The master Bikernet illustration Jon Towle at LA Calendar Bike show.
Not much happening, it’s overcast, like the death fog has attacked the coast. It’s threatening rain in San Francisco. Winter has sealed in much of the rest of the country and bikers all over are pacing the floors, watching playoff games and peering out the windows hoping for a break in the weather.
I don’t have much in our bag of tricks, but what I do have is interesting:
American Rider Magazine Features “Badlands”
The rider group, Elhert Publishing, is one of the most conservative publishers, in the industry, but they decided to reach into the vast underworld. So, of course they contacted me to write some wild techs and then offered to run chapters from our “Badlands” project. That’s a book designed to capture the outlaw spirit from the past before it’s only historic rumors. Watch for the next issue.
Deal Of The Week Here’s the deal of the week, unfortunately the bike is in Sweden. I spoke to my antique bike curator, Don Whalen recently and here’s what he suggested to offer and why: I would first make sure that its factory paint and not a “correct color”. If its a real org. paint running riding bike, I would offer him 3k. This is a very narrow market bike.
If it was an overhead valve bike it would be worth double or even triple that amount. I think you could air frieght it back for a grand. It would be duty free as its an American product returning. If you have some interest in this 1929 Single here’s the contact: Harry Nordlund harry.nordlund@atl.aland.fi
The Sunday History Lesson
Funny you should bring up Marsh-Metz. When you first asked me what my grandfathers bike was I shot a pix off to the “Wheels in Time Museum” to see if they could answer the question. They said it might be an M&M and I started looking for information. I found pictures from 1906 to 1912 of M&M. They all used the same style of handle bar and it didn’t match my grandpa’s bike. Then you told me it was a Yale and they have a unique handle bar/front end that does match.
Anyway, along with the pictures I found some text and it seems that both companies are stretching the truth to claim first production motorcycle. If you look strictly at the manufacture start up dates. Yale 1903 and M&M 1906 I guess Yale wins but neither are the first.
They both try to claim earlier manufactures as their own. Yale bought out California Motor Company that started building the “California” in 1901. M&M claiming Mentz’ production at Waltham Manufacturing Company starting in 1899. Seems like a close call, their doesn’t appear to be an exact production date for either. They say Metz started an advertising campaign in 1899, not production. They also claim Mentz coined the word motorcycle. Below are parts of the text I found.
FTW,
–Stroker
Charles Metz and Motorcycles
Metz then began an advertising campaign in 1899 and in his catalog listed these pacers as Orient Motor-cycles. This is the first published catalog using the term motor-cycle, other literature referred to them as motor-bicycles. Thus the word motorcycle was coined.
Metz left the Waltham Manufacturing Company in 1902 and started his own company on Whitney Avenue that was behind Woolworths, on Moody Street. Here he produced the Metz motorcycle that was so good that it established the American record for a one-mile run at 1 minute and 10 seconds.
In 1906 Metz put a two-cylinder 4 H.P. engine on his motorcycles. That same year Metz merged with the Marsh Co. of Brockton and together they put out the Marsh-Metz motorcycle that was one of the best machines on the market. A twin-cylinder M-M motorcycle was introduced in 1908.
California Motor Company
The California Motor Company of San Francisco was short-lived. Announced in October 1901 to build a machine designed by Roy Marks, two years later in October 1903 an announcement appeared to the effect that the Kirk Manufacturing Company and the Snell Cycle Fittings Company were to merge to form The Consolidated Manufacturing Company, and that this company, based in Toledo, Ohio, had acquired the rights to the California motorcycle.
The new machine, to be manufactured on the old machinery which had been shipped to Toledo, was to be called the Yale -California. The first Yale motorcycle.
So there we have it. In two hectic years the California Motor Company was founded, built a motorcycle and a reputation, and then sold out. If the history books are anything to go by, the company has essentially been forgotten, despite producing what should be one of the most famous motorcycles of all time: Wyman’s trans-continental mount. Hopefully the 2003 century of Wynan’s ride will jog some memories.
George Wyman
I’ve often wondered whether I could repeat it: to cross the continental US from San Francisco to New York on a gutless motorcycle with wooden wheels. But there are roads now. When George Wyman did it in 1903 there were only tracks, and he had to retreat to the railway cross ties to make any progress at all. When he completed his 3800-mile journey on the afternoon of July 6, 1903 he became the first person to cross the continent with a vehicle powered by an internal combustion engine. The stuff of legends.
