I'll be back.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Indian Summer
It's been really hot the last few days. We're about a mile or so from the ocean and escaped the summer's heat this year, but not now. It was 109º nearby on Monday. Downtown L.A. set a record at 113º, 6º warmer than some of the local desert cities.
Just a lame excuse to post this.
Just a lame excuse to post this.
Indian Summer
It's been really hot the last few days. We're about a mile or so from the ocean and escaped the summer's heat this year, but not now. It was 109º nearby on Monday. Downtown L.A. set a record at 113º, 6º warmer than some of the local desert cities.
Just a lame excuse to post this.
Just a lame excuse to post this.
Ice White Brutale!
MV Agusta have announced that their Brutale 990R will be available in a brand new colour , ice white, but only 5 will be coming to the UK. The 144bhp (1090RR), the Brutale is one of the most powerful naked streetbikes available!
Ride safe
Jon Booth
Email: webmaster@inter-bike.co.uk
Blog: http://bestmotorstyle2011.blogspot.com//
Swicki: http://motorcycling-swicki.eurekster.com/
Thursday, September 23, 2010
MINI Scooter E Concept's unveiled
The BMW Group extends the MINI brand further today in London by showing a range of concept electric scooters, currently called the MINI Scooter E Concept, with funky retro styling based on the MINI.
BMW say "It’s not just a two-wheeler in MINI Design - this scooter meets the needs of the young urban generation: Spontaneous, flexible, CO2-free mobility. Using a smart phone as the ignition key, the concept integrates infotainment, communication and navigation systems. The MINI Scooter E Concept is powered by an electric motor which can be recharged at any conventional power socket using an on-board charging cable."
Anyway heres a few pic's of the funky scooters.
Ride safe
Jon Booth
Email: webmaster@inter-bike.co.uk
Blog: http://bestmotorstyle2011.blogspot.com//
Swicki: http://motorcycling-swicki.eurekster.com/
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
LATEST BROUGH SUPERIOR: T.E. LAWRENCE REPLICA
The headline could simply read, 'The World's Most Expensive Production Motorcycle', as indeed it seems Brough Superior holds that distinction, then as now. And, while the term 'production' may be stretched a bit by actual numbers in the metal to date (three!), I'll take Mark Upham, president of Brough Superior Motorcycles, at his word that he fully intends to build his 'SS101' models on a regular basis in the foreseeable future, or at least as long as there is demand at the very top of the pyramid.
The latest Brough is a full-on replica of T.E. Lawrence's 1926 mount, 'George IV', so named after George Brough himself (with a nod to several Kings George of course), the middle number of Lawrence's 8 Broughs, and perhaps his best known, as it forms the central character of his most famous essay from 'The Mint' ('The Road' - which can be read in full here), an account his ride on 'George IV' across the English countryside, and his encounter/race with an RAF Bristol biplane.
As the factory build sheet still exist for this machine, and several photographs document Lawrence astride the actual bike, it was a fairly straightforward exercise to build a replica...excepting of course that every part of an SS100 as it came from BS was a one-off, and thus there were no patterns for the 'extras' which TEL specified, and they all had to be scaled up from photographs, with invisible details such as luggage latches, his service cane, etc, all requiring investigation for period authenticity. Such is the obsession of Brough collectors (including Mr. Upham himself) with Lawrence of Arabia, and historical accuracy.
The 'Lawrence Replica' débuted at the 2010 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance last month, at the Brough Superior stand within the RetroAuto tent, which was actually open from Thursday thru Sunday, and was accessible at no charge (barring the $10 fee for vehicle access to 17-Mile Drive, motorcycle or car). As last year, a very handsome display was assembled by US Brough importer Bryan Bossier (of Sinless Cycles), which included 3 (of 5 completed) 'new' Broughs, along with two of Bryan's personal machines.
