Flathead

Another instalment from Sideburn ambassador, John Harrison.

My Harley found me sometime in 1983. The father of one of my friends had built it up from three tea chests of parts that he swapped for a complete and running V-twin BSA that was promptly sold to a Japanese collector. He'd built it but ran out of steam before finishing it off. It was copper metallic with white grips and running board rubbers and lots of chrome. I wasn't into Harleys, but saw those 'bars and fell in love. The fact that it had a hand shift and foot clutch added to the appeal.

I haggled him down to £650 because I had £50 saved and a two-year loan for £600 was all I could afford to pay off. Even then I knew I'd stolen it. I finished it off, which only involved wiring it and fitting a saddle.

This picture was taken in 1984, when it was my only transport and I was doing some weekend maintenance. My sister and her toddler were visiting. My girlfriend had recently passed her driving test and bought herself the lemon R5. She was evidently going for the complete French gamine look. We celebrated our 28th wedding anniversary this year. My little niece Emma, who is copying me by playing with spanners on the bike, grew into a bona fide rock chick with a group called Band of Skulls who are quite popular with the younger generations, I understand. Sometimes I look at this pic and wish I'd left it like that, with the lovely colour and 18in front wheel, but maybe it's just the atmosphere in the photo that I like.

In time it needed an engine rebuild, so I took the opportunity to paint it and fit a 16in front wheel. This pic was taken in about 1993, soon after I got it back together. My children loved getting rides like this, sitting in my lap. I would deliver them to their friends' birthday parties with them wearing a bicycle helmet. It has stayed pretty much the same since, except that I've let it get dirty and look its age.

The most memorable ride I've made on it was to Pendine and back to watch the VHRA racing along the beach in 2015. That was 220-odd miles each way. Fine weather, wonderful roads (the Welsh A40 with its endless, fast, long sweepers), good convoy company and the bike running well. I felt like I was flying. Vintage motorcycling can be slow, uncomfortable and unreliable and isn't for everyone, but it suits me fine. Pic: James Bad JuJu Mitchell

I rode it in the Harley class at Dirt Quake V and came in last in all three races. But I had the best seat in the house when Dimitri Coste lapped me at great speed on the inside with Wiggo chasing hard flying down my outside blatting into turn 3.

Carl Fogarty coming to Dirt Quake

This absolute legend is coming to Dirt Quake as a guest of main sponsor, Bikesure.

I remember watching this race live. He was highsided to the moon and still won the day's second race.

It's going to be the best ever Dirt Quake and it's on 15-16 July at the Adrian Flux Arena.
Advance tickets, with the chance to win a Mutt Motorcycles custom 125 street tracker, are still available from http://adrianfluxarena.co.uk/dirtquake-5-ticket-sales/

The Citizen Kane of Flat Track Movies

I'd never heard of Ride With The Wind until I saw this trailer over at Church of Choppers.
It brought a tear to my eye and reminded me a little of my favourite ever film, Mask (with Cher not Jim Carrey, silly).

In this clip there is what looks very much like actual footage of an actual GNC crash spliced into the drama. I sent an email to a group of older fans and industry people in the US asking 'Does anyone remember the crash or who was involved? It's not very clear, but could it be Chris Carr (20) and Parker (1). Early-90s, I think, it predates my following of the sport.'

The ever helpful Roger F (a regular correspondent and a great character, click his label below this post) came back very quickly...

'That's a late season crash involving the chase for the #1 plate between Chris Carr #20 and Scott Parker, and the resulting leg  injuries (knee?) ended up costing Parker the championship in 1992. I can't remember the exact race, but it was a west coast half-mile late in the season. Carr was running either up front or close to it, and Parker was back a few spots. Late in the race, Chris Carr slid out coming out of turn 2, but managed to keep his XR running. In his haste get going again, he lit up the rear wheel and the bike kicked sideways....right into Scott Parker's line, catapulting him off. An unfortunate racing accident pure and simple, but it all but awarded #1 to Chris Carr, his first of many... Roger"

Shobba - updated

I've spent too long over Christmas trying (and failing) to find some Christmas cards based on cartoons by the superb Shobba, that were a subscribers' gift when I worked on Bike magazine in the 1990s. Shobba cartooned for the mag for ten years or more, starting in the '80s, and he rarely, if ever, missed the mark. I love his stuff, but they're hard to find. Here's one of a few that are floating around the web. He really should publish a collection. MP

UPDATE: Grant, I think you mean a big cock... (and apologies for the poor quality image, it's the best I could find).

