Brooklands Museum is now open to the public Thursday to Sunday each week with Vehicle Demonstrations every day weather permitting. We are proud to be supporting the #lovebrooklands campaign and were one of the channels streaming the Virtual Motorcycle Show in July.
You can still catch the Highlights below. The Virtual event features some past Brooklands events, Test Hill action and the Brooklands Motorcycle Team on Tour in France and at the Chateau Impney Hill Climb.
Crowds flocked to
Sussex on 26/28 June for the annual Goodwood Festival of Speed. This high
octane garden party is hosted by Lord March and is a celebration of the history
of motor sport. The event has grown from a few hay bales along the Goodwood
House drive to an internationally renowned parade and hill climb event. The
Festival is now the place to be for top motoring brands that spend many weeks
building vast temples to their products. Visitors get to see the vehicles up
close and the drivers and riders love it because they can get in among the
punters without all the usual hassle. I heard one owner, new to the event
saying; ‘Is it OK to leave the kit here’, as they manoeuvred starters and
placed their helmets by their bikes. The reply was ‘Oh don’t worry about the
kit, Goodwood’s not like that’ and they left a few hundred thousand pounds of machinery
and kit for us to admire. There is a special atmosphere at Goodwood and long
may it continue.
We’ll let the pictures
tell the rest of the story.
Jet Bike rounds the Flint Wall on the way upthe Hill
Bikes by the bucket Full.. 1984 Honda NSR500
Sammy Miller's 1927 Brough Pendine Racer
George Coen's Manx Norton
Velocette 1938 KTT
1650cc 2015 Bienville Legacy
Fun with The Dakar machines
...and Kimi's just confused by the whole thing
Warbike Project: The
History of British Military Motorcycling 1899 to 1919
Work continues prior
to publication and as the research draws to a close on this part of the story I
should mention a few people who have helped along the way. The Brooklands
Library team have been an invaluable and ongoing source of both material and support. The Museum Library
has a vast catalogue of records concerning Riders/Drivers, Cars and Motorcycles
that raced at the track as well as a vast library of books relating to every
aspect of Brooklands History. I was privileged to also have access to the
photograph archive which contains some stunning images.
The National
Motorcycle Museum allowed me access to their Clyno Motor Machine Gun Carrier
which has resulted in some great detailed images of this machine.
The Royal Logistics
Corps Museum gave me access to the Annual Reports of The Mechanical Transport
Committee, which tells the War Office side of the story as far as military
motorcycling is concerned. These records gave a fascinating insight into the
procurement process. For example, I was interested to learn that Douglas almost
failed to make the grade on several occasions but still managed to become the
second most successful supplier of WW1 motorcycles.
Mortons Media and The
Manx Aviation & Military Museum have also provided some great Dispatch
Rider images and I am also indebted to the many people who have shared
information and images through the Great War Forum.
It has been an
interesting journey and I hope the book will dispel a few myths and pay tribute
to the many riders that played a vital role during WW1.
The Ethanol Debate.
Another damaged tank liner to deal with.
Last month we started
to look more closely at the issue of ethanol in petrol and in particular the
issues people have running older vehicles on pump fuel. We hear lots of
stories, but are these urban myths? Also is it all down to ethanol, or are
there other substances lurking in our favourite cocktail?
Well, the story so
far is that the effects are real. We have personally experienced bikes with
treacle in the carbs, damaged fuel lines and only today I saw yet another
melting tank liner. We have also trawled the fuel company websites for
information and they seem to be devoid of any mention of ethanol information. Furthermore,
the experts would seem to confirm it is ethanol is most likely to be the
culprit. However, tt is important that we do not demonise the fuel companies.
They have to comply with the regulations and legislation that is rightly there
to protect us and the Planet. But, the historic vehicle community does need
ready access to up to date information to make informed decisions. There is
still more research to be done and the final piece with links to ethanol friendly
products and locations of ethanol free fuel will be on our eagerly awaited new
website.
We have also
discovered some long-life ethanol free fuel which we will be reviewing and
running at the Shere Hill Climb in September. Keep checking out the Twitter
feed @fenlandclassics for updates.
Future Plans
The Ton-up Boys at Brooklands
The website is
progressing and we are busy sourcing some of those difficult to obtain bits for
your restorations. For example we will have sight glasses for vintage oil pumps
and other high quality reproduction items as well as a range of good quality
used parts. Our approach will be to aim for high quality difficult to obtain merchandise.
You can see the first of our gift range, based on adverts of the 1900’s via Red
Bubble.
We have also been busy
behind the scenes advising on an American TV pilot filmed during May and are
currently working with Brooklands Museum on the Great War 100 commemorations in
September. This event will feature a recreation of the 1915 service events held
at the iconic Surrey circuit. This blog has also been delayed as we have been
filming Ton-up Day at Brooklands for the Museum and our new website.
