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Old bike shows are strange events, not least when viewed from the inside out. Frank Westworth spends too much time standing on stands… ‘I don’t read your magazine.’ A man stands before the RealClassic stand, staring earnestly at me. I resist the temptation to look behind, in case he is really staring at someone else.…

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Everyone should be more sociable. Riding a classic motorcycle is a sociable activity. We’re told. Frank Westworth’s ears have become very bent… It’s always great to talk to fellow riders. Bikers, motorcyclists, one-trackers, call them what you will – call me what you will! – it makes little difference. Most of them have tales to…

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Always up for a debate about café cuisine, Frank Westworth ponders the subject of bobbers, baggers and café racers… One of my favourite concoctions is the cult of the café racer. Also the bobber. Bobbers look good to some chaps, and although their riders do indeed typically bob up and down on the fat rear…

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Do you wave or nod to every other bike rider you meet on the road? Dave Whiting has undertaken four months of statistical research to see who responds (or not) to his greetings… My New Year resolution to act less like Victor Meldrew failed on the second day with me shouting at the computer screen…

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“These large corporate companies won’t force their vision of motorcycles for the masses on me”. Anarchy goes to test ride a new Honda…. On any Sunday, well actually this last one, I rode over to my local Honda emporium to do the deed. To test ride a new Honda. It was sunny and bright but…

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Art for art’s sake; isn’t that what they say? A devoted student of the art of motorcycling, Frank Westworth has long been a fan of old adverts… Old bike ads are great. If you’re a fan of the bikes featured in them, then they are a reminder of how smart they could look when the…

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Numbed by the current obsession for producing shiny fake motorcycles where there was previously rust and ruin, Frank Westworth reveals a talent in the opposite direction… I was sat pondering the other evening. Don’t worry, there’s no law against a little gentle pondering – not yet, at any rate, although that could easily change, of…

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A bike that works, a place to be, a British summer. Martin Gelder finds three reasons to be cheerful while riding his Airhead BMW… I seem to have spent most of the last week bent over a hot BMW, the sun doing its best to make a redneck out of me while Max Friz’s bastard…

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Ever wondered why some people seem to revel in riding their classic bikes in winter, while others just head for the nearest bar – or the nearest ditch. Martin Gelder has some top tips… This isn’t intended to be one of those “Riding Guides” that many of the ‘proper’ magazines seem to love so much…

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We all sneer at chequebook restorers; where’s the skill in writing a cheque? Where’s the achievement? Frank Westworth contemplates the results of his first chequebook restoration… We all know one when we see one. They stand out. They gleam in an unnatural manner. Their paint is a yard deep, their chrome is more mirror-perfect than…

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