OLD BRITS ROAD TEST
What happens when bikes up to nearly a century old are thrust into the hands of riders who are barely familiar with a right-foot gearlever – let alone a hand-change? We took a ride through the Kent countryside to find out…
Words MARK HOLMES Photography GARY MARGERUM
These old things are just about chuffing round a parade ring in fancy dress, aren’t they?” I venture with a grin, looking down at Rick’s 1928 Sunbeam Model 9. But he’s not taking the bait. He knows my reference to his habit of dressing in period attire to demonstrate his more elderly motorcycles at off-road gatherings is a thinly-veiled attempt to wind him up. In fact, Classic Bike’s vintage motorcycle evangelist has expressly forbidden me from calling them ‘old chuffers’. He should’ve known it would have the opposite effect. Whether that description is pertinent or not remains to be seen...
We’re about to find out – and the means for doing so couldn’t be more enjoyable. A bunch of us has descended on Mr Parkington’s Kent retreat (a selection of bike-stuffed garages and sheds loosely attached to a house) to raid his collection, commandeer five of his motorcycles and cart them off to a place of safety where we can muck about on them. Apart from the fact that it seemed like a fun thing to do, there is a vaguely relevant point to all this, because three of our party have little or no experience of riding old chuffers – sorry, very old motorcycles. We wanted to see if we could penetrate their veil of seemingly alien and complex control systems, get to grips with them and wring out a bit of entertainment in the process.
For the purposes of this experiment, we’ve plucked the Sunbeam, along with a 1936 Rudge Ulster, a 1935 Norton International, a 1956 BSA DBD34 Gold Star and a 1959Triumph Thunderbird from their semi-slumber in Rick’s retirement home for old bikes. Our motley crew’s range of experience starts with CB design man Austin Smith, who is a seasoned rider but has never thrown a leg over a classic bike in his life. Then there’s modern bike habitué and CB contributor John Westlake, who rode a Speed Twin on a VMCC run years ago and “nearly died three times” due to brake/gearchange confusion, as well as once having a brief go on Hugo’s old Matchless off-road.
My personal experience on really old stuff is limited to a few hours chugging round Rutland on a Brough SS80, although I did have a brief ride on Rick’s Norton Inter over 10 years ago on the Isle of Man, when the bouncy-castle effect of its sprung seat on a bumpy road had me in a fit of uncontrollable giggles. There will be no foot-based gearchanging for me today, though, as I’ve broken my right big toe, so will be limited to the two hand-change bikes (the Rudge and Sunbeam). Acting in the role of responsible adults, we have CB Editor Hugo Wilson, a man who has plonked his rear end on many a vintage bike (although he’s never ridden a Rudge) and, of course, the owner of these machines (and many more) Mr Rick Parkington, to whom these motorcycles are more like his own offspring than mere machines.