Fenland ClassicsTV
This month we have
our regular visit to Bike World as well as some other Cafe Racer and Street
Custom inspired films:
Summer is always a busy time, with many competing events. Here
are our highlights for July.
Warbike Project
The project is in full swing as we get to the centenary of
the beginning of WW1. The Day by day diary is up and running as a blog which
can be viewed here.
This will continue as a daily update until 17 August when it will be updated
weekly. The aim is for this to become a resource for those wishing to dip into
motorcycling history with an emphasis on military motorcycling during 1914 to
18. This will be followed up later with a more in depth story available as a
book supported by an interactive net-based resource.
Ace Cafe Ton-Up day At Brooklands Museum
The weather looked doubtful as the day dawned, but the rain
stayed away and the visitors were treated to a chilled out, village green
atmosphere. The band played contemporary music as groups gathered to discuss
the bikes on show. This event attracted many machines from the burgeoning street
custom scene as well as the conventional 50s/60s style Cafe Racers. TVs very
own Henry Cole turned up to try his hand at being a journalist for the day and
if you want to know the result you will have to buy Classic Bike Guide or watch
The Motorbike Show; on Monday 18 August 2014. Repeated Saturday 23 August.
After two sessions on the Test Hill, a sun tan and a good
chin wag it was time for the prize giving. This year prizes were awarded for
four categories of “Ton-Up” bikes.
AJS “Spirit of Brooklands” Ton-up
BSA Best Ton-up Single
AJS Best Period Cafe Racer
Seeley Honda: Best Ton-Up Multi Cylinder
Cotton Day at Brooklands Museum
The story of Cotton Motorcycles was told in 118 bikes on
Sunday 20 July when members of the Cotton owners club celebrated the Marque’s
centenary at Brooklands. On 23 July 1914 Frank Willoughby “Bill” Cotton applied
for a patent for his “improved” frame design. The frame’s triangular shape is a
concept which still exists on street and competition bikes of today.
Organisers Daniel Weisby and Bob Smith were blessed with
fine weather as members poured onto the site. Pre-war bikes were well
represented outside the clubhouse. Whilst post war competition machines were
displayed in the Paddock Area. The Museums own partly restored Cotton also put
in a guest appearance despite not being on the guest list!
The static displays came to life as many owners took the
opportunity to take their bikes up Test Hill. A challenge for some of the older
machines, but a bit tame for the later competition bikes.
It is difficult to
pick out any particular bikes for further comment as each were interesting in
their own right, so here are a few examples which perhaps tell the diverse
story of Cotton.
1922 250cc Model 15
This Blackburne powered machine was the oldest bike at the
Rally and was restored by the Sammy Miller Musuem 15 years ago.
1959 250cc Herald
A 1950’s road bike with a 250cc Villiers 2 stroke engine and
Armstrong leading link forks which were a trademark feature during this period.
1962 250cc
Cotton/Cross Cougar
1962 Cotton Cross
This is a prototype bike used to prove the concept of the
liner-less cylinder, piston and spiral piston rings developed by Cross. This
bike was ridden successfully by Bryan Goss during 1961 and put into production
by Cotton in 1962.
1974 220cc Trials
Expert
Typical of the Cotton 70’s competition bikes, this Trials
machine is powered by the larger 220cc Minarelli engine
1980 EM 34 Road Racer
The Cotton Rotax turned a few heads at the end of the 1979
season and Terry Wilson commissioned this production model for 1980 with a new
compact 2 cylinder Rotax engine capable of producing 70 bhp. Only 12 were sold
before the Cotton Company went into receivership.
1984 125cc Centaur
1984 Cotton Centaur
This is claimed to be the last ever production machine
produced by Cotton. In 1984 the firm was in receivership, but with rights to
the name “Cotton International” previous owner Terry Wilson commissioned this
monocoque chassis bike powered by a 125 Rotax engine. The much publicised
prototype machine was demonstrated to the press, but never went into
production.
Fenland Classics TV
Our selection for July features The Bike Shed Event 3 on Bike World Watch it Here Old Timer
March has been very busy working on the Warbike project with not much time for anything else. However we did find a couple of days for a trip out to Eric Patterson’s Kempton Bike Jumble and the Veleocette Owners Club day at Brooklands Museum at the end of March.
Warbike Project
A lot of time has been spent in the National Archives. It is a chilling thought to realise that many of these young lads signed up as volunteers in 1914 believing that they were off on their bikes for a six month adventure to give the Bosh a bloody nose and would be back for a warm beer and a Sunday Ride out with friends. The tragic truth as we know was very different. Although relatively speaking the Dispatch Riders did have slightly better conditions. Often Billeted away from the front, the protection of rank gave them freedom to move through villages able, to eat and drink whilst their Tommy brothers and even motorcycle machine gunners were stuck in the trenches.
