No Longer Supported
Three-word phrases can be intimidating and foreboding, prescient even. “I’m leaving you”, “Oh my God”, “Make my day”, “I shall return”, spring to mind – a form of speech sometimes referred to as ‘tripling’. But […]
Year: 2018
Hume Weir – The valley of the kings
Race tracks have been crammed into some unlikely places, but few as unlikely as the site of the circuit built in 1959 in an old quarry which sat in the shadow of the dam wall […]
Rumi 125 – A Latin love affair
In a sea of Bantam BSAs on Victorian race tracks in the late 1950s, Ian Free’s Rumi stood out like the proverbial dog’s bits. Not only was it Italian, but it was a twin-cylinder 125, […]
A Multitude of Manxes
“How would you like to test a few Manx Nortons while you’re at Pukekohe?” This was Kevin Grant speaking – one of the main movers behind the enormously successful annual meeting in New Zealand. “How […]
Graham Young – On for young and old
When Speedway’s youngest sidecar sensation Graham Young teamed up with veteran Ray Murray it was on for young and old. It wasn’t that he was past it, but for a bloke who scratched a living in […]
Bandiana Army Camp – The blast around the barracks
Back in 1954, excitement amongst the motorcycling fraternity was at fever pitch with the confirmation that the works Gilera duo of dashing English World Champion Geoff Duke and Irishman Reg Armstrong had agreed to an […]
Australian speedway goldmine
Our Tracks in Time story “Sydney Showground Speedway – The Big Hoop” that appeared in OBA Issue 71 featured photos from Brian Darby’s extensive speedway collection. If you’re into the golden eras of Australian speedway, […]
Yamaha FJR1300AE – “Hey, let’s just keep going.”
The moment OBA 66 went to press, we (Mrs Editor and I) were on the road for a week’s R&R, our departure happening to coincide with the first day of winter. Our steed was the […]
Kawasaki Z900RS – Roll ‘em in the aisles
When you’ve already created one of motorcycling’s most iconic machines – the Z1 of 1972 – you have a ready-made template to cash in on the retro market, which is currently all the rage. Kawasaki’s […]
Honest Col Crothers – Live fast. Play fast.
The Australian Land Speed Record was a challenge that captivated Col Crothers for most of his life. It was a big task but Col was never afraid of a challenge. Throughout his long life, ‘Honest […]
