Today in motorcycle history, February 5, 1965

 Svend Oluf Heiberg dies in Syracuse, New York.  Svend Heiberg was a silviculturalist, born in Copenhagen, Denmark, on July 22, 1900.  He came to the United States in 1926, becoming a naturalized US citizen in 1934.  Heiberg received masters degrees in forestry from both the Danish Royal Veterinary and Agricultural College in Copenhagen and Yale University.

 

 On September 9, 1924, Heiberg and his friend, Aksel Svane, who would later become Governor of Greenland, ventured on an historic world-tour on Svend's 1922 Harley-Davidson JD motorcycle.  Interested in studying "the forest reserves... of the world", their route took them from Copenhagen, through Europe to Turkey, from there to Iraq, "by steamer to India", then to Sri Lanka, Malaysia, China, across the United States, and back to Europe.

 

 After their arrival at the Harley-Davidson factory in Milwaukee on March 27, 1925, the two Danish grad-students tell reporters from the Milwaukee Sentinel, "Crossing the Arabian desert was a difficult job, but was accomplished with only the loss of our tent and rifle, which were stolen by brigands while we slept." said Heiberg.  "Keeping ourselves in gas was another problem, but we solved that with a supply of leather bags attached to the rear of the motorcycle." 

 Svend Oluf Heiberg was awarded the Order of Dannebrog for his contribution to the sciences.