100 years today.

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Pharisee
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Re: 100 years today.

Post by Pharisee »

It was probably due to my uncle's WWII service that made me the motorcyclist that I am. He was a despatch rider until an accident somewhere in Europe put him out of the war and left him with a permanent limp. He drove a sidecar outfit after the war and persuaded my dad to do the same. As two families we all went out together at the weekends and I started driving my dad's outfits on my own when I around 12 years old... much to my mum's consternation. I had my own outfit, a G9 with a Watsonian Avon sidecar, when I was 17 after passing my test on a Fanny B. I've been a motorcyclist ever since and I'm now coming up to 73. Still got a few years left in me... I hope!!
I'm from the Fens.... Gimme six.
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Cjay59_LAPSED
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Re: 100 years today.

Post by Cjay59_LAPSED »

My first landlord in Cambridge was a dispatch rider in the first world war, we got on very well, even though I was twenty and he was in his eighties, this is around 1980. He loved my rigid framed Greeves, which I had painted black and green in the garden one summer, he lived next door. If anyone parked across his driveway he would go out and scream obsenities at the top of his voice whilst whacking the bonnet of the offending car, like John Cleese, with his sturdy wooden walking stick.

Matchless 350 G3 LS - Military 1955

https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C1036110
SPRIDDLER
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Re: 100 years today.

Post by SPRIDDLER »

Long story cut short.
I got chatting to a French biker in a small French village who was asking me about my 350 Matchless. He said his father rode one in the war (?) and he was sure his father would like to see mine. I followed him back to a tiny old terraced house in a narrow back street and left it ticking over. He opened the door and called out to his dad that he had something for him to see. "I know" said his dad "It's a Matchless". His son lifted the old boy out of his chair and brought him to the door. The look on his face was a picture. I offered to run him around the block but he was too frail.
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Expat
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Re: 100 years today.

Post by Expat »

SPRIDDLER wrote:Long story cut short.
I got chatting to a French biker in a small French village who was asking me about my 350 Matchless. He said his father rode one in the war (?) and he was sure his father would like to see mine. I followed him back to a tiny old terraced house in a narrow back street and left it ticking over. He opened the door and called out to his dad that he had something for him to see. "I know" said his dad "It's a Matchless". His son lifted the old boy out of his chair and brought him to the door. The look on his face was a picture. I offered to run him around the block but he was too frail.
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Rob Harknett
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Re: 100 years today.

Post by Rob Harknett »

This thread is now expanding to WD motor Cycles.
A subject I did a little research on a few years ago. This was mainly about when and how Motor Cycles started to be used by the Army instead of horses. It all started a couple of years before the start of WW1. The info I collected year by year from 1913 to approx. 1920. A PDF file for each year containing articles. In fact over 200 articles. These were pictures plus articles. In the beginning Officers used their own motor cycles. When war broke out motor cycle owners volunteered, using their motor cycles to become dispatch riders. Lists were published of these volunteers.
Long story. I could quite easy produce a few one page articles about WD motor cycles early history from 1913 to 1920. But this is not about AJS or Matchless. So not something for our club magazine.
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GOLDSTAR
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Re: 100 years today.

Post by GOLDSTAR »

I don't have a wartime AMC bike but I do have and have used twice in Ireland and once in Latvia a 1942 Ariel w/ng. If those G3's were as good as this then they were indeed a fine machine. kind regards
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