Board tracks were very dangerous with or wthout brakes. The splinters were a big problem, too. The wood eventualy broke down since the tracks were outdoors and subject to the weather. Here's a quote that I found on the internet. I remembered the rider's name from an article I read in a motorcycle magazine some time ago.
"On September 8, 1912, Eddie Hasha was killed at the New Jersey Motordrome near Atlantic City. The accident killed 4 boys and injured 10 more people. The deaths made the front page of the New York Times. The press started calling the short 1/4 and 1/3 mile circuits "murderdromes". The 1913 motorcycle championship races were moved to a dirt track because dirt was safer. The national organization overseeing motorcycle racing on board tracks banned all competitions on board tracks shorter than 1-mile in 1919."
That type of racing certainly wasn't for the faint of heart. after WWI, dirt track racing for cars and motorcycles becamse very popular.....which having ridden a bit of flat track early on, I can state that dirt track racing is also definitely not for the faint of heart. LOL.
Suprising how much dust was on those boards.
Was that dust, or smoke from teh engines?
BigD - 1/22/2010 1:59 PM
Was that dust, or smoke from teh engines?
Probably oil smoke. At that period of time, they hadn't yet developed much in the way of oil control at high speed. Since the engines were four stroke anyway, they would often drill holes in the cylinders just above the top of the piston when it was at the bottom of its stroke. This improved exhaust scavenging and gave a higher top speed at the expense of hot oily legs for the rider.
I've seen several board trackers built by Harley-Davidson, Indian and a very rare Cyclone at the old Harrah's Automobile Museum when it was still open ion Sparks, Nevada. Some of them had the holes drilled in the cylinders. I bet it was pretty at night. LOL.
GNM,
You pretty much hit it on the head the earlier motorcycles were anything but earth friendly also considering that most of those motorcycles ran a fair amount of lap's with nothing more than a hand pump for an oiling system:(
September in Davenport Iowa the AMCA has old track motorcycles from the teens racing Barber Vintage holds a race but I am not to sure just when I would love to go back in time to see them race........especially that Cyclone maybe hook a Flexi to it 😉
hdrghack - 1/23/2010 4:28 AM
GNM,
You pretty much hit it on the head the earlier motorcycles were anything but earth friendly also considering that most of those motorcycles ran a fair amount of lap's with nothing more than a hand pump for an oiling system:(
September in Davenport Iowa the AMCA has old track motorcycles from the teens racing Barber Vintage holds a race but I am not to sure just when I would love to go back in time to see them race........especially that Cyclone maybe hook a Flexi to it 😉
Good luck finding a Cyclone! I understand that only 4 of them were ever built. They were pretty far ahead of their time as engines went for having been built in the teens. Single overhead camshaft was really exotic stuff for that era.
I don't know where it is now, but in the 70's before the majority of Harrah's collection got sold off, there was a restored one with Yellow paint in his collection of vintage motorcycles.
The very first job I had was a mechanical helper and floor sweeper at one of the Indian dealers in Chicago a couple of years after the company went out of business. The owner had an engine from a Cyclone leaning against the wall in his office. He often lamented the fact that he could never find the rest of the bike. One of his friends had owned it during the boardtrack era and for some reason, it got separated from its frame and wheels.
Talk about the Holy Grail! If there is a motorcycle that would be harder to locate than a Cyclone, I can't think of what it might be.
There was more than 4 but they are a tough one to locate 🙂
http://www.antiquemotorcycle.org/bboard/attachment.php?attachmentid=3141&d=1218679172
hdrghack - 1/23/2010 9:51 AM
There was more than 4 but they are a tough one to locate 🙂
http://www.antiquemotorcycle.org/bboard/attachment.php?attachmentid=3141&d=1218679172
The placard at the Harrah's museum stated that there were only four known. Do you have some other information. I've always wondered.
The one shown in the picture is very likely the one that was at Harrahs.
I too thought that that was oil smoke at first - it just seemed like too much - but I guess you guys are right.
Rotten Ralph - 1/24/2010 5:56 AM
I too thought that that was oil smoke at first - it just seemed like too much - but I guess you guys are right.
I'm almost sure it was oil. The engines were rather crude in those days. You can imagine all of the oil burning.
Those were the good old days. LOL.
I'm pretty sure that it's mostly oil smoke there may be a bit of dust mixed in.
As I understand it there are 12 known at this time something that I learned is becides making racers and hill climbers they did also make "road bikes" that was something I never knew.
It mentions a bit about the motor and it's abalities not to mention the lack of stopping power.
http://www.ridermagazine.com/output.cfm?ID=1701325
I still would like to see one hooked to a Flexi 🙂
anyone have any idea the speed they were able run on the board tracks, thanks
moonlite - 1/25/2010 7:40 AM
anyone have any idea the speed they were able run on the board tracks, thanks
This link says that the bikes could reach as much as 120 mph. That's about how fast a motorcycle go on a mile track when entering the corners nowadays. There's nothing new under the sun. LOL
http://www.trackforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=123811
hdrghack - 1/25/2010 6:56 AM
I'm pretty sure that it's mostly oil smoke there may be a bit of dust mixed in.
As I understand it there are 12 known at this time something that I learned is becides making racers and hill climbers they did also make "road bikes" that was something I never knew.
It mentions a bit about the motor and it's abalities not to mention the lack of stopping power.
http://www.ridermagazine.com/output.cfm?ID=1701325
I still would like to see one hooked to a Flexi 🙂
Well, if they built 12, they certainly never went for voume, did they? I still question that number based on everything I ever heard. I'd like to know more about the company and where the writer got his information but it will have to do, I guess.
That motorcycle, which purportedly was formerly owned by Shorty Thompson, was from the collection of Bill Harrah since that fact was on the information shown with it when I saw if there in the 1970s.
$520,000.....hmmmm, I'd have to take out a loan and make some phone calls to bid on that one next time it comes up.
The fact that a single motorycle can bring that sort of money, is the very definition of the difference between "value" and "worth".
