If I wasn’t spending all my time writing about Café Racers I’d probably be spending it writing about Triumph Bobbers instead. I don’t know what it is about a classic Triumph motor sitting in a hardtailed frame but it certainly looks good to me. As it turns out I’m not the only one with this cross culture obsession in custom motorcycles but unlike me, Marty Towers has turned his obsession into a business that all started with this bike, the Red Star Bobber.
I first met Jack Telnack in 1984 on a private student tour of the Ford Design Centre in Dearborn, Michigan. At that time he was Director of Ford North American Design. In 1986 he was part of the management team that hired me as a designer. One year later he became the Vice President of Ford Design worldwide.
Every year since 1990, Lake Gardiner in South Australia has played host to the DLRA’s (Dry Lakes Racers Australia) speed trials. It’s our equivalent to Bonneville’s famous Speed Week but in true Aussie style, you’ll need to be prepared to “rough it” if you want to attend. You won’t find any fancy motels or facilities nearby and the heat will have you sweating from every pore of your being, but when you’re out on the salt you won’t be hear any complaints from the event veterans and regulars. This year the salt came alive on the 18th of February for the 4 days of speed trials. It was earlier this year than usual due to bad weather shutting it down in previous years and everyone was eager to get going. Our esteemed leader and man behind the camera Luke Ray, made the pilgrimage from Melbourne out to the lake to witness the event and returned to us with much more than sunburn and sweat rash.
Following the glorious muscle car era, the sudden shock created by the fuel crisis in 1974 pitched the American auto industry into a black hole of emasculated engines and styling best described as fruity as a nutcake. Over at Chrysler however, there was one room the fun police had yet to force their way into. It was where the real men hung out – the Dodge truck division.
My interest in Triumphs was started after finding pictures of my dad and his pre-unit Triumph that he owned back in the ‘50s.
I bought this bike in 2007 after mentioning to my brother that I was looking for a Triumph to cut up. A week later he called to say he found an old 80s chopper sitting in a shed 10 minutes from where I live with a seized motor. Two grand changed hands and it was mine.
If there was a survey conducted to discover the most recognised motorcycle in Australia, I have no doubt that the winner would be Honda’s CT110.
It’s not the CT110’s scorching performance figure of 7.5bhp or its stunning good looks that’s gained it this attention though, it’s the 20 or so years of employment by Australia’s suburban postal service. It’s also because of this that very few of the people who recognise the bike would know it as a Honda CT110, they would instead refer to it as a “Postie Bike”.
Karl’s been busy with the CF since we last caught up with him last year. At that point in time, Karl was working on the body lines of the van and getting things straightened up. The end goal for the Bedford is a high end custom paint scheme with a high gloss finish, so getting things straight at this stage is of course imperative.
Meet Clarissa. She’s 21, she lives in Tamworth and manages a jewelry store. Oh.. and she drives one of the sweetest roadsters you’ve ever seen.
Growing up around hot rods and car shows, it was inevitable that Clarissa would catch the bug. Her partner Ben Love is also part of a hot rod family and has an enviable collection of cars. What’s a girl to do?
What were you doing at 23? Traveling the world surfing? Cruising around in a custom Valiant wagon? Matt Chojnacki is living the dream, and he may be young, but he knows his stuff.
Growing up on Sydney’s northern beaches, an area rich in surf history, Matt has not only become one of the country’s best surfers, but one of surf culture’s greatest historians. His attraction to the past has influenced every aspect of his life, from his surfing style, to his musical tastes, to the car he drives.
Remember that feeling you used to get when you went to a fairground? You’d be standing there amongst all the crazy sounds and colours, dazzled by the gravity defying, speeding rides and overwhelmed by the difficult decision of which direction to head next. Adrenalin was pumping through your veins and your senses were working on overload. At 36 years old this was a sensation I hadn’t experience for some time, but at the Broadford Bonanza it all came rushing back to me, and I loved every minute of it.
You don’t have to go far to stumble across Karl Stehn and his work. Karl has successfully built up a reputation for himself and his studio KDS Designs as one of the finest custom painting outfits that Australia has to offer. His blog, kdsdesigns13.blogspot.com.au, sums it up in just one statement.. “POSSESSED TO PAINT”.
Sat in a hotel room, Jim and his mate were surrounded by classifieds covering the whole south of California, when a particular ad caught Jim’s interest.
“LA is like the Gold Coast, Jim,” his mate said, “Things are spread out everywhere. It’s too far.”
“We’re going,” Jim retorted, simply and surely. At that moment it was decided — they were off to see the neglected classic.
In Sydney’s North Western suburbs we found Damian Bombardiere (aka Bomba) and his custom ’69 Norton Commando. He’s got 30 years experience in the saddle on both the road and racetrack so Bomba is no newcomer to motorcycles. When it came to customising his Norton, Bomba’s racing experience paved the way for how the bike would perform but it’s styling would be something entirely new.
This 1941 Plymouth Business Coupe is a car that you could say is out of character for Anthony ‘Arny’ Beimers. A highly skilled craftsman, Arny takes a difficult project on, jumps in feet first, and emerges at the other end with a concours nut & bolt restoration. So, to acquire a finished custom ‘as is’ and not touch it is a somewhat unusual move.
The return of the impact bumpers. This mild custom 911 is a personal project that marked the beginning of a lifelong passion for architect Hugh Feggans. Hugh's got plenty to say about this car and how the Porsche appeal is now a solid part of his life.