On Wednesday 8th February 2023, 14 ‘easy riders’ from the Transport & Machinery group hit the road to the National Motorcycle Museum in Solihull to enjoy a superb collection of British machinery and revive some fond memories of previously owned bikes. Thankfully, none of the members risked the fog, frost and M42 on their bikes on the 8th, although a few still ride regularly.
Group member Jeff Worth is a member of the museum and he introduced us to the Museum Director, James Hewing who explained how the founder, Roy Richards came to set up the Museum and why he only included British motorbikes. The Museum has over 1,000 bikes displayed in 5 halls and anyone who has ever owned a British motorbike is almost certain to find an immaculate example in the museum (there are photographs of two members with ‘their’ bikes on our webpage). The oldest bikes date from the 1890s.
As one who has never owned a motorbike (unless you count an e-bike?) I found the visit fascinating and a little bit sad. There are examples of fantastic and beautiful engineering skills here so it’s sad to consider what ultimately happened to the British motorcycle industry as a result of economic policy and ‘a concentration on short term profitability’. Thankfully, we don’t suffer from problems like that these days!!!!