Happy New Year!

Happy New Year from The Vintage Motorcyclist!

Iron & Resin: 2012 Brand Video

Cool video by Iron & Resin and Scott Toepfer.

Bad luck

Well... As you can see - we haven't updated the blog for a while. Unfortunately, Arie had an accident two months ago (He's O.K and is now recovering) and I started my master's degree so I don't have as much free time as before.

6 OVER - KICKSTART

This is the new trailer for the new movie by DicE Magazine and Wild Honey Productions.

Two Wheel Worship

Cool video from '59 that educate for safe riding. Credit to the cool GasCapKustom blog.




Have nice and safe weekend!

Calm weekend

Here are some photos I took this weekend.

It's Better In The Wind

Finally, it's here. The long awaited short movie "It's Better In The Wind" by Scott Toepfer. For the last two years Scott documented his rides around the western US with his friends, compiling all the video footage to this beautiful short film.

TRIUMPH 5TA SPEEDTWIN 1966

I stumbled apon this video in one of the Israeli motorcycling forums. I think its quite an amazing work and you definitely don't see stuff like this everyday around here.

Lior

Metzada run 2011

Now that was something you don't see everyday around here. Riding all night in order to get to Metzada to see the sunrise with another 1500 motorcycles from every kind. That was one hell of an experience. Unfortunately, my camera died right at the beginning so I have no pictures, but Arie made a little video clip (that used all his memory card capacity). Hope you'll enjoy it as much as we do.

Lior

Afternoon

Following the Kingdom of Heaven

When I was a little kid (more of a kid than I am now, at any case) on a school field trip, I saw a big, beautiful castle on a tall hill, myself safely buckled in behind a huge window of a bus. It was unlike anything I have ever seen and it set my imagination ablaze. I told myself that one day I would surely climb that hill and plant my banner in whatever suitable spot I could possibly find.

I did not know that it'd be another 12 years before I actually set a foot - or rather, a wheel, on that holy ground, but fate has its strange ways - and so the pair of us took a few cans of tuna, sleeping bags, a tent and some other things I'd probably spare you, strapped it all on to our poor, but a very proud friend - and embarked on a pretty epic journey of 3 days, 2 nights and exactly 666 kilometers, in the footsteps of the Ninth Crusade and its various mischiefs.

If you happen to own a motorcycle in the Kingdom of Heaven, and in the unlikely event you don't know what to do with it - I might suggest to follow in our wake and take a trip to the numerous crusader sites throughout the country - you may learn more than you think. And of course, two wheels will move your soul farther on this journey than any other means possibly can.

***

***

***

God wills it.

Arie

TVM has a new member: Duncan!

Born in England and lucky enough to have a father that bought me my first bike aged 7, which was a 50cc Malaguti scrambler. Never stopped riding since then.

I have owned a 250cc B.S.A. Goldstar, an 850cc Norton Commando, a 1170cc Suzuki Katana, numerous Kawasaki’s (Z650’s and GPZ 900.) and a 900cc Triumph Trident. For the past couple of years I have been a Motorcycle Instructor for my good friend at Lightning Motorcycle Training in Oxford.

I have spent my life travelling to more than 50 countries. My passions are Rock and Roll, British Bikes, Writing and Beaches.

Living with a 1975 Norton Commando 850cc Mk.IIa Roadster

I was lucky, my grandmother wasn’t. I was 15 when she died. Six months later my dad told me she’d left me $2500 in her will. My dad loved sports cars, and instead of forcing me to keep that money for my future he just handed me a cheque. I could do anything with it! Three days later I purchased a Norton for $1000. It was 1983.

My older brothers were all into Triumph Bonnevilles and I wanted to be similar but different. The Triumph was a prettier bike - but the Norton looked more muscular.

I had to wait three years before I was legal on the road. And then my tempestuous relationship started that would span three decades. I still own this bike today; it waits for me in a barn in England under covers, a home for spiders.

The first thing you learn about a Norton is how to start it. The kick-start is as violent as a drunk football hooligan. It has the capability of breaking your shin or ankle, or just throwing you across the street. The second: the vibration. Although it has isolastics, the bike is prone to excessive vibration. Once it is set up correctly it is a fantastic ride.

