Easter has just gone past and most of us are still in lock down, hopefully with loved ones. We are allowed out for shopping as long as we exercise our social distancing skills, be patient in the long queues at the food outlets and do not go visiting or on sight seeing trips. Hard as it may seem, especially now that the novelty has worn off about having a government paid holiday at home we will have a better understanding of viruses and how deadly they can be. Not a time to be complacent.
One thing that can be said about vintage classic motorcyclists is that we are a durable lot. Others may be finding it hard in times of disorder but lets face it we look for any excuse to get out to the workshop. Whether it be just to polish our pride and joy or to continue with that 5 year long restoration we are there. The only problem though is that because of social distancing we cannot share our joys and delights, unless of course you are more savvy than the rest of us and video your successes and press the send button.
Of course there is always a down side to these type of situations, mine would be withdrawal symptoms from the lack of bidding or hitting the Buy Now button on Trade Me! For others it would be the cancellation of their favourite events, swap meets, car and hotrod shows, motorcycle racing. Its not until the choice of attending these events is taken away that we realize how much we take them for granted, and of course how much effort has gone into organizing them only to have them cancelled.
For me my monthly treat of the English classic vintage motorcycling magazine subscriptions and marque club newsletters has become sporadic. Not a surprise on the club magazines as a lot of these are small publications that are labour intensive. So what is going to happen when it all ends? They say that the economy will take a long time to recover, and that a lot of businesses will not survive. This will effect the advertising of services and of course how much loss the publications can sustain. Will this be the same for classic motorcycling. Projects could remain half finished in workshops for years to come, will rallies suffer a steep decline in entrants.
In some cases big changes have had to been made. With partners living closer together and not going to work strains can appear in relations. Sometimes comments can include “you don’t appreciate me” or “you don’t spend enough time with me” . A friendly message from those in Barnstormers HQ about involvement and sharing could be found in the following cartoon drawing.
Of course careful negotiating would have to take place and remember that carpet is not good at absorbing oil, especially if any of you have convinced the wife that the lounge would be a great place to spanner her motorcycle.
Sales catalogues have filled the pages of Barnstormers over the last couple of months, and we still have a few more more very interesting ones to put up. A 1926 The NUT, 1929 Rex Acme and 1920 Royal Enfield Bicycles and Motorcycles are on the list.
We are still continuing on our article on the Indian 741B and how it provided mobility during WW2 and how even now it is still doing the same. Hopefully to be put up on site within the next few months.It would have to be one of the most under rated girder fork motorcycles out there, albeit I think our Australian owners appreciate it more than here in NZ. So if you have a photo of your trusty steed in any shape or form we would love to put it up on Barnstormers. Whether it is restored/unrestored, chopper, bobber, military or been personalised to your own taste please get in touch by our contacts page.
A modern rebuild of a 741 from Rex of Wellington. One of the many we hope to feature.
A keen supporter of early veteran and vintage motorcycles was Ron Carpenter from Hamilton. One of his favourite motorcycles was his treasured 1929 BSA 500 OHV sloper, seen at many rallies throughout the 1970s, 80s, and early 90s. Sadly Ron passed away early last year aged 84 years. Since the 1960s Ron amassed quite a collection of early motorcycles and even more parts and as with any collection these are usually put up for auction. Differently, Rons was offered up as a fixed price for the entire collection by the family and has since found a new owner in Auckland. The happy purchaser said that the decision to buy enabled him to build on an established collection and was glad to be able to honour the families wishes that the collection not be sold overseas. For anybody wanting to get into early veteran motorcycling this was a great start. Hopefully we will be able to catch up with Mike and share some photos when he has got everything sorted.
As life returns to some sort of normality we will be able to catch up with old friends at swap meets, motorcycle shows and race meetings. So depending on border controls and the complete lifting of the lock down here are a few events that could be marked down on the calendar.
Swap meetings – Mid North Island Swap Meet (Rotorua) Sunday 12th July, Taupiri Swap Meet 1st Nov (not confirmed) , and the best – the Christchurch Swap Meet on the 9th to 11th October. And as a start to a great christmas the Waikato Vintage Car Club Swap Meet on 15th November 2020.
NZ Ride for Life Motorcycle Show – 7-8th November 2020 at the ASB Event Center at Greenlane, Auckland. Always a great line up and something for everybody.
And now for those of you who would like a laugh meet this interesting little fellow. Even being full of attitude he still requires the assistance of others to get from A to B. Old and Happy. I am still laughing.
Keep working on those projects, remember to carry on knocking on our door to see what we have been up to, and stay safe.
And for those of you who are really concerned, me and the dog are just fine. Bahaha!!!
McSnotty