September - 2016

Motorcycles Get to Work

Motorcycles Get to Work

Internal-combustion engines don't consume fuel when they are not working. This is unlike horses. It is therefore not a surprise that horses were being replaced by engines for mail carriers, deliveries, and other services starting in the late 19th Century. Indian Motorcycles, established in 1901 under Hendee Manufacturing in Springfield, Mass., started selling their elegant little motorcycles to police forces; many of which were looking to reduce the cost of maintaining horses

Germans Give Back

Germans Give Back

German designs clearly influenced and propelled Japan’s postwar motorcycle industry. It is evident in this DKW. The Germans would provide a two-stroke engine foundation for many companies, including British, American, Russian, and Japanese makers.The Allies deemed the German designs as patent-free as part of their war reparations. Harley-Davidson took advantage of that to introduce the S125, its own faithful reproduction of the great little RT125 commuter bike made by Germany

My First Experience With Motorcycles

My First Experience With Motorcycles

This fuzzy16mm movie frame of a sidecar race on a Berlin street was taken the day motorcycling made its first impression on me. My uncle took me to quite a few automobile races, but this was my first motorcycle race. I was around five years old, and was mesmerized by the sound and the speed. Prewar and postwar BMW, DKW, Zündapp, and NSUs were racing on the cobbled streets with little but the curb to direct their path. The postwar years in Europe were good times for motorcycle

A Real Formula for Disaster - Part III

A Real Formula for Disaster - Part III

Board track racing was an exciting opportunity for young men to gain notariety and make some serious money. They could earn $2,000 a year. That's 3x the average American's wage in 1915, and equivalent to $47,000 today. The risk however was real. There was no safety equipment to speak of. Most wore a flimsy leather helmet and a wool sweater; not much use when hitting the boards and meeting long splinters. Things were not safe for the fans either. They stood at the top of the t

A Real Formula for Disaster - Part II

A Real Formula for Disaster - Part II

Board track racers of the nineteen-teens and early nineteen-twenties were motorcycles on steroids. Most featured highly modified and tuned engines driving the rear wheel directly without a transmission. A few models featured a clutch, but nearly all lacked a brake. The bikes had to be slowed down by riding up on the steep 45 degree banks and/or grounding out the ignition magneto via a small metal tab shorting against the handlebar. They were loud and spewed oil through their

A Real Formula for Disaster - Part I

A Real Formula for Disaster - Part I

As motorcycle engines increased in power, so did their speed. A modified V-twin of the nineteen-teens could produce 30 to 45 horsepower; strong enough to propel a machine just a bit larger than a bicyle over 90 mph. Matter of fact, a V-twin Cyclone built in 1913 was timed at 108 mph in a Minneapolis motordrome. The next year it was timed at 111.1 mph at Omaha, Nebraska. These were astounding speeds given the simplicity of design of the motorcycles. This caught the eye of oppo

Motoball... Where Have You Been Hiding?

Motoball... Where Have You Been Hiding?

Motorcycle Polo, or Motoball, as it is called in Europe, is essentially a soccer game where the players are on motorcycles. The ball is typically larger than a soccer ball and may be kicked or manipulated with the bike. Motorcycle Polo was very popular in the United States during the Depression years when Uncle Harry played it. It required extraordinary strength and skill. The bikes used were Harleys and Indians with foot clutches and hand shifts. The game is very popular in

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