#vintage

Below is the first in a four-part series highlighting rare and historic motorcycles. Today’s subject: the 1939 Scott Flying Squirrel. Penned by Motorcycle.com contributor Paul Garson, this series will examine the backstory of four of the world’s most collectible motorcycles, what made each so special and why they are so highly sought after today.

Miles south of the Vegas strip, the South Point Casino and Exhibition Hall rises from the desert like a giant sandstone monolith. At first sight, just one word, despite its constant misuse and triteness, comes to mind: Awesome.

We all know the real meaning of that coy slogan about what happens in Vegas. It really means that what stays in Vegas is your money. It should read: “To play in Vegas, you gotta pay in Vegas.”

History has a funny way of repeating itself, and as long as you wait long enough, what’s old will eventually become new again. Right now, we’re seeing that trend in motorcycling, as models like the  Yamaha SR400,  Royal Enfield Continental GT,  BMW R nineT and  Ducati Scrambler all pay homage to days gone by. Then, of course, you’ve got those who simply refuse to let go of the past, buying 30-plus year-old motorcycles and making them their own. Hell, even the verbiage is making a comeback. Cafe Racer, anyone? Vintage motorcycling may be popular these days, but there’s one aspect of the past that should remain in the history books: safety gear. Helmets, specifically.

The phone rings constantly, the bell that announces another customer has broken the electronic beam through the open garage door that opens onto Hyde Park Street dings only slightly less frequently. One guy really wants that Sportster with the twin flatslides but first feels the need to lay out his qualifications to Yoshi by listing all the other vehicles he’s ever owned. Another guy needs a part for his CB750. Many cool characters who look vaguely familiar from movies and half-remembered MTV videos saunter in under ironic hats behind cool shades.

Talk about your mixed media. The seventh-annual Venice Vintage Motorcycle Rally welcomed bikes and riders of all stripes, and polka dots, ribbons, bows, tattoos, skinny jeans, Esther Williams bathing suits, porkpie hats, retro, techno, punk, funk, goth and every fashion statement in between.

Okay, we gotta admit it’s a tiny bit macabre to find a stellar group of antique, vintage and high-performance motorcycles on display at a cemetery, literally the last place a bike fan wants to visit. But, there was lively reasoning behind the appearance of 13 “celebrity” two-wheelers at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park, the 1906 historic landmark located in Glendale, CA. The museum, part of the 300 acre property since 1957, has previously offered a wide variety of exhibits as they are “committed to enriching the community through the educational and entertaining presentation of artwork that focuses on history, culture or religion.”

There are collectors and then there are collectors. And then there’s Virgil Elings, proprietor of the Solvang Vintage Motorcycle Museum. Is he eclectic or eccentric? Discriminating or indiscriminate? Crazy or crazy like a fox? Or all of the above?

“Oh, yeah!” came the soft English accent through my phone’s speaker. “Looks like you seized a piston! I’ll fix it right up for ya.”

If you didn’t already know it was there, you’d never know it was there. The brick retail/office courtyard suggests maybe a cheese shop, an insurance agency or a jewelry store. Or a Brooks Brothers clothing store, which it once was.

In honor of the 30th anniversary of the Ninja,  Kawasaki kicked off the World Supberbike weekend at Mazda Raceway by unveiling a 2015 model year  30th Anniversary Limited Edition Kawasaki Ninja ZX–14R in addition to the 2015 30th anniversary liveried ZX–10R and ZX–6R. For the Kawasaki faithful, the manufacturer put together a celebration of all things Ninja in theMarketplace of Mazda Raceway yesterday evening.

Now in it’s sixth year, the Quail Motorcycle Gathering just gets bigger and better. But not too much bigger. More than 250 machines were assembled on the green grass carpet at the Lodge, and between participants and spectators, there were some 2500 attendees. While not quite at capacity, there was still sufficient space to move about, and just enough time to fully enjoy the panorama of motorcycles and people. And both in such variety! Think Renaissance Faire for motorheads.

The annual Bud Ekins Memorial Ride (formerly Steve Wright’s Pre-16 Ride) rolled into Atascadero, Calif. last weekend. Sadly, Steve had died a few weeks earlier, but his pals thought it fitting to carry on in his memory.

Most days, there are more than 2000 ads for motorcycles on the San Francisco-area Craigslist and probably a similarly large number advertised near any major population center. The odds of any one of these ads attracting much attention are pretty small. But when a certain for-sale ad appeared on the Sacramento list, it was different – very different.

There are still, as the late Gordon Jennings once observed, no willows at Willow Springs. Nor any springs. There is, after 61 years in operation, still a fast, challenging, relatively safe and often wind-blown roadracing circuit. Which, for the last 19 years, has hosted the annual Moto Corsa Classica staged by the American Historic Racing Motorcycle Association (AHRMA) and the Garage Company of Inglewood, Calif.