Ted Macauley first met Mike Hailwood at the Isle of Man TT in 1961 when Mike was just 21 years old and was riding in all four solo classes, becoming the first rider to win
Read moreMike the Bike – Again
Category: Reviews
The long quest for ‘King Dick’
Mention the words King Dick and most polite people will simply think ‘spanner’ – but Bill Whiteley’s new book, The Quest for King Dick, leaves us in no doubt that the quality spanners for which
Read moreOnly Bounders Ride Motorcycles
By Pete Kelly I sometimes think that Yorkshiremen are born with dry humour – and it simply falls from the pages of Ken Mellor’s self-published book, Only Bounders Ride Motorcycles, 100 Years of Family Motorcycling.
Read moreMotorcycling in the 50s
Raiding the bound volumes of the old ‘Green ’Un’ and ‘Blue ’Un’ weeklies in Mortons’ impressive Archive month after month for Old Bike Mart material, this reviewer loved the black and white, almost ‘scrapbook’ design
Read moreIsle of Man TT, The Golden Years, 1963-1982
Encompassing the years 1963 to 1982, Isle of Man TT, The Golden Years, brings those exciting years back to life with 108 unforgettable images.How this reviewer remembers the crisp, smooth sound of Max Deubel’s fabulous
Read moreBook Review: Overland to Vietnam – on a 1941 Matchless G3L
Widely regarded as the favourite motorcycle of dispatch riders during the Second World War, the 350cc Matchless G3L pushrod single was respected for its ruggedness and durability, and Gordon May’s latest book, Overland to Vietnam,
Read moreWake up – and smell the leather!
If a book ever deserved to be bound in soft, supple, deep black leather, then this is it! Open its pages and, just like the Jumanji board game in the 1995 film of the same
Read moreThe complete story of the Matchless Colliers
Many TT fans will know that Charles R Collier, riding a Matchless, won the 1907 single-cylinder class over 10 laps of the original St John’s course, a distance of 158.125 miles, in 4hrs 8min 8sec
Read moreBook Review: A truly Matchless apprenticeship
Pete Kelly reviews Bill Cakebread’s newly-reprinted and wonderfully-evocative story of life in London during and just after the war, and his apprenticeship and early working life at AMC’s long-vanished Plumstead Road factory. Every now and
Read moreTritons, TriBSAs and much more besides…
Mention the words ‘café racer’ and many of us will go all bleary-eyed as we remember the Tritons and TriBSAs of old, gleaming in the sunshine with their race-style alloy tanks, clip-ons and rear-sets, alloy
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