As an added attraction, BS teamed up with legendary/notorious sculptor Jeff Decker, who happened to be mid-carve on a portrait of TE Lawrence on that very machine! A perfect moment to share space with Decker's Hippodrome Studios, and a fascinating live demonstration of his prodigious skills as a manipulator of clay and wax. I'm sure for Jeff the sculpture provided a welcome distraction from the stream of visitors wanting a meet n' greet, but for anyone interested in his process, it was a rare opportunity to see his masterful technique...Jeff has an embarrassment of talent, and an irreverent sense of humor which does well to balance viewer intimidation while demonstrating his skills. (I'll give a full post to Mr. Decker shortly).
The TE Lawrence Rep (the metal one) is, as with the previous two 'SS101' models, simply a magnificent creation, and very likely a better machine than the original - certainly with its improved technical specification this is so. As those who actually saw a new 1926 SS100 are scarce or dead, I'll have to leave a comparison of 'fit and finish' as a hanging question mark, but the new machine is nearly flawless in execution. There are no cut corners, no easy modern replacements for items which needed to be replicated, however small, to make the 'SS101' appear as a 1926 motorcycle. It was king of the road in the 1920s, the fastest road motorcycle you could buy, and for most of the next 14 years, the fastest motorcycle in the world, period. That's quite a pedigree.
Alas, I didn't get a ride on the TEL Rep; I'm hoping that might come about in October, back in Austria. Stay tuned.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
The El Camino Conundrum
El Camino can be a hard show to completely take in. The show opens at 8 a.m. and is basically over by noon. Yes trophies are announced around 2 p.m., but pretty much everybody else has split. Not a lot of time to fit it all in, especially when you get there around 9:00.
You don't really see things if your busy looking through a camera, so sometimes it 's best to put the camera down and just take in the experience.
Here's the drill. If I'm taking pictures, I'm really not checking out the show bikes. If I'm really checking out the bikes, I'm not taking pictures, or looking for parts. If I'm looking at parts, I don't have time for the first two activities. Then throw into the mix, running into friends every 10-15 minutes or talking with someone who is admiring the same bike you happen to be standing by. The day will race by, and later I'll think, what happened?
So here's my (limited) highlights of what happened.
A well restored early Sportster will always dazzle me. This '61 belongs to Glenn Bator. It started with 3 kicks and sounded real sweet. The overcast skies don't bring out the color quite as good as it really looked.
I didn't get a chance to read the board behind this bike.
The owner of this Super-Glide really wanted to sell it. It has a few incorrect items but is still very nice.
This black VL is refreshing.
Lowrider anyone?
It's nice to see old grubby bikes are still surfacing.
This was the first time I saw Keith Ball's Peashooter.
That tank art looks familiar? The fire extinguisher is actually an oil tank.
Original paint Sprint.
Police bikes shouldn't have whitewalls and look so much better without them.
Some probably hate the green. I like it much more than the typical red Injuns.
Can't go wrong with black.
These might be the best tank emblems HD ever offered.
Didn't see many vintage chops this year.
This sums up how this year went. I didn't take many photos, didn't really see all or check the bikes out that well, bought only one part, talked with several friends and a few other enthusiast.
Still a good time overall.
You don't really see things if your busy looking through a camera, so sometimes it 's best to put the camera down and just take in the experience.
Here's the drill. If I'm taking pictures, I'm really not checking out the show bikes. If I'm really checking out the bikes, I'm not taking pictures, or looking for parts. If I'm looking at parts, I don't have time for the first two activities. Then throw into the mix, running into friends every 10-15 minutes or talking with someone who is admiring the same bike you happen to be standing by. The day will race by, and later I'll think, what happened?
So here's my (limited) highlights of what happened.
A well restored early Sportster will always dazzle me. This '61 belongs to Glenn Bator. It started with 3 kicks and sounded real sweet. The overcast skies don't bring out the color quite as good as it really looked.
I didn't get a chance to read the board behind this bike.
