Classic Bike October 2019

Welcome THE WAY WE WERE We recently received an email from an American reader complaining we had made an ethnic slur in using the term ‘Jap fours’ in a recent issue. We hold our hands up and apologise unreservedly for the slip – although the term was used as an abbreviation, and never intended as a slur. But the gent’s vitriol got me thinking about those times before political correctness had taken over our lives – a time when my mates and I were just getting into bikes and used to gather in the Bell Inn for our weekly ‘sesh’. Our ‘sesh’ involved under-age drinking – sitting in the corner of the bar, nursing a pint of Red Barrel all evening, having a heated conversation which always led to the…

We recently received an email from an American reader complaining we had made an ethnic slur in using the term ‘Jap fours’ in a recent issue. We hold our hands up and apologise unreservedly for the slip – although the term was used as an abbreviation, and never intended as a slur. But the gent’s vitriol got me thinking about those times before political correctness had taken over our lives – a time when my mates and I were just getting into bikes and used to gather in the Bell Inn for our weekly ‘sesh’. Our ‘sesh’ involved under-age drinking – sitting in the corner of the bar, nursing a pint of Red Barrel all evening, having a heated conversation which always led to the most ferocious of motorcycling debates of the…

THE MUSEUM OF THE MOTORCYCLE, MARSEILLE Fascinating French lesson With exhibits dating back to 1885, the Musée de la Moto in Marseille spans the history of motorcycling in France WORDS: HAMISH COOPER PHOTOGRAPHY: PHIL AYNSLEY ONE OF THE world’s most interesting motorcycle museums is also one of the most unassuming. The Musée de la Moto in Marseille traces the history of French motorcycling, plus landmark models from other countries, in a display of more than 250 machines. Housed in a restored and converted mill building just a couple of kilometres from the city centre, the only indication it has anything to do with motorcycling is the modest signage on its heritage wall tiles. Take a step inside and you are transported back into a world of motorcycling dating back to…

ONE OF THE world’s most interesting motorcycle museums is also one of the most unassuming. The Musée de la Moto in Marseille traces the history of French motorcycling, plus landmark models from other countries, in a display of more than 250 machines. Housed in a restored and converted mill building just a couple of kilometres from the city centre, the only indication it has anything to do with motorcycling is the modest signage on its heritage wall tiles. Take a step inside and you are transported back into a world of motorcycling dating back to 1885, with exhibits spread across four floors. All the machines in the collection are in working order and either owned by the museum or granted or loaned from other major collections throughout France. As well as motorcycles,…

REMEMBER THE EGLI Vincent hillclimber we featured in the May issue of CB ? When I interviewed Florian Burki about riding it, he mentioned he had also raced a Gold Wing in 24-hour endurance races. Bizzarely, I’d recently photographed the very bike, which is part of Horst Freidrichs’ collection. Horst was the boss of Honda Switzerland who, in 1976, took the audacious step of wrapping a super-trick chassis around the ultra-reliable engine of a GL1000 Gold Wing. Back in the early 1970s, the Bol d’Or 24-hour endurance race was one of the biggest motorcycle racing festivals in the world, and it was undoubtedly one of the most exciting, too. With 200,000 spectators packed into Le Mans (the race was held there from 1971 until 1977), and then Paul Ricard (1978-1999), the Bol attracted…

EARLIER THIS YEAR, we spent a couple of days with trials maestro Dougie Lampkin as he shared his eclectic collection of classic bikes with readers of Classic Bike . Since then he’s bought a Gold Star trials bike at auction and, thanks to the plea he made for help in our ‘Collector’ feature, he’s found someone to fettle his Scott back to working condition. He’s also been spending time at the CCM factory, working with designer Osian Flowers to finalise the street scrambler project he’s linked with. Along with seven-time world champion Carl Fogarty, 12-time World Trials Champion Dougie is an ambassador for the Bolton-based brand. And like CCM’s relationship with Foggy, the collaboration will be celebrated with a special edition of the Spitfire model, albeit a very differently-styled machine to others…