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There is the
luxury of a sprung
seat for a little bit
of butt comfort
back on, choke off. A short cough and the bike
chugged into life with the rhythmic pulse of a
steam engine, inviting me to engage in a classic
journey. I sat there for a minute just enjoying
the moment, taking in the subtle sounds of
the engine’s components as they rattled in
harmony.
After a quick warm-up and practice in
Paterson Park I was ready to head off to the
historic town of Morpeth in the NSW Hunter
Valley. The hand gear changes required intense
concentration, but after that I settled into a
comfortable speed of about 80km/h.
The BSA’s engineering is quite raw. You feel
every nuance and imperfection, but this is part
of the experience of riding a classic motorcycle.
The nostalgic presence of the BSA gave me a
great sense of pride, and as I rode through the
towns people would stop and wave.
The girder fork suspension worked
surprisingly well on the relatively smooth
country roads. It was a different story on
the rougher sections though, where the bike
bucked and weaved as the front suspension
fought with the rigid frame. I took some big
hits that felt like they were driving my spine
through the top of my head, so I found myself
pre-empting the bigger hits with a slight lift of
the rear end, which helped. The rear frame is
rigid but there is the luxury of a sprung seat for
a little bit of butt comfort.
The braking too is generally good, but beware!
Brake too hard and the girder forks shudder in
protest – it pays to plan ahead when stopping.
That’s even more true for gear changes. The
BSA has what’s called a ‘suicide shift’ – three
actions, two hands, no problem, right?
The BSA 33-W6 is motorcycling in its purest
form – it has charm, character and is a real
crowd-pleaser. The mechanical and riding
idiosyncrasies all add to the joy of riding
this bike, and riding a motorcycle close to 85
years old is something special that must be
experienced to be appreciated.213