We are also now setting up a Facebook page for contributions. This will be followed by a website that will act as research resource later in the year.
If you have any information or documentation about any aspect of Motorcycles and WW1 please contact us at: Warbike@Fenlandclassics.co.uk or via twitter @fenlandclassics.
Kempton Jumble
The weather was good for the 2nd Kempton Jumble of 2014. There were a few French bikes and engines for sale and for a moment we thought we might source some parts for our rescued 1930’2 RhonyX. We did however discover that the tank shape was also used on similar Peugeot’s. We also got to see a 1935 Sunbeam for sale with remanufactured silencer. Sadly the work was done before the current owner acquired the bike, so we will have to keep digging for a replacement for our Sunbeam project.
The following day it was the Velocette Owners Club event at Brooklands Museum in Weybridge. Our friends at the museum were running a museum Velo. There were hundreds of Velocettes of all ages shapes and sizes on site and many took a trip up the famous Test Hill in the afternoon led by racing Legend Ivan Rhodes.
Below are a few pictures from the day:
Just a few of the many that turned out
A nice looking Straight Line Racer
Ivan Rhodes Checks directions with members of the Volunteer Team
More Brooklands
The April edition of Classic Bike Guide available now, carries an excellent 10 page Brooklands Special providing more information about the history of the site and the bikes. There is also a piece on Volunteer Ian McCaw’s rebuild of a 1927 Douglas which was donated to the museum.
Cotton Jap sporting referbished forks
Ian’s latest project is the rebuild of the Doug Earle Cotton Jap which now has a new tank and repaired forks.
Why not get down to Brooklands to see this amazing collection.
The museum is open every day and the Premier Bike Event of the Year is Ton-up Day on 6 July 2014 (Twitter #TonUpDay14) with other bike events on:
• 8 June 2014 – Norton Day
• 20 July 2014 – Cotton Day
Photographer Mykel Nicolaou Grabs a shot of the Douglas for the Brooklands Special
Mondo Sahara
Motorcycle Adventurer Austen Vince has taken a group of like-minded mates on a trip into the desert on Honda XR400 cross over bikes. Sounds simple, and yes it is; the point of the exercise was to prove that you can still have the pure adventure experience and don’t need back up trucks and film crews as has been seen in other films in recent years. In fact they had no back up, relying on food and petrol that had been buried across the desert. Their only luxury item was “The IT Guy” whose job it was to navigate mostly off road from the UK across Spain, Morocco and into the Sahara.
Well worth a watch and needless to say everything does not go exactly to plan, but they do achieve their goal. Bit of a sudden ending and some great extras (including your very own Mondo Pin Badge in ours).
The main focus of June was on Ton-Up day at Brooklands Museum This event was billed as a celebration of 75 years since the opening of the Ace Cafe on the North Circular Road in London and the venue much loved by the Cafe Racers and Ton-Up boys of the 1950s and 60s. A one off event is a hard one to pull off as you have no baseline. The publicity is key and when you are a museum that has to look after the pennies it takes a lot of hard work by a dedicated workforce of volunteers to pull it off;and pull it off they did. On the day there were about 2500 visitors and 585 bikes on the site and they were treated to a host of attractions such as The Smiths Triumph British Superbike Team, The Dick Shepherd Triumph collection, Sammy Miller, club stands, Bike related films, Trials displays, The Royal Logistics Corps Museum, The London Motorcycle Museum two Test Hill sessions, and of course Lots of Cafe Racers.
The weather was overcast, but apart from a brief shower before the gates opened it stayed clear all day with a good bit of blue sky over lunch. The morning’s entertainment began with the Sound Stage. This was a chance to get up close and personal to race bike through the ages as they were started up by their owners. Sammy Miller ran his V4 AJS and V Twin Motor Guzzi which he later ran up the Hill. There were too many to list, but its far to say that the bikes got quieter through the ages. The biggest applause went the both the Miller bikes and the Loris Capirossiflame spitting Ducati.
Let us know via email or Twitter if you would like to see a similar event next year.
See Films of the event Below:
More information about those who took part can be found at:
We hung around long enough to catch the HSF Cart race at MB World Brooklands.This race was an endurance event with some 35 carts supplied by Daytona Raceway acting as transport for a variety of teams. The two hour race which included fuel stops and driver changes ended with just over 2 seconds between first and second. The action was very fast and furious and just very exciting, close motor-sport. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves including a local F1 team (Mclaren) who managed 5th overall. The real winner was of course the Foundation which raised £58,000 from the event which included a prestige prize giving event at the Brooklands Hotel which overlooks the track.
