash-starved state is the rule rather than exception. It isn't that the scenery is the best in the world, although the Napa Valley and environs are certainly prone to loveliness. What's fantastic about the West of the US is the serious lack of traffic on the roads you most want to ride, and the sheer number of roads which reward exploration on two wheels.
It all adds up to someplace you need to be on a motorcycle, and if its an old bike with sufficient power and handling to enjoy the roads to your satisfaction, so much the better.
Kim Young's 1930 KSS and Pete Young's 1938 MSS
Any bike event with a ride at its heart is a Good Thing. Thanks for hosting us, John and Sue!
1938 KSS, ca.1954 MAC, ca.1967 Thruxton
Workbench of Pope Valley Towing...
The soon-to-collapse porch of the Pope Valley Store, with crackle-finish bowser; not a faux-finish!
Checking out Charlie Taylor's BMW R66 - the 600cc sidecar tug which makes a very nice solo rider
A few of these, but only on the main highways...
A man raised on Velocettes; Rob Drury's parents had a Velo sheet-metal company in the 1980s
Photographers battle it out; Gil Loe
The interior of the Pope Valley Store, closed for decades, as-was inside...
Jeff Scott tries out the MeSS special
Lovely little Velocette MAC 350cc; the plate reads 'Donald Chesbrough Bell - thanks for teaching me to ride; 1927-2011'
A macabre sense of humor in Pope Valley Towing...
A man and his dog
Pope Valley Towing...
Paul Zell on one of his Velocette customs, the MeSS; slightly enlarged, heaps more powerful than stock
John Ellis and Paul Zell
Pointing out the cork-in-a-carb repair on the BMW R66
Yes, rattlesnakes for pets. Plenty of them in these dry hills...
2010 Ducati GP10 CS1 ridden by Casey Stoner, sold for E251,500 ($320,000)
A pair of Ducati GP racers, sold by RM Auctions at Monaco on May 11th, has set records for Italian motorcycles sold at auction...and they weren't even 'vintage'. Two factory Desmodieci GP racers, ridden by Casey Stoner and Valentino Rossi, were sold for over 240,000 euros each (inclusive of fees), by far the highest price paid for contemporary motorcycles at auction, placing two new racing machines squarely in the thick of my 'Top 20' Motorcycle Sales at Auction. These GP machines were sold by the Ducati factory, the first time the Factory Ducati Corse racing department has offered such machinery at auction.
The 2011 Ducati GP11 VR2 ridden by Valentino Rossi, sold for E245,700 ($312,500)
The staggering bids for these machines buck pricing trends for ex-GP machines, which generally devalue quickly after their obsolescence for competitive, top-level racing, languishing in collections for decades, then roar back in value within the 'classics' market. These machines are recent enough, in fact, to still be competitive on the racing grid for non-factory teams, which begs the question...are these bikes going to be raced in MotoGP soon, or will they decorate the living room of an Italian collector?
[David Morrill of Sylacauga, Alabama, submitted this story of Gene Walker, a legendary board track competitor for Indian in the 'Teens. Morrill is a retired Orlando police officer, who rode five
years as a motorcycle cop, and also raced motorcycles. For more on Board Track racing, click here for my earlier article.]
Gene Walker on his Indian Powerplus, Daytona Beach Florida, 1920 (Don Emde collection)
Birmingham’s historic Elmwood Cemetery is the final resting place of
several Alabama sports legends, from Paul “Bear” Bryant to Dixie Walker.
There is another legend buried there who is all but unknown in his own
home town. During his career, his exploits made the sports pages of the
major newspapers, and his untimely death was mourned by fans nationwide.
In the northeast corner of the cemetery is a simple marble headstone
that reads: Gene Walker 1893-1924.
John Eugene “Gene” Walker got his first motorcycle in 1910 and rode
it to deliver mail for the local post office. But in 1912, the Alabama
State Fair sponsored a motorcycle race at the Birmingham Fairgrounds
Raceway, and it was Walker who won the final race of the day. Bob
Stuibbs, a local Indian Motorcycles dealer, took note, soon putting
Walker on a new Indian eight-valve racer and racing him out of his
downtown Birmingham dealership.