The owner of this Super-Glide really wanted to sell it. It has a few incorrect items but is still very nice.
This black VL is refreshing.
Lowrider anyone?
It's nice to see old grubby bikes are still surfacing.
This was the first time I saw Keith Ball's Peashooter.
That tank art looks familiar? The fire extinguisher is actually an oil tank.
Original paint Sprint.
Police bikes shouldn't have whitewalls and look so much better without them.
Some probably hate the green. I like it much more than the typical red Injuns.
Can't go wrong with black.
These might be the best tank emblems HD ever offered.
Didn't see many vintage chops this year.
This sums up how this year went. I didn't take many photos, didn't really see all or check the bikes out that well, bought only one part, talked with several friends and a few other enthusiast.
Still a good time overall.
The El Camino Conundrum
El Camino can be a hard show to completely take in. The show opens at 8 a.m. and is basically over by noon. Yes trophies are announced around 2 p.m., but pretty much everybody else has split. Not a lot of time to fit it all in, especially when you get there around 9:00.
You don't really see things if your busy looking through a camera, so sometimes it 's best to put the camera down and just take in the experience.
Here's the drill. If I'm taking pictures, I'm really not checking out the show bikes. If I'm really checking out the bikes, I'm not taking pictures, or looking for parts. If I'm looking at parts, I don't have time for the first two activities. Then throw into the mix, running into friends every 10-15 minutes or talking with someone who is admiring the same bike you happen to be standing by. The day will race by, and later I'll think, what happened?
So here's my (limited) highlights of what happened.
A well restored early Sportster will always dazzle me. This '61 belongs to Glenn Bator. It started with 3 kicks and sounded real sweet. The overcast skies don't bring out the color quite as good as it really looked.
I didn't get a chance to read the board behind this bike.
The owner of this Super-Glide really wanted to sell it. It has a few incorrect items but is still very nice.
This black VL is refreshing.
Lowrider anyone?
It's nice to see old grubby bikes are still surfacing.
This was the first time I saw Keith Ball's Peashooter.
That tank art looks familiar? The fire extinguisher is actually an oil tank.
Original paint Sprint.
Police bikes shouldn't have whitewalls and look so much better without them.
Some probably hate the green. I like it much more than the typical red Injuns.
Can't go wrong with black.
These might be the best tank emblems HD ever offered.
Didn't see many vintage chops this year.
This sums up how this year went. I didn't take many photos, didn't really see all or check the bikes out that well, bought only one part, talked with several friends and a few other enthusiast.
Still a good time overall.
You don't really see things if your busy looking through a camera, so sometimes it 's best to put the camera down and just take in the experience.
Here's the drill. If I'm taking pictures, I'm really not checking out the show bikes. If I'm really checking out the bikes, I'm not taking pictures, or looking for parts. If I'm looking at parts, I don't have time for the first two activities. Then throw into the mix, running into friends every 10-15 minutes or talking with someone who is admiring the same bike you happen to be standing by. The day will race by, and later I'll think, what happened?
So here's my (limited) highlights of what happened.
A well restored early Sportster will always dazzle me. This '61 belongs to Glenn Bator. It started with 3 kicks and sounded real sweet. The overcast skies don't bring out the color quite as good as it really looked.
I didn't get a chance to read the board behind this bike.
The owner of this Super-Glide really wanted to sell it. It has a few incorrect items but is still very nice.
This black VL is refreshing.
Lowrider anyone?
It's nice to see old grubby bikes are still surfacing.
This was the first time I saw Keith Ball's Peashooter.
That tank art looks familiar? The fire extinguisher is actually an oil tank.
Original paint Sprint.
Police bikes shouldn't have whitewalls and look so much better without them.
Some probably hate the green. I like it much more than the typical red Injuns.
Can't go wrong with black.
These might be the best tank emblems HD ever offered.
Didn't see many vintage chops this year.
