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Sound Effects

Mar 20

Sound Effects

Guest blog from Norm at Motorcycho magazine. In simpler days, it wasn't easy to access your favourite motorsport. If you weren't able to actually attend an event your only other option might be to read about it in a newspaper or find out months later in some magazine. One option that was sometimes available was to listen on a long play vinyl recording. For many years the Isle of Man TT races were available on record. Called Sound Stories, each year’s race was captured in soun

Cult Photo Books in Stock

Feb 26

Cult Photo Books in Stock

We have limited stock of three small photography books that focus on archive footage from 1970s Britain. The Triumph Workers Lock-In 1974 shows a little-known period in the famous brand's history, when a workers' co-operative took over the ailing firm to try save it from closure. It's liimited to 250 copies of the first edition and we got the last handful. The other two, the Raw Punk Streets and Mods and Rockers Raw Streets show street photography, and the rank and file of th

La Piu Bella Serata Della Mia Vita

Jan 30

La Piu Bella Serata Della Mia Vita

Guest blog post from Serge Fabergé This week's update is in the name of style. All this muddy denim, beards and leather associated with motorcycles is butchly fabulous, but once in a while our continental friends remind us of other alternatives. Personally the alternative of a decent suit and Alberto Sordi's panache seems a very good option, and it apparently puts one in the orbit of svelte lovelies clad in skin tight low cut shiny leatherette which to be honest is the aim fo

Trackmaster XS650

Jan 21

Trackmaster XS650

I saw this photo on the web and fell in love. Here's the info that was with it. 750 Trackmaster Yam. One of 3 built in '71-'2 at Mike Lacoco's Yamaha of Alamagordo dealership. Built for their rider, 'Wildman' Joe Pierce. Joe loaned me this one in the summer of '76. I raced it in the Pikes Peak Hillclimb and at Sertoma International Speedway, Las Cruces, NM. It is now owned, freshened up and displayed at bike shows by a California gentleman. Not sure about those Jubilee clips

Photo books: IoM TT, Punks, Mods

Oct 1, 2020

Photo books: IoM TT, Punks, Mods

We have a stock of lovely photo books. The publishers call them books, so we will too, but they also has a fanzine feel. They're 24 or 36-page collections of photos showing normal people in regular settings. The mainly unposed, natural feeling photos are so engaging, because they show the kind of detail and real life that yet another photo of Steve McQueen or Audrey Hepburn, looking perfect, never could. The subjects in the Isle of Man TT Races 1971 book are both fans and rac

Single & Twin A65

Sep 6, 2020

Single & Twin A65

Our old friend Jörg Solar is the embodiment of the Malcolm Smith spirit, ride every type of event with a smile on your face. He also runs a bike shop in Hamburg, Germany, specialising in classic British bikes. He has built a gorgeous A65 to race and we have a full set of photos in our STORIES section. Click Single & Twin BSA A65 Dream Bike to read all about it. Photo: Tommy Hetzel #BSA #Sideburnstockist #1970s #Germany

Breakfast of Champions

Aug 12, 2020

Breakfast of Champions

Breakfast of Champions. I'd read and repeated, the saying for years. British F1 star James Hunt famously had a patch on his racing overalls proudly claiming it was 'Sex'. Kurt Vonnegut wrote a book of the same name, but it was actually US breakfast cereal, Wheaties, who coined the phrase. To hammer home the link between sporting success and a first meal of the day consisting of wholegrain flakes, the makers of the cereal emblazoned their orange box with a photo of an athlete.

Skip Eaken

Jul 9, 2020

Skip Eaken

Earlier this week I interviewed an AFT SuperTwins rider for a future issue of Sideburn. The name Skip Eaken came up. I knew the name, knew he was a team owner and tuner, but didn't know too many details. This tidy short film, from the AMA Hall of Fame, put a lot of meat on the bones and shows some great period photos of the late Eaken and the racers who worked with. GI #SkipEaken #HondaRS750 #BubbaShobert #RickyGraham #HondaXR750 #1970s #1980s #1990s #RickyHowerton #SteveMore

Corky Keener

The Barbara Fritchie Classic

Jun 2, 2020

The Barbara Fritchie Classic

We have a great story on the Barbara Fritchie Classic in Sideburn 41. This is the oldest dirt track race in the world, coming up for its 99th year (Covid-19 allowing). A huge fan of the event, Ted Ellis, wrote the piece for us. He knows what he's talking about. That's him, leaning on the fence, white, untucked baseball shirt with green sleeves, red hair, at the very same Maryland race back in 1976. Buy Sideburn 41 to learn about the race and see great photos from its history.

