Finally.......

It has been several months since I started work on this blog and I have to give credit to the December issue of "Classic Bike" for giving me the kick in the pants to just get something on the page. I don't consider myself a writer but reading such fabulous blogs like "The Vintagent", "Rapid Hare", and "Southsiders" really made me want to join the brotherhood and share my experiences.

It's an understatement to say that I love vintage motorcycling. It has always been a part of me albeit very suppressed. My grandfather was a keen motorcyclist in the 1920's and 30's riding marques like Terrot and Gnome et Rhone. He boasted of being  the first motorcyclist with electric lighting in his region. The pictures of him astride those bikes were fantasies that caused me to ride around for hours on my little 1950's era Motobecane bicycle pretending I was on one of his bikes. Unfortunately, motorcycling was severely discouraged in my household only to come alive by pure chance in the local bookseller a few years ago.

I  happened across "Classic Bike" and was instantly smitten. I could not put the magazine down. I found myself cruising the internet trying to figure out what type of bike I really liked. Initially, I fell for all the big names.....Goldstar, Vincent, Manx. But like most folks, these were simply out of my league. One day I was looking at the offerings of a reputable classic motorcycle dealer here in the U.S. and I found the bike I wanted....... a 1951 Norton Model 7

Why I chose this bike, what I have learned since getting it, and even the logic behind the name of this blog will all be grist for future postings. Thanks for reading.