When we were at the Harley Museum the other day they had an exhibit about The Race of Gentlemen. In order to participate you must have a car or bike that is from early thirties to late forties, with a few exceptions. There were a few vehicles on display, like the belly tank racer which I've always thought were just cool as all hell. More impressive to me, however, were the large black and white photographs that lined the exhibit hall. Very nicely done from both an artistic and technical standpoint.
The Museum had a wall covered with the various engines that have powered their bikes over the 100 plus years. I thought it was pretty cool that they had a two-stroke, iron head Sportster and Sprint all displayed together since until recently I had at least one of each.
The Royal Enfield Himalayan. I like this thing. Those big-ass adventure bikes just seem like typical American overkill - if a little is good, more is better and too much is just right. It used to be a 650 Brit bike was considered big and guys would ride them everywhere. Now a 650 is barely a middleweight. I'm looking at the Himalayan as an updated version of the BSA Victor. Should be a fun bike. The sales lady said the price should be set in September and I would imagine there will be a few road tests in the bike magazines before long as well. I'd like to take one for a spin and get all the specs.
This is the Indy car I mentioned in the last post. I thought I'd taken another photo of it but guess not. When I was looking the car over I noticed the back axle had a cone welded on the end as it attached to the brake drum - TIG welded at that. Not the kind of technology that was available in the 30's. The owner of the car explained that he and a friend decided to build a car but since they couldn't agree on what exactly to build, they each built one. The craftsmanship on this car is top notch. The frame rails were tapered front to rear, so he had to weld the flanges on and then grind everything so it looked like a factory stamping - and they did. The cowling and the rear sheet metal was nice and smooth. The aluminum for the nose over the radiator was polished and I couldn't see a flaw anywhere. Very, nice.
There was also a recreation of a roadster by Gary Babineau. If you're looking for your own Indy roadster or something similar, he'll make you one. Probably cheaper than an original Watson.
I got a chance to see what a door on a Jag like Jimmy's looks like. The owner was kind enough to let me take a look at one of the opened doors. He said the frame work is all wooden with an aluminum skin. Sounds like something I could do. I'd need to look into it a bit more before tackling that project but when I finish up a few more of the ones around here, maybe see about building a pair of doors.
Cuzzin Rick and I saw a bunch of cool stuff last weekend but now it's time to get back to work around here. I've got some more yard work to do. The weeds are starting to get away from me and I need to service the mower. Looks like I'll have lots of peaches pretty soon. Maybe make some more wine. I've got another 5K this weekend. So busy like always but I wouldn't have it any other way.
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