Half Mile: Dennis Kanegae

May 3, 2020

Half Mile: Dennis Kanegae

A blog post from Todd Marella... Lunch was a lockdown affair at work today, with no one in the immediate vicinity to impress with my homemade Birria, cucumber salad, and chocolate chip cookies. Alone in my windowless closet of an office, I typed 'vintage ascot motorcycle movies' into my search bar. The first result was 'Half Mile, a film about Dirt Track Privateer Dennis Kanegae from…' The recurring loop within YouTube’s trailer of a guy in ‘70s era black, white and red leath

Tammy Sessions

Apr 9, 2020

Tammy Sessions

I know next to nothing about Tammy Sessions, except she was one of the first female pro flat track racers in the AMA. I think she might have been a desert racer too. She's from Washington state and that this photo was taken, I think at the Castle Rock TT. I think this is 1974, give or take a year. It goes without saying she is a badass, on a big Triumph twin, in neat pale pink ABC leathers and matching boots. Anyone out there in contact with Tammy? Please let us know if so. P

So It Goes...

Jan 19, 2020

So It Goes...

Off-topic Sunday from Dave Skooter Farm I've seen the clip many, many times...but never seen the complete episode (in transmission quality, no less.) When I see it in context with the rest of the show it really drives home to me that this is the EXACT moment a paradigm shift occurs. The other artists are instantly rendered culturally obsolete (including resident comedian Clive James). The way 'rock' music is perceived is changed forever. This is Sex Pistols' first ever TV app

Punk the Capital

Oct 22, 2019

Punk the Capital

This new documentary looks great. I can't say I'm a huge fan of DC hardcore punk, I was listening to '60s garage punk when it was catching fire, but I love what it stood for and created, and you can't argue with Bad Brains. A lot of people say they're punk this and punk that. This is a reminder that they're really not. Find out more at Punk the Capital documentary #Punk #1970s #Music

Royal Sherbet

Oct 8, 2019

Royal Sherbet

There are some truly memorable names from flat track's history, but I've just come across my new favourite while researching a future story. I present 1971-72 national number 28 - Royal Sherbet. That's him above, on a BSA Twin, battling with David Aldana (3) and, I think, John Weaver (52); Gene Romero (the 1971 #1), Jody Nicholas (23). I'm pretty sure the other obscured rider is Chuck Palmgren. #1970s #DavidAldana #GeneRomero #BSA #RoyalSherbet

Duke Reid, Suedeheads, Frank Worthington: Dave Taylor's Culture Awakening

Jul 1, 2019

Duke Reid, Suedeheads, Frank Worthington: Dave Taylor's Culture Awakening

Off-topic Sunday by guest blogger - DJ Dave Taylor. The summer of ’76, rural Lincolnshire was not a hotbed of cultural diversity, but certainly bloody hot. I was nine. I vividly remember my dad hauling me out of bed one summer eve and running me down the garden to a small beck (stream) that was absolutely rammed with eels swimming/wriggling along the beck to get to another deeper water source due to the drought. I was packed off to my Aunty Olive/Uncle Lenny in Leicester for

Rumble

Apr 17, 2019

Rumble

Off-topic Sunday on a Wednesday. This morning I was listening to a Marc Maron WTF podcast with his guest T Bone Burnett. I knew the name, but had no idea what kind of musician he was. Anyway, Burnett is explaining the roots of post-war jazz and The Beats (Ginsberg, Kerouac et al); how Charles Manson ruined everything; about war music and sex music. Rock 'n' roll is sex music, but rock is war music Riverdance is war music too, he explains. He spoke about Indian (native America

1975 Rokon Auto Flat Tracker

Feb 25, 2019

1975 Rokon Auto Flat Tracker

Described on US eBay as an Extremely Rare Rokon 340 Automatic Flat Track Racer, we understand this bike was part of Dan Rouit's Flat Track museum, before he passed away. Now it's in Wisconsin. The advert states it's '1 of 33 Factory Built Flat Track Machines' built by Rokon, who were better known for their huntin', shootin', fishin' two-wheel-drive utility bikes. The advert also adds the bike hasn't run since being restored and is powered by a 'Sachs 340cc 2-Stoke Engine and

Live Like A Cop, Die Like A Man

Nov 18, 2018

Live Like A Cop, Die Like A Man

Italian cinema of the '70s seems to have much that overlaps with the entertainment interests of Sideburn enthusiasts, and Deodato Ruggero's completely mad 'Live Like A Cop, Die Like A Man' from 1976 definitely fits the profile. It's a pretty classic Poliziotteschi - basically a crime drama with a heavily anti-establishment angle. In this particular gem we meet two cops, Fred and Tony, who it turns out are members of a special squad that basically saves time and expense for th

Rainey x Shell Racing Specialties

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