Just because you can buy it doesn?t mean you can drive it!–Don Whalen
From This Weeks News
“1966 Georgia adopts the first helmet law in the U.S.”
I recall reading a piece in your rag (Easyriders) a few back, saying the first helmet law in the states was for a California border town. It was enacted to stop the then lid free California biker trash from invading their town every weekend and had nothing to do with safety or public burden.
Was that fiction or am I just hallucinating the whole fuckin’ thing? If it was for real I would like to have a copy of that article if possible.
FTW,
–Stroker
Everything in Easyriders is nuts on. Don’t you know that?
New Harley History Book
I’m currently working on a short history piece on Harley from 1903 to 1920 for a new antique motorcycle magazine called Motorcycles in Retrospect. I’ve scanned four books for reference and they’re all different yet touch on predominately the same material. This book was written by David K. Wright and is published by Car Tech, www.cartechbooks.com. It’s not a bad piece for any riders collection. The others I reviewed were the Big Book of Harley, Myths and Mystique and Willie’s book 100 Years which is interesting because it covers much of the history from his perspective.
More Darwin Awards
[Kalamazoo Gazette]: James Burns, 34, (a mechanic) of Alamo, Mich., was killed as he was trying to repair what police describe as a “farm type truck.” Burns got a friend to drive the truck on a highway while Burns hung underneath so that he could ascertain the source of a troubling noise. Burns’ clothes caught on something, however, and the other man found Burns “wrapped in the drive shaft.”
–from Miss Kris
Biker Star Search NBC TV producer contacted me, may have reached out to you too, about finding a biker family with a pretty daughter for the reality TV dating show “Meet the Folks.” So that the producer doesn’t get a poseur who can’t communicate the true idea of respect, I want to help find a cool family for this show. It’s not raunchy! But, it’s important that a weekend warrior wannabe doesn’t get cast as the biker pretending to be some kind of tough guy with his 30K Harley sitting in the driveway spit shine and only 200 miles on it…just using the image…
What do you think…know anyone? They’d like a California family if possible. The daughter has to be between 19 and 27 and very pretty.
–Sasha
sasha@bikerlady.com
Insurance Advice An 80 year old man visited the doctor’s office for a general physical, as required by his new insurance company. The doctor was amazed by the excellence of the elderly man’s health and physical condition.
The doctor asked, “To what do you attribute your good health?”
The old timer said, “I’m a motorcyclist — that’s why I’m in such good shape. I’m up well before daylight and out riding in the hills.”
The doctor said, “Well, I’m sure that helps, but there’s got to be more to it. How old was your dad when he died?”
The old timer said, “Who said my dad’s dead?”
The doctor said, “You mean you’re 80 years old and your dad’s still alive? How old is he?”
The old timer said, “He’s 100-years old, and as a matter of fact, he rode with me this morning, and I think that’s why he’s still alive — he’s an avid biker.”
The doctor said, “Well, that’s great, but I’m sure there’s more to it. How about your dad’s dad? How old was he when he died?”
The old timer said, “Who said my grandpa’s dead?”
The doctor said, “You mean you’re 80 years old and your grandfather’s still living? How old is he?”
The old timer said, “He’s 118 years old.”
The doctor was getting frustrated at this point and said sarcastically, “I guess he went riding with you this morning, too?”
The old timer said, “No, Grandpa couldn’t go this morning.”
Now the doctor thought he was making progress and ask, “Why, is he beginning to feel his age?”
The old timer said, “Hell no, Grandpa got married today.”
The Doctor said in amazement, “Got married!!! Why would a guy 118 years old want to get married?”
The old timer said, “Who said he wanted to?”
–from A. Friedman
“My parents didn’t want to move to Florida, but they turned sixty, and that’s the law.”–Jerry Seinfeld
–from Kris B.
The Sun Is Breaking Out–So Will I–I want a sandwich, a girl and the open road. This week will be a blast, yet I’m still trying to fiqure out my year. I was recently contact by a publishing company about writing a book on the Discovery Channel’s Monster Garage Series. Should I write about a Mustang being turned into a lawn mower? I want to publish one of my books (Chance), and it looks like Badlands will be published in 2004.
–Bandit