Big bikes with no brakes
Early racing motorcycles were little more than large bicycles with
large powerful engines–and no brakes. They could reach speeds of 90
m.p.h. on the tracks of the day, and racing them was a deadly serious
business.
The races at Birmingham Fairgrounds’ track drew large crowds who came
to see top amateur and professional riders lap the dirt track at a
blistering pace. By the fall race of 1913, Walker had established a
reputation as the man to beat, winning every race he entered during the
week long fall program and setting a new lap record for the track.
The following October, Walker entered his first professional race,
the F.A.M. (Federation of American Motorcyclists) one-hour race at
Birmingham. While he didn’t win, he was able to set a new lap record and
ran with the lead pack throughout the race. Walker’s ride with Indian
Indian Motorcycle memorial for Walker, 1924 (Don Emde Collection)
By 1915, Walker was hired as a factory
rider for Indian Motorcycle Company and moved to Springfield, Mass., the
company headquarters. Walker’s first national win came that same year
at the F.A.M. National race in Saratoga, N.Y. The next few years were quiet ones for
Walker, as professional racing was virtually curtailed for the duration
of World War I. As his mother’s sole source of support, Walker wasn’t
subject to the draft. He continued to race in local Birmingham events
and worked as a machinist for William Specht Jr., at his Harley Davidson
dealership on Third Avenue North. According to one newspaper account,
he even performed duties of a motorcycle cop during the winter. Walker returned to professional racing in 1919, winning six National Races. In April 1920, Walker, riding his Indian
Power Plus race, set the first official motorcycle land speed world
record of 115 m.p.h. on the sands of Daytona Beach, Fla. That record
became the centerpiece of Indian Motorcycle’s advertising that year and a
1920, Motorcycle and Bicycle Illustrated magazine declared Walker a
“Champion of Champions.”
A typical board track race in action...Despite that success, Indian released Walker in 1922 for his refusal
to ride in dusty track conditions at the sport’s biggest race of 1921 in
Dodge City, Kansas. The company reconsidered that decision when he
continued to win races on privately owned Harley-Davidsons, and Walker
rejoined Indian for the 1924 season, winning the Championship race on
the board track at Los Angeles.
On June 7, 1924, Walker was practicing for a race on the half mile
dirt track at Stroudsburg, Penn. While taking practice laps he swerved
to avoid a woman crossing the track and crashed. The severely injured
Walker was transported to Rosenkrans Hospital, where his condition
seemed to improve, but on June 21, 1924, Walker died of his injuries. He
was 31-years-old and left behind a widow and two children.
A few days later, Birmingham News sports writer Zipp Newman eulogized the hometown motorcycle celebrity under the headline: MOTORCYCLE RIDING HAS LOST ITS GREATEST STAR IN DEATH OF WALKER
Bob Horton was also quoted in the Newman’s article: “Walker was
always a gentleman. His death marks the passing of the greatest
motorcycle rider that ever lived.”
Walker's marker at Elmwood Cemetery
During his 10-year professional career, Walker won 19 championship
races and numerous non-championship races on both board and dirt tracks.
He set lap records on many of the tracks as well as several motorcycle
land speed records. His lap record at the Birmingham Fairgrounds
Raceway had not been broken when the track stopped racing in World War
I. In 1998, Gene Walker was inducted into the American Motorcyclist
Association’s Hall of Fame.
Best in Show winner 1974 MV Agusta 750S of Simon Graham; a show-winner, ridden regularly. This is the second time a 'ridden not hidden' bike has won Best in Show at the Quail.
In its fourth year on the grass of Quail Lodge's golf course, the Quail M/C Gathering felt qualitatively different this year, as if it had been holding its breath, watching and waiting, and this year decided to exhale. The mood was relaxed and friendly, everyone was happy to be there, the day was perfect as usual, enthusiasts and collectors traveled long distances to participate, and the quality of machinery was simply excellent, with an increasingly broad selection of ogle-able bikes.
