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promoting our
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The BMCT are delighted to announce that we have acquired the semi-
AJS machines finished the five-
The Jones TT bike remained in Wrexham for several years. Billy had it as a showpiece in his shop before selling it to a local man (also called Jones) who kept it until the 1950s. It had deteriorated somewhat by the time another Wrexham man, Eric Stevens, discovered and restored it in time to take it back to the Isle of Man for a parade lap of the course in 1959. Graham Walker persuaded Eric to loan the bike to the Montagu Motor Museum where it stayed until being acquired by John Griffith, who displayed it at his Stanford Hall Motorcycle Museum.
The last owner of the AJS was Ray Carter, who owned and cherished the bike since 1983. Ray used it on VMCC club runs several times before the woeful lack of braking power persuaded him to take it off the road a dozen or so years ago. It was no slouch on the road, apparently. Eric Stevens had it timed at over 70 mph over a flying half-
This unique, sole surviving AJS from the 1914 Junior TT will now return to its spiritual home on the Isle of Man where it will be one of the stars of an impressive new TT and Manx Grand Prix gallery opening later this year at the Manx Museum in Douglas.
Photos:
The 1914 AJS TT Model
BMCT trustee John Kidson (left) with Ray Carter, former owner.
New Chairman for the BMCT
The new Chairman of the BMCT is Paul Barnes, who took over the reins of the Charity from Ian Walden at the trustees’ meeting in September. Paul, an Independent Financial Adviser, has been a member of the trustee board since 2006, with responsibility for managing the Trust’s investment portfolio amongst other tasks. Paul is an enthusiastic motorcyclist, his current mount being a 1200cc Triumph Adventurer on which he and his wife have undertaken many trips at home and abroad.
London Motorcycle Museum Closure
We regret to announce that the London Motorcycle Museum at Greenford will close its doors for the final time on Monday 7th October 2019. Most of the motorcycles on display are part of the Bill Crosby Collection (Bill is the founder of the Museum) and many of them will be auctioned by Bonhams at their Stafford sale on October 19th-
Norton Museum : New Affiliate
The Norton Museum Collection has become the fifteenth museum to affiliate with the BMCT. The museum, in Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, is the culmination of a lifetime’s work by the founder, Dennis Norton. And that’s a clue -
Dennis Norton started collecting interesting objects in 1949 when he was given a Miller No.1 carbide lamp while working at what was then the Austin Motor Company at Longbridge. That was enough to spark Dennis’s interest in collecting, and he soon began to concentrate on items from the local Bromsgrove area. Local crafts included nail and button making, glass, and the world-
Initially based in a redundant school building outside Bromsgrove, the ever-
BMCT members will of course be particularly interested in the two Banshee bikes present in the museum. The first is the 1922 Villiers-
The Banshee factory was originally based in Hull, but because of transport difficulties between there and the Midlands, where most of their components came from, they re-
A major donor and friend of the museum is the present Home Secretary and Bromsgrove MP Sajid Javid, seen in our photo with Dennis Norton, admiring the BMCT’s Banshee Villiers.
The Norton Collection Museum is at 26 Birmingham Road, Bromsgrove B61 0DD, and is open Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. The founder, Dennis Norton BEM will happily arrange group visits at other times. Phone him on 01527 919531.
www.nortoncollectionmuseumtrust.org.uk
BRITISH SCOOTER EXHIBITION OPENS AT HAYNES MUSEUM
After several years in the planning, the British Motorcycle Charitable Trust's exhibition of British Motor Scooters opened to the public on 21st May 2016. Housed within the Haynes International Motor Museum near Yeovil, the collection showcases the development of the motor scooter from its beginnings after World War 1 through to the demise of scooter manufacture in Britain in the nineteen seventies.
The collection is largely the work of one man, Robin Spalding, who set out to collect an example of every British motor scooter from the period 1946 to 1970. Having completed his task, and after restoring many of the machines, Robin, with the help of the BMCT, staged a six-
Limited numbers of Robin Spalding's book "British Motor Scooters 1946-
BMCT AIDS LONDON MOTORCYCLE MUSEUM STAGE EXHIBITION OF MINTER TROPHIES.
We are pleased to have contributed to the latest project at the London Motorcycle Museum which sees the late Derek Minter’s collection of racing trophies and other memorabilia preserved intact, instead of being broken up, following the recent passing of Derek and his wife Jenny.
Derek had been unwell for some time, having suffered a stroke and crashing while doing demonstration laps on a Manx Norton at Darley Moor in 2000. Jenny cared for him until she sadly lost her own battle in August 2014, leaving Derek in the care of the nursing home where he passed away in January this year. While she was still alive Jenny was determined to safeguard the future of Derek’s trophies, and through the efforts of Colin Seeley a deal was brokered which saw Bill Crosby and the London Motorcycle Museum purchase the trophies, whereupon the BMCT stepped in with grant aid to provide for their display in the new Derek Minter Café.
Our photo shows BMCT trustees Nick Jeffery, John Kidson, Mike Jackson and Ian Walden at the unveiling of the trophy collection. The museum is open Saturday to Monday, and of course BMCT members go free.
BMCT IS MAJOR CONTRIBUTOR TO NEW DISPLAY AT BEAULIEU
The BMCT is proud to be a major contributor to the funding of a brand new exhibition at the National Motor Museum – “The Motorcycle Story”.
The Motorcycle Story immerses the visitor in a ride through motorcycling history and the human quest for freedom, individuality and the desire to win. For the first time, machines are displayed in their historical and cultural context; tying technological developments to changing trends in fashion, style and sport.
Supporting artefacts include clothing worn and trophies won by sporting greats in displays which cover varied racing disciplines, as well as road safety, British 'Mods and Rockers' youth culture of the 1950s and 60s and the Ace Café.
Central to the new display is the Motorcycling Icons Wall of Fame. A gallery featuring the top twenty riders as voted for by the public. Over 7,000 votes were cast, both online and at motorcycling events across the South of England. And of course there are the bikes themselves, charting the development of motorcycles from the earliest Pioneers (in our photo) through to modern day Superbikes.
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