Birds of a Feather | interesting colonial imagery of some tribal leader with his feathered headdress astride the diminutive but useful 125cc BSA Bantam. Not quite in the vein of an Edward Curtis portrait but early National Geographic nonetheless.
July 5, 2019
Double Oh Seven
Fi Fox | onetime Bond girl, Spectre assassin, and Italian actress Luciana Paluzzi looking surly on a golden faired BSA Lightning. Rocket launchers? Yes please!
June 12, 2019
Pane Life
Window Shopping | A few lads gaze longingly at a BSA Rocket Goldstar in some early 60’s motorcycle dealership showroom.
May 5, 2019
Backside to the Wind
Tandragee 100 | Considered the best road race in Northern Ireland; this years offering saw our man Guy Martin take his BSA Rocket Three to victory in the Classic 1000cc class on the 5.3 mile circuit with an average lap speed of over 90mph.
April 24, 2019
Off the beaten track
‘ump Day | ‘bike is parked up; pyramid tent erected; Primus stove lit and brew on the go; time to light up and perch my’sen on this crag edge. Look up magazine advertisements for Camel Lights “It’s a whole new world” and you’ll see this adventurer getting up to all sorts in the wild corners of the world – whilst making sure his tabs are close at hand…
March 22, 2019
Weekend arrival!
Friday Fun | Happy couple cavorting along under a high summer sun looking for antics and shenanigans. BSA single is the mode.
January 9, 2019
Fettled & Fast
Pops – The post-war period in Japan saw a push in engine tuning to wring out any available additional horsepower to not just be faster but the fastest. This would eventually lead to the superbikes of the seventies and eighties and the current flock of hyper sports.
Leading this evolution of power and speed was Hideo ‘Pops’ Yoshimuro (1922-1995). After maintaining aircraft for the Japanese Empire during WW2 he redirected his masterful talents to the British bikes being brought to the land of the rising sun by American servicemen. This photo shows our man astride a fettled BSA preunit drag bike readying for a speed run.
Later he shifted his works and racing team to California where big reliable Japanese superbikes like the Kawasaki KZ and Suzuki GS’s went on to dominate the burgeoning AMA road racing circuit.
December 12, 2018
Goldstar
Seven Oh Three – sometimes a big thumper is all you need. Glorious BSA flat tracker with beastly single cylinder’d engine.
December 10, 2018
Darkroom output
Photo Zine – limited edition photography books are available from Cafe Royal Books. Amongst their offering are some excellent photojournalistic publications. This one is filled with evocative images from the seventies of bikers attending the iconic races on the Isle of Man. You can smell the drips of Castrol on the deck of the Douglas ferry.
October 20, 2018
Up The Elephant and round The Castle
Courier- fag stop for BSA Bantam owner along some street in The Big Smoke. A motorcycle is the best way to get around London. It lets you nip through the traffic making sure you get to your destination with a smile and on time.
October 6, 2018
MI Motos
Gilmore Car Museum – Hickory Corner, Michigan. One barn at the excellent automobile museum here in south west Michigan held a good selection of two-wheeled delights. From barn- fresh Harley Flathead to a polished to the nines Vincent Black Shadow. It was a good collection covering a century of motorcycling. One of The Fonz’s Triumph TR5 was there too; as well as an immaculate ’59 T120 Bonneville and a gutsy looking Indian hill climber.
August 16, 2018
Michigan Music Ma’am’s
Like a Prayer- the Queen of Pop reached the age of 60 today. Madonna has spent the last several decades rewriting the lyrical content and reinventing a visual style in the music industry. Here she pouts in true Vogue style with a BSA .
Today also sadly saw the passing of the Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin, whose voice sang across the ages from the social unrest of the Sixties, The Blues Brothers in Reagan’s 80’s, to Obama’s inauguration in 2009. R-E-S-P-E-C-T
August 3, 2018
Glamour Shots
Boldest – Friday brings a twofer where the bikes play second fiddle to the gals who pose coyly at prospective buyers of these single cylinder cycles. Starfire was the quarter liter starter machine, the Victor was more off road styling fit for gravel trails. Soft focus anyone?
August 1, 2018
Bold 3
The Cavalry – the BSA sportsbike of the sixties sits pretty next to the horse borne regimental troops that protect Her Majesty in London & at Windsor. The 650cc Thunderbolt is akin to the ceremonial dress of the Blues and Royals (Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons). The chrome tank matching the red plumed helmet and cuirass armor; the star blazed tank badge like the Order of the Garter Star.
Sadly the ladies gaze on haughtily in their leather jackets. I’d rather they sat astride the motorcycle as proud riders, like their equine companion.
July 31, 2018
Bold 2
Jet Setter – from Oceanside to the skyward scene. BSA’s Shooting Star makes for a snappy runway runabout between the airport lounge and the private jet. Aviator look to the rider and sixties bombshell for the wing perched gal in the leopard skin coat. The louche world of the swingin’ sixties…
