England has a rich history in motorcycling tradition with some of the greatest bikes ever produced having a British heritage. On this edition of Corbin’s Ride On, we get a special look into that magnificent past as we join our friend Dennis Gage at the British National Motorcycle Museum in Birmingham, England.

Roy Richards, the curator of the museum, met us at the door and immediately began to dazzle us with his knowledge concerning the history of British Motorcycling. He told us that at the peak of production, which would have been in the 1920s, there were some 592 manufacturers of British bikes. Today, the museum itself houses some 700 different bikes, and all but two of them are in running condition! All of these bikes have been restored to factory specifications, and Roy told us that there were another 150 motorcycles awaiting restoration. The collectable value of some of these bikes was also astounding as Roy told us that many of them were valued up to 50,000£ each!

There was an incredible array of street bikes from Britain’s most recognized names in motorcycling such as Triumph, Norton, BSA, Ariel, Vincent, and Brough Superior; however, while we were there, Dennis learned that one of England’s most recognized trademarks also produced motorcycles when Roy showed him a pristine 1912 Wilkinson Sword! Yep, that’s right! A state-of-the-art, early twentieth-century motorcycle from the same folks that still guarantee a close shave! There were also racing bikes on display including a variety of Nortons, a BSA Racing Rocket, and a 1959 Triumph T-Bird. We concluded our tour by looking at a 1963 Velocette Venom, a bike that Roy told us was both “fast and popular.” On a final note, Roy confided in us that he was a Norton fanatic and one day in the museum, he passed a man who was admiring some of the collectible Nortons that were on display. The man stopped Roy and asked him a question and Roy recognized that he was an American. At that point, Roy told us that the man said to him, Young man, I want you to understand something—when God made the mountains he had Norton Motors in mind.” With a smile on his face, Roy told us that he would never forget those words.

At the end of our visit, Dennis had the opportunity to ride the first Triumph Vertical-Twin around the parking lot and we could see by the look on his face that it was great ride! So, if you get the chance to “cross the pond” and visit merry old England, make the British National Motorcycle Museum a priority to visit—you’ll be jolly well glad that you did!

For more information on the British National Motorcycle Museum visit: www.nationalmotorcyclemuseum.co.uk/

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