Random House New Releases - Transportation - Motorcycles

British Motorcycles of the 1960s and '70s by Mick Walker

2013-02-19T00:30:00-05:00

British Motorcycles of the 1960s and '70s
Written by Mick Walker

eBook, 64 pages | Shire | Transportation - Motorcycles - History; History - Great Britain; History - Modern - 20th Century | $7.95 | 978-0-7478-1315-6 (0-7478-1315-9)

For the first half of the 20th century Great Britain led the world in motorcycle design and production, exporting its products to countries in every section of the globe. However, as the second half of the century began in 1960 this once great industry commenced what was to be a terminal decline. During the 1960s and ‘70s Britain still manufactured a wide range of machines, but a combination of poor management, lack of investment, foreign competition (notably from Japan), and the arrival of the small, affordable car transpired to effectively sound the death knell of the British motorcycle by the end of the 1970s.

British Motorcycles of the 1960s and 70s by Mick Walker

2011-08-23T00:30:00-05:00

British Motorcycles of the 1960s and 70s
Written by Mick Walker

Trade Paperback, 64 pages | Shire | Transportation - Motorcycles - History; History - Great Britain; History - Modern - 20th Century | $12.95 | 978-0-7478-1057-5 (0-7478-1057-5)

For the first half of the 20th century Great Britain led the world in motorcycle design and production, exporting its products to countries in every section of the globe. However, as the second half of the century began in 1960 this once great industry commenced what was to be a terminal decline. During the 1960s and '70s Britain still manufactured a wide range of machines, but a combination of poor management, lack of investment, foreign competition (notably from Japan), and the arrival of the small, affordable car transpired to effectively sound the death knell of the British motorcycle by the end of the 1970s.

British Motorcycles of the 1940s and 50s by Mick Walker

2010-10-19T00:30:00-05:00

British Motorcycles of the 1940s and 50s
Written by Mick Walker

Trade Paperback, 64 pages | Shire | Transportation - Motorcycles - History | $12.95 | 978-0-7478-0805-3 (0-7478-0805-8)

After VE Day in 1945 the British population returned enthusiastically to the road. But the cost and availability of both vehicles and fuel led to the post-war scene being dominated by motorcycles, most of them ex-military machines, eagerly snapped up for everyday use in an age when a family car remained just a dream for many. The British industry, meanwhile, was exhorted to 'export or die', and until well into the 1950s the majority of new British bikes were sold abroad. During this period, the industry - the largest and most important in the world - continued to develop new and exciting machines, which increasingly populated Britain's roads.

Mick Walker tells the story of the British post-war motorcycle during this golden age of the industry. Machines from the big names, AMC (AJS and Matchless), the BSA Group (BSA, Triumph, Sunbeam and Ariel), Douglas, Norton, Panther, Royal Enfield, Velocette and Vincent, are here plus a myriad of smaller firms such as Cotton, Excelsior, Francis-Barnett, James and Scott. With the help of archive photographs and advertising material this book conjures up a lost age of the British bike.

Vintage Motorcycles by Jeff Clew

2009-11-17T00:30:00-05:00

Vintage Motorcycles
Written by Jeff Clew

Trade Paperback, 32 pages | Shire | Transportation - Motorcycles - History; Antiques & Collectibles - Cars | $11.95 | 978-0-7478-0277-8 (0-7478-0277-7)

After the close of the First World War, the British motorcycle industry rose to prominence as British motorcycles became almost unbeatable in competitions. However, a shortage of these new model bikes pushed prices to a premium and most people were forced to settle for prewar designs. These high prices led to greater competition, and greater competition lead to swifter and more innovative development. By the mid 1920s the overhead valve engine came into its own, with enhanced performance, and then the overhead camshaft engine with even greater potential. Internal expanding hub brakes kept safety in step with increased performance. The later 1920s brought about further significant changes when wired-on tyres came into general use and electric lighting replaced acetylene lights. Appearance was improved when chromium plating took the place of nickel and the saddle tank rendered the old flat tank superfluous.

Packed with illustrations of the bikes in use , this book is a celebration of the golden years of British motorcycles.

Brooklyn Kings by Greg Tate

2000-12-01T00:30:00-05:00

Brooklyn Kings
Text by Greg Tate
Photographed by Martin Dixon

Hardcover, 144 pages | powerHouse Books | Photography - Portraits; Social Science - African-American Studies; Transportation - Motorcycles - Pictorial | $50.00 | 978-1-57687-044-0 (1-57687-044-8)

As an avid biker for over nine years, photographer Martin Dixon gained unprecedented access to the predominantly African-American motorcycle clubs in Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Manhattan. Comprising a huge subculture of urban road warriors totally unknown to most New Yorkers and bike club enthusiasts, these black "biker gangs"—with names like the Jaguars, the Black Falcons, the Pythons, the Transit Wheelers, the Imperials, the Corpians, the Harlem Riders, the United Roadrunners, and the Uptown Riders—are really high-octane social clubs, whose members ride flashy ninja sport bikes.

Through Dixon's spectacular insider perspective, we enter a world straddling the customs and trappings of traditional biker culture (the heavily embroidered leather jackets, the thick male camaraderie, the bike as manifestation of the ego), and the rituals and pastimes of the urban biker (the springtime bike blessings, the trophy parties, and the clubhouse socials). More importantly, thanks to Dixon, we witness, even participate in, a set of rituals the likes of which no outsider has ever documented: the block parades (complete with monster trucks!), the barbeque parties (replete with a southern club specialty, the "Mississippi Mud Slide"), the bikini bike wash, the Myrtle and Virginia Beach bike runs, the drag races, the raunchy fundraising parties, and, of course, the "biker chicks", urban flavor.

Outlaw Machine by Brock Yates

2000-05-02T00:30:00-05:00

Outlaw Machine Harley-Davidson and the Search for the American Soul
Written by Brock Yates

Trade Paperback, 272 pages | Broadway Books | Transportation - Motorcycles - History; History - United States - 20th Century | $19.00 | 978-0-7679-0516-9 (0-7679-0516-4)

The legendary story of Harley-Davidson's rise to power--not only as an international industry leader but as an American cultural icon.

How did the Harley-Davidson motorcycle, originally a machine for casual riders, evolve into a symbol of defiance and liberation? An embellished 1947 Life magazine article about a California town terrorized by gangs of motorcycle punks changed the world's perception of motorcycles from sporty machines to menaces-to-society, and as the loudest and heaviest bikes on the market, Harley-Davidsons were considered the baddest of them all.

Outlaw Machine chronicles the fascinating social history that built Harley-Davidson's reputation--including the rise of Hell's Angels and the counterculture classic Easy Rider--and, more entrancing still, the bike's and its company's storybook rise to international fame and popularity. Written by renowned automotive journalist Brock Yates, Outlaw Machine is the definitive book on the Harley-Davidson and its place in American culture.

Random House New Releases - Transportation - Motorcycles

British Motorcycles of the 1960s and '70s by Mick Walker

British Motorcycles of the 1960s and '70s Written by Mick Walker

British Motorcycles of the 1960s and 70s by Mick Walker

British Motorcycles of the 1960s and 70s Written by Mick Walker