We dropped in on the Bonhams Auction on 15 June to keep an eye on a few lots for rescuing. As it turned out the prestige nature of the sale brought out a lot of interest and the 1927 Barn find AJS 349cc K7 estimated at £1k to £2k went for £10,580*. Another wreck, the 1951 490cc Norton International went for £7,130*. Someone with the buyer was heard saying ‘He’s completely mad, but he knows what he is doing’. And so he does. That is over £30k of bike when restored.
There was a tidy 1922 ABC in need of a tidy up estimated at £2,500 -£3,500. In the end it went for £5,290*. These bikes are wonderful and sum up the experimentation that was going on at the time. Designed by the great Granville Bradshaw, this is a horizontally apposed, engine leaf sprung back and front, chain drive when belts were sill in use, good (for the time) drum brakes, but no kick start. In their day they were very much more expensive than other contemporary bikes and this, combined with engine lubrication issues eventually spelt the end for the ABC.
A nicely restored Model 3 Sunbeam on the books for £8k - £10k went for £7,762*.
There also was an Ajax ladies motorcycle, thought to be unique. It went for £3,335* and we are very pleased to se it went to a museum. This is the type of bike that gets forgotten as it is now well known and therefore does not command a high price even though it is probably the only one of its kind and is fully restored.
Last but not least was a Brooklands Special SOS estimated at £3,400 to £3,800. This bike has been floating around the sale rooms lately and it was nice to see it go to a private owner who is passionate about its history. We were also lucky enough to catch up with the owner as he dropped into Brooklands Museum to find out a bit more about the bike whose first own was Tommy Meeten who liked the bike so much he bought the company. Whilst this comment not strictly true the Meeten story is an interesting one and more can be found on the Meetens website
Bargain of the day must be a 1979 Honda GL1000 Gold Wing taxed and MOT’d which went under the hammer for £250 (£287 after commission). It appeared to be an impulse buy, it of a beast to transport, but why not ride it home! A bit too new for us, and a tad large for a pit bike!
At
last the biking weather has arrived. Sadly I did not take my own advice to come
out of hibernation in February, so my steed still needs a bit of fettling
before it is on the road. It was good to see everyone out there enjoying
themselves which has given us an idea for a piece in the future about ride out
venues. If you have any suggestions of places that you visit, send them to routes@Fenlandclassics.co.uk . We also have some of your
favourite ride-out routes we are still checking out, but still need some more
so send them in on the same email address.
As
previously reported, we are supporting the Brooklands Museum Motorcycle
Volunteers with their Ton-Up day in association with The Ace Cafe London on 23
June 2013 to celebrate 75 years of the Ace Cafe. It is looking like a fantastic
event. Your
chance to ride up the Hill and the famous banking have now closed, but there
will be loots to see and do. There will be a mass ride in from the Ace Cafe, motorcycle films,
many very interesting bikes and of course the action on the famous Test Hill Glen Richards will ride the 2012 British Supersport
winning Triumph on Test Hill on 23rd June. His BSB team-mate, Bill Mc Connell
will ride the Museum’s Wicksteed Triumph (See April Update for more about this
unique bike. Also 84 year old Johnny Giles, the highest medal scoring British
ISDT rider of all time, will be reunited with his Cheney Triumph and will ride
it up Test Hill.
Motorcycle Adventurer Austen Vince has taken a group of like-minded mates on a trip into the desert on Honda XR400 cross over bikes. Sounds simple, and yes it is; the point of the exercise was to prove that you can still have the pure adventure experience and don’t need back up trucks and film crews as has been seen in other films in recent years. In fact they had no back up, relying on food and petrol that had been buried across the desert. Their only luxury item was “The IT Guy” whose job it was to navigate mostly off road from the UK across Spain, Morocco and into the Sahara.
Well worth a watch and needless to say everything does not go exactly to plan, but they do achieve their goal. Bit of a sudden ending and some great extras (including your very own Mondo Pin Badge in ours).
The main focus of June was on Ton-Up day at Brooklands Museum This event was billed as a celebration of 75 years since the opening of the Ace Cafe on the North Circular Road in London and the venue much loved by the Cafe Racers and Ton-Up boys of the 1950s and 60s. A one off event is a hard one to pull off as you have no baseline. The publicity is key and when you are a museum that has to look after the pennies it takes a lot of hard work by a dedicated workforce of volunteers to pull it off; and pull it off they did. On the day there were about 2500 visitors and 585 bikes on the site and they were treated to a host of attractions such as The Smiths Triumph British Superbike Team, The Dick Shepherd Triumph collection, Sammy Miller, club stands, Bike related films, Trials displays, The Royal Logistics Corps Museum, The London Motorcycle Museum two Test Hill sessions, and of course Lots of Cafe Racers.
