Golden Era Vintage Motorcycle Run – About the Event
Welcome to the sixth Golden Era Run for early motorcycles, all manufactured before 1931. The Run gives owners of these fascinating machines the opportunity to ride them before the public in the company of fellow enthusiasts. And this is how they need to be seen – in action!
This is not a competitive event. The riders follow a route of quiet lanes and complete it in their own time. They have a choice of route: a flat one of about 35 miles for the earliest bikes or a hilly one of 55 miles for those with luxuries such as gears. The riders can choose whichever they prefer. Both routes start and finish at the Museum.
Motorcycles manufactured before 1915 are known as Veteran, and from 1915-1931 they are Vintage. The earliest models are little more than pedal cycles with a motor built in. They have no clutch, so when the bike stops, so does the engine. By about 1912 most bikes were fitted with a clutch and two or three gears but are still extremely primitive by modern standards. Until the mid-20s there was little agreement about whether to drive the back wheel by belt or chain and there are plenty examples of each running today. Eventually the chains took over.
It is notable that the Yorkshire-built Scott and P&M motorcycles used chain drive from the beginning – the hills of the West Riding probably had a bit to do with that! There are several examples of both makes in action today.
Riding any veteran or vintage bike is a craft in itself: fuel, air, ignition and oiling have to be managed by the rider and constantly monitored – a complete contrast to today’s ‘twist-and-go’ machines. Once under way there is huge satisfaction in coaxing efficient performance from these historic bikes.
The machines leave the Museum at 10.30 and will be returning from noon onwards. They will be on display until about 3.30pm, weather permitting
We are most grateful to the management of the Yorkshire Air Museum for their co-operation in hosting the Golden Era Run, and to Taylors of Harrogate for supplying their YORKSHIRE TEA – the essential fuel for most of the riders.
The Riders and their Machines
| 1 | P & M 411cc | 1907 | John Earnshaw, S/Yorks | Made in Cleckheaton. One of the earliest P & Ms known. Climbed Sutton Bank in 1908 – a very rare feat then. | |
| 2 | Douglas 2.3/4hp | 1912 | Rory Sinclair | Recorded as participating in the Tyneside Rally of 1964. Subsequently owned for many years by Robert Atkinson, renowned in the N E for his connections with the Beamish Trials and the Museum. | |
| 3 | Triumph 4hp | 1914 | David Earnshaw, S/Yorks | A great example of the Triumph marque in the hands of one of the most experienced riders in the world of Veteran motorcycling. | |
| 4 | Coulson ‘B’ 550cc | 1920 | Raymond Hudson, Somerset | Ray has come up from the deep south to display this rare machine. Advanced for their day with spring frames, Coulsons were built in small numbers at Kings Cross in London. | |
| 5 | Rover 350cc | 1925 | Brenda Hallard, Warwickshire | Brenda recently won the VMCC’s premier award, the Dreadnought Trophy, for her exploits on this and other bikes from the 20s. This was the last model produced by the Rover company. | |
| 6 | AJS 350cc H6 | 1926 | Graham Hallard, Warwickshire | A sporty lightweight 350. | |
| 7 | Triumph Model H 550cc | 1918 | Graeme Rimer, W/Yorks | A 1914-18 war Dispatch rider’s machine. This example has made many long journeys in the hands of Rider # 9, including the Alps and Lands End-John o’ Groats. | |
| 8 | Triumph Model P 490cc | 1926 | Rob Whittall, New Zealand | This economy model has been in the family since 1961. Just restored, largely by Ian Jennings, this is its first rally since 1966. | |
| 9 | Triumph Model C 3.1/2hp | 1913 | Noel Whittall, W/Yorks | Belt drive, foot clutch, three-speed rear hub and not a lot in the way of brakes. Enough there to keep the rider occupied. | |
| 10 | Triumph Model H 550cc | 1916 | Paul Rogers, W/Yorks | A 1914-18 war Dispatch rider’s machine, reconditioned for civvy use by Triumphs after the war. | |
| 11 | Velocette KSS 350cc | 1927 | David Barker, W/Yorks | Sporty overhead-camshaft engine: a classic vintage Velo. | |
| 12 | P & M 3.1/2 hp | 1912 | Steve Jenkin, Cumbria | A good example of solid Yorkshire engineering. Two gears and chain drive. | |
| 13 | Triumph 550cc TT Roadster | 1919 | Derek Pollard, S/Yorks | Just a single gear and no clutch. Can be a handful! | |
| 14 | BSA S27 500cc | 1927 | Geoff Pollard, S/Yorks | A lively Vintage 500. | |
| 15 | Scott Squirrel 486cc | 1923 | John Thompson, E/Yorks | Scotts were built in Shipley and are quite unlike any of the contemporary makes, being water-cooled twin cylinder two-strokes. Listen to the difference when John rides away! | |