A few MV production racers at the Gary Kohs MV-only display
The big features - an Indian display, Gary Koh's 32-MV collection, the débuts of the new Crocker and Magni-Triumph, Marty Dickerson with his 'Blue Bike' - were impressive, and worth a bit of hype. When Michael Schacht revved up his 84hp/80cu" Crocker, everyone noticed, and appreciated the deep throaty rasp of this hand-built machine. Giovanni Magni was a quiet presence, visiting the US for the first time (with his daughter) to see the unveiling of the first-ever British-engined Magni, with a pumped up BSA triple racing engine powering the typically Italianate rosso chassis.
Interviewing Marty Dickerson as part of my emcee duties was the highlight of my day; I've been reading about his exploits aboard Vincents since I started riding at 15; sitting beside his 'Blue Bike', now owned by Herb Harris, it took little prodding to hear his reminiscences about this legendary machine, which really helped establish the HRD-Vincent name in the US. Dickerson was employed by the American importer of Vincents to ride his perfectly standard 1947 Series B Rapide around the small towns of the US, to give riders a chance to see the bikes up close.
Marty Dickerson
The legend of the Vincent preceded him, and in most towns, the fastest local bike would challenge him to a race, which he won every time but one, in around 50 illegal street speed contests; he related 'the first time I rode into Arizona, in some tiny town, all the local riders begged me to race a guy with a hotrodded Ford, who had beaten them all. I was Shanghai'd into the contest, which had already been set up for 10pm that night on a pitch black rural road - if everyone had left, I would have been completely lost! The riders lined both sides of the road, and at the end of the distance had headlight beams crossing the road. The car guy said 'rolling start from 50mph', so we rode out a ways, and paralleled each other. That was the ride I learned the 'Poor Man's Tuneup'; when I shifted into 3rd gear at around 90mph, I wasn't getting enough power, and he was pulling ahead, so I dropped into 2nd gear, which cleared the plug, the engine surged, and I beat him by a wheel'.
Marty Dickerson's legendary 'Blue Bike'
Pulling double duty as emcee and a judge of the Concours meant less time to take photos and closely examine the entries, but the numbers tell their own tale; more entries, more bikes on the field, more spectators than the previous year. The Quail is growing, gaining international attention, and is bound to attract an even wider range of machines in the coming years. The Quail Lodge has been closed for the duration of this event, meaning participants need to find lodging elsewhere in the Carmel/Monterey area, but it looks like the hotel may re-open by next May, which means a lot more 'parking lot' encounters and casual chat time as trucks roll up on Thursday afternoon...the stuff which strengthens connections between collectors, builders, riders, and fans. Fingers crossed.
Gene Brown's 1960 BSA DBD34 Gold Star, which has 4 miles from new!
Mark Hoyer awards Shinya Kimura the Cycle World 'Elegance in Action' trophy, for an exceptional bike which gets used a lot; Shinya's MV Agusta qualifies!
Original-condition Feilbach Limited of 1911
Falcon's Ian Barry and tuner/builder Paul Zell examine the AFT 'Sento', AMD world champion custom bike
The MV 175cc racer with Earles forks and extended fuel/oil tanks...poetry
Twin gear-driven camshafts, elegantly housed in magnesium, aged to perfection.
Giovanni Magni, carrying on with his father's legendary chassis-building workshop in Italy, here débuting the BSA-Magni special. Molto gentile!
American racing legend, and 'On Any Sunday' star, Mert Lawill, here with his daughter. Hilarious conversational tidbit; 'do you think it would be ok if I asked Mert's daughter on a date, or will Mert kick my ass?'
Jun. 16: Banbury Run Jun. 29: Goodwood Aug. 17: Quail Lodge Sep. 8: Beaulieu Oct. 21: Classic Mechanics Show Nov. 14: Harrogate
Banbury Run sale; Oxford
THE STORY OF MOTORCYCLING
The world of Motorcycles has all the ingredients of a good, enriching drama; heroic deeds, political intrigue, design brilliance, cut-throat business practices, quirky characters, national tensions, cultural biases, eros and thanatos. When diving into the murk of motorcycle history, we find unexpected riches...everything which makes this life interesting, and worth living. Motorcycles per se are just metal; it is individuals who animate them, and inhabit the stories within this site. We provide meaning to the metal, and in telling the story of Motorcycling, we tell the story of our world.
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