We won't upload any more as it's not our intent to rip off Shobba. If he had his own website we'd link to it, but I can't find one. Shobba, get in touch if you see this.

GM Speedway Restoration

Italian GM-powered racer, from Geoff who previously sent us a photo of his Jawa speedway bike. The Bad Boy Club and Oakley stickers root this in the 90s. Bad Boy Club ironic comeback, anyone?

My ex-Shawn Moran 1990 PJ / GM 
I've just put the period correct stickers on Shooey's old PJ Framed GM so thought I'd send you a photo of it.  
Cheers Geoff

Motocross Action, January 1991

Play loud, drink rum

A be-fezed Sir Johnny Alpha has been in his basement of beat once again to bring us the latest Killer Diller Radio Show. A young beatster asked Sir Johnny if there was any theme to this edition of the 90-minute aural orgasm. 'No theme man,' came the reply, 'just a load of random great records.' Eclectic brilliance from the likes of The Kneejerk Reactions, Nobody's Children, Arthur Crudup, Soul Inc., The Phantoms... Listen to the stream, or download as an mp3. Either way, have a quart of Mount Gay to hand. MP

Rock Family Trees

You read the sleeve notes on albums, and take the booklets that come with decent CDs into the bog while you meditate. You have heated discussions with mates - with yourself - about who played marimba on the 1972 Afro-Silesian classic A BSA Killed My Marmoset. You need to read Rock Family Trees.

They're nothing new, so apologies to those who know them already, but I never fail to be awestruck by the work involved in their creation. Pete Frame drew and wrote them by hand and they start life as huge great things covering a large table before being shot and reduced down for print. They're obsessively detailed and you can lose yourself in them for hours.

The breadth of bands and artists covered is immense, though they're almost all on the pop/rock/folk spectrum with dips into jazz and other stuff here and there. He even does trees of genres, such as American Pop 1950-'64. You have to see these things to believe them. All three volumes are still available and are well worth tracking down. MP

The 1990s

I wanted to ask top-ranking moto journalist Roland Brown some advice, but I'd mislaid his email. I visited his website and found this amazing photo. This isn't someone pretending to be from the early-1990s, this is the real thing. I always thought Roland's Dream Machine-painted Doohan-esque Arai was classy. Get down, Roland Brown! G

Jocks & Nerds

Marcus Ross who shot our Dai Jobu story in Sideburn #4 now publishes his own Jocks & Nerds. Initially on-line only this is just the second printed issue but it's punched its way into the mens magazine heavyweight class. It's a free quarterly which you can pick up in selected London stores listed here.
BAD Don Letts on the cover.My old Mean Fuckers photos have had yet another airing (but this is the first time printed in Britain, and a different edit than previously). Strange as when shot 20 years ago I had no plans for publication, it was just college fieldwork.There's a nice story on contemporary Mods too shot by Lee Vincent Grub. BP

Amanda Hutt artwork

Back in the early 1990s I was working on Motor Cycle News in England. The editor, (the now late) Peter Bolt, was generous enough to give me a weekly column (no, not a morally questionable disciplinary session in his office, but a full page for me to ruin). The best part of the whole deal was being able to commission a young artist called Amanda Hutt to illustrate my words. Given that I rarely thought about what I’d write about till the pressure of deadlines forced me to, it was pretty tough on her, having to turn around these lovely pieces of art in a couple of days. I think the last column I wrote was in about 1992.

Anyway, for my 40th birthday, my ever-thoughtful wife got in touch with Amanda and bought four of the original pieces (one photo came out badly and I’m too lazy to re-shoot it as it’s now under glass). Fantastic present, they're about 2ft x 1ft (60cm x 30cm). They sat well-wrapped in a cupboard for six years, waiting for the right place to hang them. We moved house earlier this year and now I’ve got the perfect couple of walls. MP

www.amandahutt.com