Second gear has enormous grunt and it will happily cruise through towns and villages in third or fourth gear. This bike was built for the country lanes of Britain. It is there that the handling and power to weight ratio really came into its own. My best rides are with other mid-Seventies bikes like Triumphs, B.M.W.’s, Ducatis and Laverdas.

Over the years I have changed it little. It has survived one main accident and many ‘drops’ over the years without any damage to it whatsoever. The most I had to replace were handle bars or foot-pegs. I did change the exhaust system during its last overhaul for a pair of ‘SS’ pipes which you can see in the more recent photos. These pipes have open slash-cut ends that create fantastic flames and noise on the overrun, especially downhill.

I will always own this bike and it will always own me. It is a love affair with both its ups and downs and maybe one day I hope to pass that rare privilege on.

Duncan

"It's better in the wind" new trailer

Brand new trailer for the upcoming short film "It's better in the wind" by Scott G Toepfer. The film, which is trying to capture the experience of being on the open road, is to be released later this summer. We cannot wait.

The scene is kickin'...

Nice video from previous thursday at Kibbutz Ga'ash.

Project Badger

I stumbled upon this cool project. It's based on a 500cc Royal Enfield and has a rat, cafe racer style.

Lior

Facebook

Hello everyone, it's such a lovely day outside and I just wanted to let you know that our official facebook page is now open! Holy shit!
Yes I know, it's kinda hard to keep in all that excitement - still, feel free (and obligated) to connect through it and stay tuned for all of our awesome updates!

Arie

Old Indian Never Die

Indians? In the holy land? The mere combination of this three words in one sentence sounds completely far fetched. So when I heard about a gathering of this legends here in Israel, I had to be there. 

Ok, A little bit of history first. The Indian Motorcycle Manufacturing Company was founded in 1901 at Springfield, Massachusetts. It was active 'till 1953 where it went bankrupt and from 1999 the brand came back to life (that's another story…). 

Well, you must be asking yourself "how the hell did this motorcycles arrived to this newly formed state, which has no motor culture to speak of, not to mention motorcycles or any vehicles at all?". 

In 1948, 12 Indian Chief 348 motorcycles were donated to "Tel Hashomer" hospital. Later on, the motorcycles where passed to the possesion of the president's guard, after that - the military police and finally to the Israely Air Force pilots. Since than, most of the motorcycles had disappeared and to this date only five survived (at least in a good shape). 

Back to the present. I told Arie about this gathering and there was no chance that we're gonna miss it. 

When we got there we saw them. The Indians… Ooh the Indians. I better let the pictures talk…

Lior

Old Indian Never Die ;)

This one is a military model which hasn't been restored.

1955 Norton 19S

Now this one is not what is seems. It's a chinese copy of a BMW.

They sure are!

Messerschmitt. Somewhat odd vehicle.

1950 Chrysler Windsor

The Crew

Arie

I was born almost exactly 24 years ago. I guess you could say I’m a complete classics junkie – I love everything from classic motorcycles to classic clothes, cars, fridges and phones.

My riding days started with a lovely scooter, the first real thing I bought with my own money. It was great fun and a great discovery - until I crashed it one time more than it could handle. Trying to look for a sane-prized, medium size bike on that sad excuse for a motorcycle market we have in this country I came upon the Royal Enfield – and I’m there since. And no I haven’t been to India. Yet.

Lior

Always had a passion for motorcycles, but took it to the next level only recently after a journey to India. There I discovered the "new yet old" Royal Enfield motorcycles. Two magical weeks in Goa was all that was needed to set the fire. Returned home and couldn't help it. I got one. Riding is definitly an addictive drug.

Intro

The Vintage Motorcyclist is a unique project in its own way. One bright, hot sunny day we,  the future crew of TVM, sat down and decided that we need to make a difference. We wanted  to explore  the “Israeli motorcycling culture”, make a stand and say “what the hell, we exist!”.

In short, we wished  to write a motorcycling blog like everyone else does, and honestly, you can’t blame us. But it just so happens that the moto culture we so proudly claimed to be a part of, the “Israeli moto culture” is not something you can have a look at and then write about. It is elusive at best, if not nearly non-existent. To find it, let alone understand it, you must turn every stone, ride every mile and meet every person – it is a spiritual journey in its own way, and on this holy (or unholy?) path The Vintage Motorcyclist and its fabled crew will be thrilled to take you.