While on the topic of Old Iron... my long time pal, Ron (vintage 1945 ish ? as seen above with his GS 1000) was just this week writing me about the annual Vintage show and shine on the sunny ? (chuckle) West Coast of Canada. Fresh off Olympic fever/fervor, the featured make this year was BSA (Birmingham Small Arms) a couple of which reside in my basement.
Ronnie tells me the show was an apparent success, as these things tend to be. There is quite a loyal following to old bikes and cars in this country. I saw it first hand while living in the Maritimes and of course oldies are fairly abundant here in the West as well. For those of us that aren't aware, BSA like Royal Enfield, began their company's, as manufacturers of armaments. Like their many counterparts in the English motorcycle business, they eventually succumbed to the dual ailments of regular rampant labor strife, coupled with the inability (or stupidity as many would say) to compete with the changing marketplace. By the early '60's, the Japanese makers were making inroads along the roads of Britain and N.A. while the locals were still oiling them!
Small displacement, reliable, inexpensive bikes from Honda, Yamaha, Kawasaki, Suzuki, Bridgestone (yes the tire makers) and several other brands, were just begining to make their presence felt outside of the home Islands.
The once magnificiently proud brands that ruled the roads (if not the seas) dropped one after the other until none were left standing.
The bright news is that a steady and very persistant stream of enthusiasts, keep the flame alive in their basements, living rooms and swap meets!
I myself own a '66 BSA Victor 441 (hence my email addy) or as Unca Ronnie puts it... Victim 441, (smart ass!) and the same year model Thunderbolt. She was a single carbed 650 vertical twin, the less finicky and somewhat slower version of their famous Lightning!
Why we collect these old things is a mystery to many. I had a *girlfriend, who by the way is older than I, who could never fully understand why I spent soooo much of my limited time polishing, repairing, lovingly lavishing attention on my old bikes and of course my other two seater, an MGB. She herself has a bright yellow Boxster in her garage, and wondered why I wouldnt just trade them all for some new modern stuff!
Several years ago, 2005-2006 in fact, the Reynold's Alberta Museum, just a stone's throw from Calgary in Wetaskiwin AB, put in a fabulous display of Vintage motorycycles entitled 'The Life and Times of the Motorcycle' (see my story in Canadian Biker November 2005) On display were 150 Classic bikes including many I've pictured here from my photo collection. Although that particular display was a 'ltd time offer', RAM has a large selection of bikes on permanent show alongside an incredible collection of motorized and otherwise, memorabalia. Check them out...
I really don't know how many bikes I've actually owned over the 40 years I've been riding. Many have turned out to be modern classics. My Suzuki X6 Hustler or as Ron mentioned in his latest dispatch, the Big Bear 305 scrambler. What makes somethings desirable and others not... well I guess it's all in the way you look at it. For me, it's something that touches a nerve, or my heart. Something that moves my spirit. Vintage does that for me, as it does for many.
*BTW...
in answer to her question, why I spent so much time and effort on my old bikes, I replied...
"Just be happy that I still value and love things old."
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