The Classic MotorCycle February 2021

As we teeter between tiers and fret over lockdowns before beginning – hopefully – the long ride to returned normality, it was an absolute joy to be able to have a day out and visit the Bonhams sale, at the Bicester Heritage centre. A huge old aircraft hangar, it was flipping cold, but there was plenty of space everywhere, and it felt such a pleasure to be able to do something sort of normal. Added to looking at a load of old motorbikes, there was of course the added plus of seeing several people too, though all conducted at safe distances and with initial introductions a little bit odd (elbow bumps will never seem right), and after that trying to work out who it actually was behind the mask. But…

The members of Cheltenham Motor Cycle Club doing their bit to promote their annual dance, taking to the streets on their array of machines, literally taking the weight of promoting the club’s annual dinner dance on their own shoulders/backs. The picture was published in the March 3, 1921, edition of The Motor Cycle, and one wonders how many of these men had endured the horrors of the First World War. You’d have to say probably not the youth nearest the camera, on Triumph registration number NB1687, as he barely looks old enough to be riding a motorcycle in 1921, let alone to have served in a war which had ended nearly two-and-a-half years before. Though the young man’s motorcycle may have done, as it’s a Model H Triumph, as supplied…

Stafford set to kick-start the season There’s hope and expectation in the air – and plans afoot for The International Classic MotorCycle Show, set to be held on April 24/25, 2021. Coronavirus regulations permitting,it is hoped all the usual highlights will be present and correct, with Bonhams returning to the Stafford site with their Europe-leading auction too. It’s also the 40th anniversary of The Classic MotorCycle, which we’ll be celebrating at the show. Look forward to seeing you all there! Design, art, desire – Australian exhibition In collaboration with our feature and interview with Charles Falco (see page 57) the exhibition The Motorcycle: Design, Art, Desire opened on November 28, 2020, and runs right through until April 26, 2021. The exhibition – at the Queensland Gallery of Modern Art, in…

PETER WILLIAMS Just as we went to Press, word has reached us that legendary designer and racer Peter Williams has died. A hugely talented road racer, Peter is perhaps best known for his revoltionary design and engineering work with the John Player Norton race team in the early 1970s. there'll be a tribute next month. KOP HILL DATE ADJUSTMENT FOR 2021 The 2021 Kop Hill Climb will now be on September 25/26, not 18/19 as originally planned. ROYAL ENFIELD METEOR RELEASED There’s a new 350cc model from Royal Enfield, called the Meteor. A simple 350cc four-stroke single, prices will start at just £3749.…

Author: Frank Melling Editor and photography: Carol Melling Archive images: Jane Skayman Published by: Mortons Media Group Ltd, Media Centre, Morton Way, Horncastle, Lincolnshire LN9 6JR Tel: 01507 529529 www.classicmagazines.co.ukSigned copies are available from the author at www.frankmelling.co.uk Softback, 210 x 295mm (portrait); 130 pages with over 140 photographs and illustrations. ISBN: 978-1-911639-20-6, £7.99 The key thing about Classic Superbikes is that it is not a collection of marque road tests with meticulous specifications and comparisons with other makes. First and last, they are stories told by the author about machines that he once dreamed of riding and was fortunate in having his dreams come true. Then there is the historical background to put these bikes in context. As a journalist, Frank Melling is unusual in the fact that he has…

1921 Although now regarded as a national club, the Auto Cycle Union (ACU) was considered by many pre First World War enthusiasts as a London body. The Motor Cycle encouraged the ACU to hold its regular committee meetings rotationally in the provinces and in 1920, the Union began formalising the division of England (including the Isle of Man) and Wales into 14 centres. These were: Northern, North-Eastern, North-Western (including IoM), Yorkshire, Midland, East Midland, North Wales, South Wales, Western, South Midland, Eastern, South-Western, Southern and South-Eastern. As well as organising events nationally or within centres (exampled by the then soon-to-be-held Western Centre two-day trial, scheduled for April 8/9) the ACU was to continue to monitor, and where possible advise, on proposed Government legislation applicable to motorcyclists. Existent initiatives such as…