Classic Bike Hub UK

Nigel Waring with his bespoke Commando. The fact that the Norton Commando was voted by readers of Motor Cycle News as their ‘machine of the year’ every year from 1968 to 1972 has been one of those facts I’ve never really quite been able to grasp. That is meant as no slight, really, on the…

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J W Bishop (AJS) sticks out a leg and tried to sneak through the inside. The remarkable turnout made for a fantastic start to the day’s racing. The competitors were in good spirits thanks to the mild weather and the vast, excited crowd, and the officials were happy as they had very few hiccups to…

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Hennie Van Maarseveen, on her Triumph, beneath the big Dutch sky. When members of the Netherlands Motorcycle Club visited the Isle of Man for the 1911 Tourist Trophy they came up with the idea of an international contest between them and the Brits. The rules were simple: each country would field 18 riders – two…

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By the Sunday, every vantage point was packed. Government Acre is a large flat grass area at the top of the Western Cliff at Ramsgate, at the eastern end of Kent. Used occasionally as a venue for classic vehicle events, it provides a commanding view of the Undercliff, the esplanade road that was one of…

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A few machines in the line up. The purchase of a Wanderer from the veteran period in need of more than a bit of TLC had me scratching my head. Help was needed, so I took the engine and photographs to the Sunbeam MCC’s Pioneer Run finish at Brighton, in March. There, I met up…

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Pete Beeton with two of the Ariels he has expertly refurbished. Pete Beeton was born in Louth, Lincolnshire, in 1945, to sidecar racing star Jackie Beeton and his wife Vera. From an early age, Pete became part of the ‘sidecar racing kids club’ along with a young Micky Boddice, Norman, Peter, Roy and Beryl Hanks,…

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More commonly known for his aptitude for road racing, pre-war star Ernie Nott (Rudge sc.) swaps smooth roads for haggard, undulating dirt tracks in what was a bronze medal-winning performance. After heavy rain the night before, the 12 observed hills – two of which were scaled twice – were thick with mud come the morning…

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The BMW rider who stopped alongside looked aghast. Then, he was openly frowning at my bike, as we sat alongside one another at a red light. I had already noted his doubtful looks, and when I pulled into stop for petrol the Beemer rider followed me into the garage, flipped up his visor and shook…

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Rick Bearcroft (in topper) with John Carter on a 1904 Rover Forecar – the oldest known powered vehicle from the Coventry manufacturer. When the first Pioneer Run was held, in 1930, the entered bikes were simply old and they were relatively few in number. By this year’s event, the 76th, the 360 entered machines were…

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