The Classic MotorCycle October 2023

Is it better to go back or to experience something new? This is a subject I return to again and again, insomuch as the machines I own and ride, as well as the motorcycling events I do. It can be applied across life too – it’s human nature to return to re-enact the same routine, to return to the same restaurant again and again, go on holiday to the same place, walk your favourite walk every day, and so on. There’s undeniably a comfort, a safeness in knowing what the outcome will be. I was thinking this as I prepare to head off to the Irish National Rally, something I do every year, which is my annual holiday. This year, my cousin Peter has flown over from Australia to join…

Published in the July 5, 1917, edition of The Motor Cycle, the feature with which the reproduced picture appeared shared the title with that which we use, though it was accredited to ‘One of them’ rather than a specific name; in fact, none of our trio of lady riders are named anywhere in the piece. It was only in 1915 that the first woman police officer was given the powers of arrest, with the Met having already employed females as ‘matrons’ in the 1880s, ladies who were charged with guarding women and children. From 1910, attention was being drawn to the fact that there were no lady officers, a situation that was revised upon the outbreak of war. The Women’s Police Volunteers was founded in 1914 and then became known…

◾ ACE CAFE REUNION It’s 85 years since the Ace Cafe opened on London’s North Circular. A weekend of celebration is planned over September 1-3, the event culminating in the Brighton Burn Up, down to Madeira Drive. Details from www.acecafe.com or 0208 961 1000. ◾ MILLER’S TOP MARKS Reviews from millions of Tripadvisor travellers have placed the Sammy Miller Motorcycle Museum at New Milton, Hampshire, in the top 10% worldwide. ◾ KOP HILL 2023 This year’s event takes place on September 16/17, which will no doubt add to the already-impressive £870,000 raised for charity. Kop Hill is at Princes Risborough, Bucks. Details from www.kophillclimb.org.uk ◾ PIONEER RUN The 2023 Pioneer Run for pre-1915 motorcycles will take place on October 1, 2023. Starting place is Epsom racecourse, with riders finishing at…

News & Events Big news for the October 14/15 Stafford show is that star guests will be Henry Cole, host of ITV4’s popular The Motorbike Show, and his co-stars Allen Millyard and Guy ‘Skid’ Willison. The television trio has brought motorcycling to the masses, the TV show now having run to an impressive 11 series and counting. And while Cole acknowledges he isn’t to everyone’s taste – “I don’t care what people say, I just do my thing and put bikes on the television – that’s good, right?” – Henry is undoubtedly a popular figure. And a genuine enthusiast, too, who has owned and ridden all manner of motorcycles, as well as being a manufacturer himself, too. He’s even set records at Bonneville on a Brough Superior and also did…

Bonhams has announced it is to sell the well known collection of motorcycles from Tony East, at an all ‘no reserve’ sale at the Autumn Stafford Classic Motorcycle Mechanics Show on October 14/15. Highlights include a bevy of beautiful Triumphs, some glorious Ariels, BSAs and BMWs, a plethora of Greeves, various Nortons, all among many others. It’s not just the East machines, though, with plenty more offered as well. Recent consignments include two from the different ends of our spectrum of interest, in the form of a 1975 Ducati 750SS and a 1907 3½hp Quadrant. The Ducati is a rare, early square case example, finished in traditional silver and blue. It used the basic layout as the previous year’s iconic ‘roundcase’ 750SS and has the same right side gearchange. Estimate…

The Cheffins Vintage Sale on July 22 saw an eclectic range of motorcycles under the hammer. An appealing unrestored 1937 350cc Velocette KTS project sold for £4800, a glistening 1936 350cc International Norton was £15,000, a 1978 Moto Guzzi Le Mans Mk.1 sold for £8000 and a 1923 989cc BSA model F V-twin made £10,800, among others. The sale took place at the Cheffins saleground at Sutton, near Ely. Jeremy Curzon, consultant at Cheffins commented: “The auction saw a 70% sale rate, with the market very much focussed on project machines, Japanese two-strokes and flat tankers. All of these saw strong competition and healthy interest, with buyers joining the sale from throughout the UK and a handful from overseas. “The 1950s and 60s big capacity kick-start bikes however, were less…