| 16 | BSA Model S30 500cc | 1930 | Brian Wollas, E/Yorks | The ‘S’ in before the model number tells us that this is one of the famous Sloper BSAs. | |
| 17 | Francis Superior SS500 | 1927 | Tim Walker, W/Yorks | A skilfully executed ‘wedding’ between a vintage Francis-Barnett frame and a vee-twin engine of similar period. | |
| 18 | BSA ‘Sloper’
500cc |
1928 | Steve Rowley, W/Yorks | For BSA, the first year of the sloped engine, although P & M and others had done it from their earliest models. It was to become fashionable in the industry until the mid ‘30s. | |
| 19 | Triumph Model H 550cc | 1920 | David Payne, Warwickshire | A spotless example of the Trusty Triumph, recently restored to ‘as new’ condition. | |
| 20 | Sunbeam 499cc | 1914 | Tony Cowley, S/Yorks | Such Veteran (i.e. pre-1915) examples of the Wolverhampton marque are very rare. | |
| 21 | Royal Enfield 350cc | 1925 | Dennis Buckle, W/Yorks | Dennis and his Enfield are a familiar and welcome sight at many Yorkshire events. | |
| 22 | Triumph Model H 550cc | 1915 | David Frank, E/Yorks | David restored this bike in 1959 and reports trouble-free riding on it ever since! | |
| 23 | Triumph Model H 550cc | 1916 | John Taylor, E/Yorks | Here’s another of the ever popular dispatch rider bikes, frequently rallied by John. | |
| 24 | AJS G8 498cc | 1926 | Peter Freeman, E/Yorks | A good ‘all round vintage motorcycle’. | |
| 25 | Omega Model 2
293cc |
1924 | James Wood, N/Yorks | A rare JAP powered bike that has spent all its life in and around the York area. | |
| 26 | Triumph Model H 550cc | 1919 | Philip Castle, Leicestershire | About 30,000 Triumphs like this were supplied to the forces during the war and production continued for the civvy market until 1922-3. That many have survived is a tribute to the quality of the workmanship and materials. | |
| 27 | Triumph TT
500cc |
1928 | Peter Hird, E/Yorks | Rare and fast! Quite a development compared with # 26. | |
| 28 | Scott 596cc
Sidecar |
1930 | David Town, W/Yorks | David’s Scott has a three-speed gearbox and a 600cc engine to help it pull the recently-fitted sidecar. | |
| 29 | BSA Model H 4hp | 1914 | John Robinson, Co Durham | Bike and rider have shared a chequered career, including an unplanned descent of a Northumbrian mine-shaft. | |
| 30 | Martinside Model D 680cc | 1922 | Brian Walker, Notts | A rare bird. Martinsides were made by the aircraft company of the same name at Brooklands. | |
| 31 | BSA Model L29 | 1929 | Richard Higgins, E/Lancs | A reliable lightweight 350 from the Birmingham Small Arms Company. | |
| 32 | Scott Super Squirrel 500cc | 1929 | Geoff Green, Lancashire | A late example of the original two-speed Scott, still a favourite of many riders. | |
| 33 | Scott Squirrel 600cc | 1929 | Fred Taylor, Lancs | A lovely example of the big twin two-strokes from Shipley. | |
| 34 | Scott Flying Squirrel | 1930 | John Lockett, Lancs | Squirrel, Super Squirrel, Flying Squirrel! You have to be a Scott enthusiast to appreciate the difference. Jon assures us that his Flyer goes quicker than Geoff Green’s Super … | |
| 35 | Norton 16H
498cc |
1926 | Raymond King, W/Yorks | A flat-tank Norton at its best. | |
| 36 | Norton 16H
498cc |
1928 | Barry Tyreman, W/Yorks | The ‘flat-tank’ style is beginning to fade into the curves of the ‘saddle-tank’era in this bike from long-time Norton restorer Barry. | |
| 37 | Ariel Model A 550cc | 1926 | Dennis Cooney, E/Yorks | Ariel. Another great name from the Golden Era of British motorcycling. This 550 is a lusty single-cylinder slogger. | |
| 38 | Raleigh Model 6A | 1925 | Ian Cooney, E/Yorks | Light, low and quite quick if pushed. | |
| 39 | Velocette Model K
350cc |
1927 | Harry Oglesby, E/Yorks | A fast sports machine. Has behaved with distinction at track days in England and Germany, with Harry at the helm. | |
| 40 | Sunbeam Model 9
490cc |
1930 | Ron and Chris Spinks, Leicestershire | After too long in a museum, Ron says he is happy that this sporty 500 is now back on the road where it belongs. | |
| 41 | AJS OHV 350cc | 1927 | Bob Wylde, W/Yorks | The ‘Big Port Ajay’ was powerful and light, making it ideal for the sport of motorcycle football, which enjoyed a brief vogue in the late ‘20s. This bike and #42 were among six bought for Leeds Motorcycle Club team by the Headingly authorities. They were purchased by Bob’s father sometime in the 1930s. A third survivor is known too, living in the south. | |
| 42 | AJS OHV 350cc | 1927 | John Chadwick, W/Yorks | The second of the ex-football machines. | |
| 43 | Douglas 2.3/4hp | 1914 | Chris Habgood, Wiltshire | This model of Douglas was to perform well on dispatch rider duty during the war. Two cylinders, two gears but no clutch. It has to be ‘paddled off’ to start. |
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