This sums up how this year went. I didn't take many photos, didn't really see all or check the bikes out that well, bought only one part, talked with several friends and a few other enthusiast.
Still a good time overall.
35 Years Ago Today
... I bought my first motorcycle.
I was stubborn. Right or wrong, I wouldn't by a motorcycle until I could afford a Harley. I thought spending a few hundred dollars on a Honda would be a waste of money and would just make getting a Harley take longer.
The day I bought it. Not much to look at, but I was jazzed.
Special features: 6 over forks and no front fender. In the early seventies, probably half the Sportsters sold had extended forks before leaving the dealer.
In the mid '70's, Harley's were in big demand in the LA area, so prices were relatively high for the times (especially when you didn't have a big network of bike riding friends). My outlook was pretty much limited to the local paper's classified pages.
Several weeks earlier, I had gone to the CHP auction and put bids on three bikes for $1,200-$1,500 each hoping I'd get one. I didn't, so the day I would have found out, I bought my Sportster. It was listed in the LA times. I was in Downey and it was close by in Paramount.
More special features: Radiator cap and dent in tank, Posa (or Lake?) Fuel slider carb, Braided vinyl fuel lines. The stock Tillotson carbs had a push inner coil for the throttle, so with this carb, it meant you'd rotate the grip forward to go. It was awkward.
The hillbilly who owned it, was the second owner and kept it in a backyard full of junk. It was only a 4 year old bike and the motor had already been rebuilt. By today's standards, the way it looked, you'd have thought it was a 10 to 20 year old bike.
I think I paid a whooping $1,300 for it, which was likely way too much, but I was getting impatient. Keep in mind, in 1975, new Sportsters were about $2,300 plus dealer fees and taxes at this time. Also, I had a friend with a '71 XLH who wanted about $2,000 for his bike.
More Special Features: Custom seat and sissy bar, a piece of cardboard for a battery lid, and no horn. Bonus feature: A tendency to jump out of third when getting it on.
In any case, I was happy, had plenty of fun with it and nine years later in '84, it got me $1500 credit towards a big twin.
I was stubborn. Right or wrong, I wouldn't by a motorcycle until I could afford a Harley. I thought spending a few hundred dollars on a Honda would be a waste of money and would just make getting a Harley take longer.
The day I bought it. Not much to look at, but I was jazzed.
Special features: 6 over forks and no front fender. In the early seventies, probably half the Sportsters sold had extended forks before leaving the dealer.
In the mid '70's, Harley's were in big demand in the LA area, so prices were relatively high for the times (especially when you didn't have a big network of bike riding friends). My outlook was pretty much limited to the local paper's classified pages.
Several weeks earlier, I had gone to the CHP auction and put bids on three bikes for $1,200-$1,500 each hoping I'd get one. I didn't, so the day I would have found out, I bought my Sportster. It was listed in the LA times. I was in Downey and it was close by in Paramount.
More special features: Radiator cap and dent in tank, Posa (or Lake?) Fuel slider carb, Braided vinyl fuel lines. The stock Tillotson carbs had a push inner coil for the throttle, so with this carb, it meant you'd rotate the grip forward to go. It was awkward.
The hillbilly who owned it, was the second owner and kept it in a backyard full of junk. It was only a 4 year old bike and the motor had already been rebuilt. By today's standards, the way it looked, you'd have thought it was a 10 to 20 year old bike.
I think I paid a whooping $1,300 for it, which was likely way too much, but I was getting impatient. Keep in mind, in 1975, new Sportsters were about $2,300 plus dealer fees and taxes at this time. Also, I had a friend with a '71 XLH who wanted about $2,000 for his bike.
More Special Features: Custom seat and sissy bar, a piece of cardboard for a battery lid, and no horn. Bonus feature: A tendency to jump out of third when getting it on.
In any case, I was happy, had plenty of fun with it and nine years later in '84, it got me $1500 credit towards a big twin.
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