The Bizarre World of British Motorcycle Culture

Описание: The 1950s,
British bikes are ruling the roads for performance and sales.
The Chelsea Bridge boys are running around and creating merry hell, and motorcycle films start being produced.
 
The subculture is starting to flourish. Fast forward to summer 1964, and the mods and rockers make their way into my hometown of Hastings. I wasn’t born yet.
My dad was still a child.

The term rocker doesn’t actually come from the musical influences, but in fact it refers to the rocker on the motorcycle engine.
 
After only a short period of time, a fight breaks out between the two groups.
You see, the English do like a good fight.
And mods don’t like rockers, and rockers don’t like mods.
 
Or they didn’t at that point in history.
Although decades later, they turn out every May Day bank holiday in my home town of Hastings,
 
Eat ice cream and just look at bikes; the violence doesn’t occur anymore. I believe the mutual love of everything two wheels keeps everyone calm.
 
The film Quadrafinia shows this historical battle; although they used Brighton as the showground, typical film companies change history to suit their needs.
 
Nonetheless, the mods and rockers scene was a real big part of British motorcycle culture; they modified 50–60s Triumph, BSA, Norton, and Velocets.
 
They would find transport cafe and raced them up and down the roads, the Ace Cafe being the most famous,
All of them looking to achieve that prestigious 100mph to become a tonne-up boy.
 
They would put a record on the duke box.
and jump
On their tricked-out bikes, they raced down to the roundabout at the bottom of the north circler and thundered back again, all in the hope they had beaten the record and the other rider. All this was done just to be able to boast that you are the fastest.
 
They closed the Ace Cafe in the 1970s. I believe it was due to the huge number of accidents motorcycles were having and the number of fatalities.
 
It’s reopening now for tea and breakfast, and it's a great place to go.
They hold many events all based around cars and motorcycle culture.
 
Meanwhile, the mods with vespers covered in mirrors and lights chasing girls in mini skirts set the tone for that period of history.
 
The decade is the 70s, and pop culture has boomed into bright colours and acid tabs. Uncle Bunt choppers are being built, with long front ends and coffin tanks. In truth, this was a subculture that was derived from films like East Rider, and choppers were not really English but definitely American.
 
But it is to be expected that it would bleed into English motorcycle culture.
Because during the mid-1960s American motorcycle culture began to influence the English, 1% of motorcycle clubs began to create charters here.
 
American films like Easy Rider found themselves being shown in cinemas. Easy Rider magazine could be purchased in local paper shops.
 
I’m mean we even started to produce our own custom motorcycle magazines like Back street heroes,
I can still remember my first ever Back street heroes magazine,

I would of been about 7-8 years old,
we lived in Linley drive and the local spar was at the top of hoadswood road, on this particular sunny day
my mother and me made our way to the shop, where unusually she ask if I’d like a magazine,
I pondered those glossy books for ages, and as she approached the till I gave her my first Back street heroes magazine,

My mum opened the centre page to see a half naked women on a chopper, she said this isn’t appropriate for you,

Anyway I pleaded for the magazine and like a lot of mums she purchase it for me and removed the nudity.

Something really drastic happened during the decade of the 1970s,

That’s was a Japanese company called Honda, who releases a motorcycle that would change not only British motorcycle culture but the whole worlds,

That motorcycle was the Honda CB750 inline 4, not only was it fast but it was more reliable than the British motorcycles,

Mainly because poor management and union strikes had all but destroyed the reputation and quality control of new bikes,

Triumph did try to compete with its new triple, the trident, but in truth it was too little too late.

They produced that up until the early 80s when the doors were finally closed and the receivers walked in.

On the contrary to popular belief triumph carried on producing bikes under license,

Thank you for watch, please continue to leave comments with your experiences and knowledge, o do very much enjoy reading them and responding,

Also if any of you have motorcycle related stories you would like to share, I’d love to have you on,

The beauty of this culture is each of us has different experiences, and sharing those is definitely something to behold.