Engine Punk

Question : which motorsport event has a higher death toll for spectators than for drivers? The answer is Le Mans. The photo (by Alan Mansell) was a bit of a clue. A higher percentage of drivers have died, of course. And huge numbers of spectators have descended on the Sarthe circuit over the years but this doesn't detract from the sense of occasion through being there. The 2009 event was my third time at Le Mans (previous expeditions were in 2004 and 2005) and I enjoyed this year's festival of motoring excess just as much as ever. Audi had been the dominant team but this year Peugeot were in the ascendant with the petrol powered Aston Martins having an outside chance. And after last year, in which Peugeot narrowly lost overall victory to Audi, the leading French diesel manufacturer was out for revenge. With the recent foul weather, I’m enjoying looking back to a fantastic event with some very warm weather. I would have liked a Morgan entry as they celebrate 100 years this year...

This bike has to be the most stylish British tow stroke roadster without exception. I was captivated by its italianate lines many years ago when it appeared on Steve Wilson's book British Lightweight Two Strokes. I've probably mentioned before that, as a lanky git, 250 motorcycles are the practical lower limit for me but that doesn't stop me liking their delicacy and the "born with wheels" feeling a small and nimble bike can give you. It might be hereditary, too, My dad went on a European odyssey with my Uncle Phil on Uncle Phil’s 250 Panther and that had a Villiers 2T engine just like this Norman. They had a good time although the frame broke in Italy and we used to have a photo, now unfortunately lost, of an Italian blacksmith welding it up. There was a good reason for Steve Wilson to choose the Norman B4 for the cover for his book - it's a good all round bike with few flaws and about as good a bike as a Villiers powered twin can get. And for me the Norman B...

I hadn’t looked at my website for a long time until today and I couldn’t find it. All links led to this blog and I was mystified. Even the icon on my favourites had become the Blogger logo. I think this may have arisen from an abortive attempt to sex up my blog. Having seen some others that had a great look about them, I decided to see if I could improve its appearance. Blogger suggested that this could be achieved if I set my blog up on their blogspot and not on my own domain. I’d had a go at this a few weeks (alright months) ago and then run out of time. I don’t think I’ve glanced at my website since then. I went back to my website files and uploaded them on to the net again but they still didn’t appear. I indulged in creativity diversion by purging the references to my old Anarchadia blog on my web pages and uploaded that, hoping that the first lot would have flowed through the net by then and that the first problem would have fixed itself in a kind of switch-it-off, switch-...

Two great gigs in a week this week - after The Specials on Bonfire night, Ash played at The Hippo the following Sunday. (Photo from Ash website) Ash originally came out of nowhere into a chart devoid of much guitar and drum and Tim Wheeler's paper thin vocals and garagey guitars was such a welcome change from the soulless over produced rubbish they couldn't be anything else except a success. Mind you, so many other worthy performers never get the recognition they deserve but I'm glad to say that it happened for Ash. And they've stayed the course since and seem to be bigger and better than ever (although there are now only three of them). The time is ripe for Ash to blow us a way again. And they did. For this gig I was re-united, not only with The Usual Suspects (see earlier posts on my punk rock friends) but also with Chas'n'Shaz who I last saw in a night club in Truro about ten years ago. They are great fans of Ash and were also at The Specials gig...

Reggae doesn't do anything for me but Ska definitely does. It gets me up on my feet. It's so damned infectious. And if it hadn't been for The Specials the UK probably wouldn't know what it does about Ska. Note the capitals. I remember hearing Gangsters for the first time and thinking "What's this? Reggae that I like?" and all those kids at school who liked raggae turned their noses up at The Specials. (Working for the) Rat Race came out in the middle of my A level courses and Ghost town was a hit during inner city riots. The Specials had an infectious beat and prescient timing. I have neither of those and went to Coventry Poly in 1982 when everything Two Tone had died down. (Although I did spot a subway where Banalarama (mis-spelling intentional) sang with The Fun Boy Three.) When the word went round that The Specials were playing in Plymouth I got my ticket that day. This was potentially a once in a lifetime's experience. There'd been a ...

This Leyland felt like an old friend Whilst travelling the country to acquire even more Vintage Things, I was passing by Lincoln and had time to stop at the pioneering transport museum. Many years ago, when I was but a lad, I received a Blandford book of buses as a Christmas present and it contained illustrations of several vehicles owned or preserved by members of the Lincoln Vintage Vehicle Society . I read this tome frequently - well, looking at the colour pictures was more like it - and it seemed to me that something special was happening up at Lincoln. The Lincoln Vintage Vehicle Society, or LVVS, had a special aura about it. It was the benchmark for other enthusiasts whose enthusiasm also got the better of them. From what I could make out, nearly everyone in Lincoln had a Leyland Lion parked beside their bungalow or a Guy Arab in pieces. Over the years, those self same vehicles occasionally popped up on my radar to reinforce the pioneering status of the LVVS. Visiting the LV...