Today in motorcycle history, May 13, 1962

  

  Aboard a Honda RC162, Jim Redman wins the 1962 250cc French Grand Prix over Bob McIntyre and Tom Phillis.  

  Before there was Mike Hailwood, Barry Sheene or Valentino Rossi there was Jim Redman.  The man who helped to guide Honda, now the world’s most successful racing manufacturer, into Grand Prix racing.

  Jim Redman’s parents were running a newspaper and tobacco shop when he was born in West Hampstead, London, in 1931.

  During World War II his father was a dispatch rider in North Africa with the British Army, but the experience left him mentally broken and in 1949 he committed suicide by laying his head on the railroad tracks.

  Not even a month later, Redman’s mother died of a cerebral hemorrhage. Jim and his 18 year old sister Jackie, were left to care for their 11 year old brother and sister.

  When he was 20 he emigrated to Rhodesia, where he met up with John Love who was changing from motorcycle racing to single-seat cars. Redman jumped at the chance to help Love prepare and maintain his Cooper F3 with a Manx Norton 500cc engine. In return for his mechanical assistance, Love offered Redman his Triumph Grand Prix twin for his first race.  He finished seventh but, he knew he this was his calling.  And was it ever.

 

  He would go on to claim four consecutive 350cc World Championships from 1962 to 1965. In 1962 and 1963 he claimed double championships winning both the 250cc and 350cc World Championships. In 1964, he became the first rider in history to claim 3 Grand Prix victories in one day.

  Redman was also a six-time Isle of Man TT winner, taking double wins in 1963, 1964 and 1965 in the Lightweight & Junior TT Races. He achieved a total of 45 Grand Prix victories. 

  James Albert Redman was awarded the MBE for his achievements.

Today in motorcycle history, May 12, 2011

    



  

  

  They say old bikes rattle, that they shimmy, shake or stall but, I'll tell you what, those decades-old machines are unparalleled in their character and artistry.  On this beautiful day, the kind that seems only to be made possible in California, almost 200 vintage bikes and almost 2000 vintage bike lovers invade the Quail Lodge Golf Club in Carmel to witness the latest Quail Motorcycle Gathering. 

  Topping the list of gotta-sees at the Gathering were Rollie Free's "Bathing Suit Bike", the Vincent HRD he set the American land-speed record with on the morning of September 13, 1948, wearing a helmet, bathing suit and borrowed shoes.  Falcon Motorcycles "The Black" was at long-last unveiled; an original modern bike built around the engine of a 1952 Vincent Black Shadow.  A 1929 Sunbeam Model 90 TT that won the Isle of Man TT that same year. The 1971 Husqvarna 400 Cross that Steve McQueen rode for a 1971 cover of Sports Illustrated.

  But, for the Triumph/cafe racer aficionado, hot rod builder So-Cal Speed Shop debuted its first-ever motorcycle, "The Miler". 

  The bike was constructed in conjunction with Streetmaster, which builds Triumph specials and sells performance parts for Bonneville motors.  The Miler’s 865cc engine—tuned to pump out 78 horsepower—benefits from Streetmaster’s cylinder-head porting, lightened flywheel, remapped ignition system, 39mm Keihin flatslide carbs and stepped, mid-level exhausts.  Streetmaster also provided its lightweight, purpose-built frame and swingarm, while So-Cal was responsible for the aluminum fuel tank, tailsection, front numberplate/headlights and sidepanels, finished in the Speed Shop’s signature red paint with bare-aluminum accents.  

  Be still my heart.

Today in motorcycle history, May 7, 1963

 
  

  Dubliner Thomas "TomCan" McCabe breaks his right wrist and 3 ribs when he crashes his 350cc Royal Enfield Bullet outside of Creag Lundle during the 1963 Scottish Six Day Trials (SSDT).

  Arthur Lampkin would eventually be the victor on his 250cc BSA, fighting Sammy Miller and his famous 500cc Ariel "Gov 132", day after grueling day.  



  Arthur also competed internationally in enduro events, representing Great Britain (BSA), earning a gold medal in the 1966 International Six Days Trial held in Sweden.

  From a bit of a Yorkshire motorcycling dynasty, Arthur and his younger brothers, Alan and Martin Lampkin, all were kick-ass trials riders. Alan won the 1966 SSDT aboard a BSA while Martin took the Scottish jewel in 1976, '77 and '78 with Bultaco. Martin Lampkin's son, is 7-time SSDT Champion, Dougie Lampkin.

  For those of you not familiar with the system of vehicle registration used in Britain, the registration number stays with each vehicle for its entire life. Sammy Miller's Ariel is registration number "GOV 132".  "GOV 132" won 161 international and national championship trials between 1958 and 1964. I don't know of any other single machine in any type of motor sport with a record like that.

  Today in motorcycle history proudly supports the National Association for Bikers with a Disability (NABD).  Check 'em out at www.nabd.org.uk

Today in motorcycle history, May 6, 1967

  

  

  Seven-time Grand National Champion, Flat-track legend and AMA Hall of Famer Chris Carr is born in Stockton, California.

 Growing up only a few miles from the Lodi Cycle Bowl,  Chris started competing at the age of 6 on a 38cc Moto Villa.  Who would've thought four decades later, he would collect seven Grand National Championships and would be second on the all-time win list behind fellow Hall of Famer Scott Parker.

