Yes, we’ve come a long way with motorcycle rider training and safety courses. I was digging through The Kneeslider research library and came across this Jawa training motorcycle in an old issue of Cycle. It was powered by a 250cc 2 stroke engine and had complete dual controls. The instructor sits in back and has fully functioning handlebars connected by rods to the front fork with a throttle, front brake lever and clutch. He had a rear brake pedal and footshift for the 4 speed transmission and there was also an ignition cutoff.
That had to be an odd experience for both student and instructor. I wonder how many of these they sold.
Phoebe says
That’s so interesting…a nice looking bike, too!
Cecil says
Interesting that the instructor would be teaching the proper technique for riding on the sidewalk too it would seem. 😉
Shaine says
I’d like one – maybe minus the extra controls. Nice looking bike.
chris says
with a dude already on the back, so much for picking up that chick
Hopkins says
That bike is a puch “twingle” imported by sears and sold in their stores. The engine is a very interesting design. Its a 250
Hopkins says
I take that back it is a jawa, but they almost look identical.
Blair says
What’s it like to ride with no one on the front? Could be a cheaters wheelie bike.
Looks like the instructor has a slightly awkward riding position, I wonder how useful it was?
todd says
My brother has a 1946 version – with one control set. It’s called a Perak and isn’t a “twingle”. It’s a simple single cylinder with twin exhaust ports.
A version of this Czech bike was built in India and is still being manufactured in China by Chang Jiang:
http://www.chang-jiang.com/jawa/jawa.html
-todd
Tim says
thats a photo crying out for a caption competition.
something along the lines of “Bill couldnt wait to get rid of his 10am appointment, so he could show Mary everything she needed to know….. about the bike”
I have no sense of humour so you guys have at it.
Tim says
Oh, and I like the line about “research library”: thats what I am going to call my study which is stuffed to bursting with old motorbike magazines, books, DVDs and models from now on. Its not “that mess” its my “research library”
Brian says
At Barber Motorsports Museum has such a bike in his collection it is very interesting I can’t remember if it was a Jawa or not but I do remember that it belonged to a college in the USA that taught motorcycle riding.
Walt says
Isn’t that Audrey Meadows on the right?
Hawk says
I remember taking my first motorcycle test in a similar fashion. My bike was a BSA Alloy Clipper with a 60 tooth cheater sprocket. With the examiner on the pillion, it was almost impossible to keep the front wheel down. Examiners had to have “guts” in those days, eh?
No schools around here then. If you survived the first year, you probably had it made.
chaz says
As Bill engaged the clutch, he said to this mom:
“I sure hope that’s a plug wrench in his pocket.”
Chris says
Wouldn’t that linkage make for some pretty “interesting” handling qualities from the rear seat? It doesn’t seem like it would want to turn very well at higher speeds based on rear control inputs.
It’d be pretty neat to take a spin around the block on one of these, though.
cl
baowah says
hello, it’s a Jawa 250/353, I’ve got one, too, from 1958: http://baowah.blog.hu/2007/05/31/tade_reborn
it’s a very simple, but very good bike. at this time the chech motor industry was ona of the best. Afther this era, it was year to year the same, and the motorcclism flies over the Jawa.
by the way, this method of riding trainee was normal here in central europe, I’ve learned on jawa 350/632, which was mounted with this funny extra.
hoyt says
“man, I can’t wait to get into the sixties….get this clown off the back and take her for a ride she won’t forget.”
Sean says
“What’re you rebelling against?”
“Whaddya got?”
ROHORN says
Maybe Herr Instruktor is showing Frau Instruktor why the back seat bars aren’t those new fashionable clip-ons…..
Hopkins says
Teaching robin how to ride the bat-cycle.
Big Sven says
The 250 Perak is one of the best bikes ever made. The ’87 alloy-twin 350 4-port I later had was crap in comparison. Great design, but what good is that if the quality of materials and manufacture is crap. My 350 broke down 3 times, deep in Europe, once I stripped the engine on site, in the rain, and managed to fix the gearbox so I could slowly ride home. They are good that way, simple design. Another time I rode 500k’s on one piston, another time the chains fell apart. German chains got me going again. The Perak was made by Jawa, in local cottage-industies and assemble in Tynec (small factory) CZ actually made all the later engines (big factory 80 miles south). The Russians bought all the bikes at a price they set, so no-one at CZ cared about quality (Jawa were actually quiet good with the rest of the bike, no other problems there). ‘Bought’ – ha! – a trainload of rotten bananas is payment!? That actually happened, I’m not joking. A lot of Jawa workers are also farmers, they used the bananas as fertilizer. Another time it was a trainload or Russian bearings, but they could at least sell that for scrap and use the money. I knew a Swedish army engineer who was in charge of procuring the Swedish army bikes they bought, and have been to the factory in Tynec twice. I know. The Perak was very solidly made, you couldn’t break or wear them out, they were made from melted-down German tanks and Messerschmitts, not Russian crap. About 13bhp at 5,000, did about 60mph, you could cruise at 55mph 24/7 in all weathers without getting tired, 65 miles per Brit gals. Wish I had one now. The only change I would do would be to fit the superb ’87 teles and 12V 200W AC generator, Koni dial-a-rides and Metzeler tyres. On with a German windshield and panniers and you could ride the world on one. I once met a Brit guy who rode one over 100,000 miles, only changed plugs, a couple of rings, clutch-plates, chains. And it was still going strong. New is not better.