When I met Victor Boocock, Motorcycle Cannonball rider #29, in May of this year, he had decided to take his 1914 Harley-Davidson single for a jaunt across America. He was anxious about the trip, had a pocket full of rules he’d outlined for himself, and refused to allow me to take his photograph for fear it would jinx his ride. He painstakingly worked on his bike and making practice runs. He did so with the explicit intention of being alone on the road, just the man, and his machine.
It was supposed to be a dress rehearsal, warm-up to the Motorcycle Cannonball. He and his sturdy twin made their way across the rugged, and sometimes daunting, terrain of the route he’d chosen between New York and back to California, where he lives. Born and raised in England, he has a special appreciation for the USA that often comes with adopting this country. Along the way, Victor made many discoveries, but mostly, he gave himself an experience so full of memories that it will last the rest of his life.
Not that everything progressed according to plan. In the early planning stages, during one of his local practice rides, he blew a piston. It was original to the bike and had never been bored out, so the replacement of the piston set back his departure, stretching the preparations for the journey out over a year-and-a-half, nearly 550 days. In the end, the trip itself took only 13 days. But it was a baker’s dozen of days he says he’ll never forget.
“There was no sight-seeing,” Victor chuckled in his English lilt as he shared the tales from the road. “I was up by 4-4:30 a.m. to work on the bike, with depart by sunrise, off the road by 5 p.m. I averaged about 300 miles a day.” Remember, that’s on a 1914 H-D. While most of us would expect weather to be a major factor when making a journey of this kind, the ever-so-charming Victor smiled and said, “There was no weather at all. It was absolutely beautiful.” 
Of course, that was allowing for the thunderstorm that soaked him and the whistling tornadoes he watched off in the distance, though they never affected him. He did come face-to-face with a series of mechanical situations keeping the journey, ah, let’s just say, “interesting.”
A gallon of oil every two days
To begin with, consider that, in accordance with the 1914 H-D factory specs for a total-loss oil system, a whopping 7 gallons of the sticky stuff went through the single-speed engine from coast to coast. That’s more than most “modern” bikes use in a year or three. 
Victor’s 1914 H-D was equipped with an auxiliary gas tank, which is filled from the gas station pumps, then manually pumped into the bike’s fuel tanks. The reason was: safety. As Victor explained in a video posted on the Cannonball website, the new pump nozzles don’t fit into the opening of the 1914 flat-sided tanks, and often the petrol splashes back over the tank and onto the hot engine, creating a serious fire hazard. What is also shown on video is Victor being towed by a pickup to the top of Austin Summit in Nevada, at the edge of the Smokey Valley. Steep inclines and altitude were not particularly friendly to the geriatric motorcycle.
Added to the daily routine early on was the discovery of a slow leak in the rear tire, which meant pumping it up everyday to maintain the required 60 pounds of pressure. With cord showing, the tire was worn out by the time he hit Kansas but wasn’t changed until Dodge City. Gunsmoke territory. Two days later, in Green River, Utah, Victor discovered a screwdriver lodged through the sidewall of the tire. Upon reflection, he considered himself lucky. “Everyone knows those old clincher tires are notorious for coming off the rims, and I avoid a crash,” Victor stated nonchalantly. Also, running with 60 pounds tire pressure makes the ride on the rigid frame even harder. Most contestants will install later model tires for a softer ride.
Somewhere in Virginia both pistons seized up. “Well, not exactly seized,” Victor, explained. “It was more that those old cast iron heads just got very hot and it felt like someone had the brakes on. I stopped and let them cool off and they loosened back up, so I went on my way.” Okay.
A 30-cent cuppa a Joe
Then there was the day that, while puttering along at 40 mph, Victor suddenly felt a smart blow to his back. Startled, he was confused and thought a bird must have flown into him. Suddenly his motorcycle started making a hideous noise, forcing him to pull over to investigate. Upon inspection, he discovered that the bungee cord holding his rain suit to the luggage rack had come undone and hit him in the back. The flapping rain suit fell over the rear wheel and was wrapped itself around the wheel and sprocket, bending his chain guard. He peeled the rain gear out of the chain, straightened the guard, and Victor was back on the road in no time. Routine, really old chap.
While all these niggling little mechanical experiences were just part of the journey, Victor still found the magic of his adventure. “People were just super,” he said. “I had some lovely experiences. While in rural Kentucky, where I got a cup of coffee for 30 cents, a gentleman who had passed me earlier as I stood on the side of the road transferring fuel, came up and asked if I was okay. Apparently he had gone back to an overpass to make a u-turn and travel back several miles to be sure I was alright and not broken down.” Every time he needed a hand, some one was there to help. 
Here’s a perfect example: While he stood on the side of a Colorado highway, a steep mountain pass stretched ominously before him. It was too much for the old machine, but would be Good Samaritan happened along to offer aid. He was towing a bike trailer, with just one bike strapped in place and an open chock. Victor’s exhausted motorcycle was loaded onto the trailer and transported to more reasonable terrain.
By the time he reached California, Victor’s 1914 Harley was tired. So, while he won’t be on the starting line in Kitty Hawk, his fellow Cannonball riders today now know it can be done. Victor and the other riders who went before — like “Cannonball” Baker – broke the trail. That spirit will, no doubt, inspire everyone on the Motorcycle Cannonball as they head for the West Coast arrival on September 10th, and Victor hopes to join the contestants later in the ride.
As for his solo trip, Victor laments, “Ya know, I would like to just go back and tackle that pass in Colorado, to make it under my own steam. It’s kind of like climbing Mount Everest. You don’t always make it the first try.”
