The Kneeslider

Doers Builders and Positive People

Burt Munro Indian Motorcycle Ad

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By now, everyone is familiar with Burt Munro, the Bonneville racer from New Zealand, thanks to the Movie World's Fastest Indian. Before the movie, far fewer would recall ever seeing any mention of Munro, I can't recall much myself. I ran across this ad from 1966 showing Burt Munro along side Sam Pierce, who, according to the ad, sponsored Munro's runs to some degree. The ad … [Read more...]

Triumph Trackmaster Street Tracker

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A 1974 Trackmaster frame he scored from a U.S. Air Force man returning from England gave Jerry Ennis the last piece he needed to complete this sanitary Triumph street tracker. Ennis added a few rare nifty bits from his collection and produced a bike that drew crowds when he rolled it out April 19 at the Washington Vintage Motorcyclists swap meet in Mount Vernon, … [Read more...]

Ducati Desmosedici RR – Motorcycle or Art?

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The Ducati Desmosedici RR may not be a motorcycle at all, I'm beginning to think it's art. Not long ago, in a post titled Collectible Motorcycles - Memories and History, I said this: Will any Desmosedici owner run it hard and really enjoy it or will they all be carefully preserved under glass? Most likely, they will all be treated as so special the risk of actually breaking … [Read more...]

High School Motorcycle Projects – Nisky Garage

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Technical skills don't come from a book, you might absorb the basics from reading, listening to a lecture or watching a demonstration but developing the actual skill means getting your hands involved and doing it. Planning a project, gathering materials and tools and finally, putting something together is the test. Some high schools are coming up with pretty cool projects … [Read more...]

Motorcycles Save Gas – Park Anywhere

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It's no surprise the save gas and park anywhere qualities of motorcycles might be highlighted now with today's pricey gas and traffic congestion but, as this ad shows, Harley Davidson was promoting those same ideas over 50 years ago. Once again, a selection from The Kneeslider research library shows how motorcycles answered the same needs back then. Like the ad … [Read more...]

Vintage Dirt Track School

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This year, with the return of the Indy Mile during the Indianapolis MotoGP weekend, we might start to see an uptick in interest in dirt track racing. Metro Racing, the folks that make a lot of those cool vintage T Shirts, thought it might be a good time to sponsor a vintage dirt track race and bring in Jay Springsteen for a Vintage Dirt Track School. They brought in Woody Kyle, … [Read more...]