  Chris Carr won his first Grand National in August 1986 at the legendary Peoria TT. In 1989, he became a member of the Harley-Davidson factory racing team. After finishing second to his H-D teammate, Scott Parker in 1990 and 1991, he finally claimed the Grand National Championship in 1992. He ran the Grand National Series full-time until 1995 where he finished third while winning rookie of the year in the AMA Superbike road racing series.



  In addition to kicking ass on the dirt oval, Carr is one of the world’s leading land-speed racers. In 2006, he became the fastest man on two wheels when he set a motorcycle land speed record of 350.884 mph piloting Denis Manning’s BUB Enterprises streamliner at the AMA/FIM International Motorcycle Speed Trials by BUB on the Bonneville Salt Flats. Although Rocky Robinson and Mike Akatiff surpassed them in 2008, Carr and Manning returned in 2009 to reclaim the record with an eye-poppin' 367.382 mph through the measured mile!

  Chris Carr won the 1992, 1999, and 2001-2005 AMA Grand National Dirt Track (Flat Track) championships, the 2000 Formula USA Dirt Track Championship and the AMA 600cc Dirt Track championship seven times (1988–1993, and 1995).  

  Today in motorcycle history is a proud supporter of the National Association of Bikers with a Disability (NABD). Check 'em out at www.nabd.org.uk

  

Today in motorcycle history, May 2, 1912

    


  

   The first Harley-Davidson Dealer magazine is published.

  Gotta give Harley credit, in the early days of the company, Milwaukee recognized the dealers value.  Believing they brought the attitude of “we're the men who handle the motorcycle". The first 16-page issue included articles on how to enhance photographic skills for publicity images and improve salesmanship through print advertising.

  Later articles ranged from the basics of store layout to the intricacies of piston wear. Most importantly, the Harley-Davidson Dealer stressed that customer loyalty had to be earned.  Do not be an asshole. 

  

  The publication was conceived as a “medium in which you dealers tell your troubles and your joys.” Of course, Harley-Davidson was the clearing house for articles so there were not many articles that contained anything too troubling.  Dealers were seen as the writers and editors of what was considered H-D's central news bureau. The message to the dealers was clear, “It is your paper.”

 The Harley-Davidson Dealer was published from 1912-1916.

Today in motorcycle history, May 1, 1955

  

 

   At Montjuic Circuit, Dubliner Reg Armstrong wins the 500cc Class Spanish Grand Prix aboard a Gilera four-cylinder.






   1955 saw Reg Armstrong have the best campaign of his life.  He would finish on the podium at the Spanish Grand Prix (first),  French Grand Prix (third), Isle of Man TT (second), Dutch TT (second) and the Nations Grand Prix (second).

  Unfortunately for Armstrong Geoff Duke was racing that year as well.

  When the Championship smoke would clear Duke would be the 1955 World Champion and Reg Armstrong would finish second.  Sigh.


  Though he always seemed to be a bridesmaid in his racing career, Honda asked him to manage their racing team in 1962 and 1963, and under his guidance they would win five world championships.

Today in motorcycle history, April 29, 1978

 

     



  

  Patriarch of the Indian Motorcycle Company Erle "Red" Armstrong dies at 89, fittingly in Springfield, Massachusetts, the home of his beloved Indian. 

  Erle Armstrong worked for Indian, either directly or indirectly, for most of the 50-year history of the company.  He was also a racer, a rider, a dealer and a Vaudevillian motorcycle stunt rider, building a special "Silodrome" and traveling with various riding partners, including his wife, putting on shows in theaters across the country.

  On July 3, 1915, Harley-Davidson flexed their muscle at the Dodge City 300 and then in August, Hendee flexed right back as Erle "Red" Armstrong rode an 8-valve Indian to victory in the inaugural, 300-mile main event on the boards at the newly-completed Tacoma, Washington, motordrome.

  Armstrong's dramatic victory ahead of H-D's Otto Walker and fellow Indian-rider Don Johns held the capacity crowd at fever pitch for most of the race.  In the closely contested finish, the winning Indian rider crossed the line only a wheel-length ahead of the Dodge City Champion.

  

  Along with his win in this important race, Red captured the world record for the 100, 200, and 300-mile distance for Indian.

  By the end of 1915, Armstrong decided to give up the morgue-visiting board-track racing circuit and began a much safer career as an emergency room-visiting stunt rider.  He built a special "Silodrome," which was basically a large barrel built with wood slats so that spectators could watch from any angle.  Setting up the Silodrome in theaters and calling the show "The Whirl of Death," Armstrong and another rider would ride in the small cylinder doing various stunts. He often rode in the show with his wife on a specially-built tandem Indian. The act became so popular that he was asked to perform the show during the Panama-Pacific Exhibition held in San Francisco in 1915.  

  Red opened an Indian dealership in Worcester, Massachusetts, in 1927, and ran it successfully until 1940.  During his shop years, he formed the Armstrong Roamers Motorcycle Club, which put on AMA-sanctioned events including what would be Red's final race in 1931 at the age of 43.  He also was the Captain of a motorcycle polo team in the early 1930's.  One of his teammates was legendary New England racer Raoul "Woodsie" Castonguay.


  After closing his dealership doors in 1940, Armstrong became production manager for Indian.  He remained with the company until its final days.  A fervent Indian loyalist, Armstrong, along with several other Indian enthusiasts, tried in vain to keep Indian alive.

  Erle "Red" Armstrong was inducted into the AMA Hall of Fame in 1998.