Story by Mike Seate • Photos by Simon Everett
Three rapid-paced decades have zipped by since London’s Ace Cafe held its first reunion party. Back then, the once-popular transport cafe had been bought by a tire changing firm, its tall bay windows filled with lifts for cars and its coffee bar serving up axle lube instead of caffeinated go-juice. The thousands of new and veteran cafe racers who attended the 1994 event proved a need for a rebirth of the space, first opened in 1938. By 2001, the Ace was back in full swing as a somewhat more posh and vibrant version of its former self.
In early September, throngs of leather-jacketed riders, teddy boys and other lovers of greasy hair, rock ‘n roll and endless cups of tea turned up to celebrate the ongoing presence of British cafe culture. The busy weekend saw thousands gather for the annual ride to the Brighton seafront where mods and rockers once battled, though we were content to enjoy judging the annual Cafe Racer custom show and the wild menagerie of two-wheeled ingenuity on display. Here are a few of our favorites.
Londoner Alex Sule buzzed, not rumbled into the parking lot, bent over a machine that resembled a 1920s board track racer. He even dressed for the day, resplendent in a retro striped sweater and half helmet. His handbuilt beauty was an ordinary pedal-bike made less ordinary by cleverly mounting an air-cooled 50cc motor to the frame. Dual chain drive, a quart-sized rear-mounted fuel tank and chromed, downdraft exhaust help the machine reach a top speed of 35 MPH. “It’s great for riding in town where you don’t need much more speed to keep pace with traffic,” said Sule, who builds the motorized bikes under the Auto Cycle Systems label.
The aptly named Steve Wrench turned heads with his funky 1950s-style Triumph Bonneville bobber. The hardtail ride looked like a prop from ”The Wild One” as did the owner’s Brando cap and cuffed Levis. Loads of detail abounded on the 2009 vintage motorcycle, from the chromed tank rack borrowed from a 1960s Bonnie, the open shotgun exhausts, period-pattern Firestone treaded tires and solo saddle with checkerboard upholstery and six-inch support springs. Aces, indeed.
The Best Classic Motorcycle prize appropriately went to Hiroko Murakami and her trusty 1948 Triumph Speed Twin. The Japanese expat has been riding to the Ace since shortly after its re-opening, utilizing her burgundy road-burner for everyday transport in all weathers. She recently rebuilt the 500cc twin-cylinder engine herself for the first time, though there was plenty of good-natured ribbing among the cafe’s regulars, many of whom lent their skills to the job.
Despite rain threatening the day’s festivities, it was all sunny smiles from Essex man Dave Ward who won a prize package for his pristine 1957 BSA DB34 Gold Star. The glistening factory cafe racer has been in the Ward family for generations with Dave taking ownership from his dad at age 16. “I’ve been around British bikes me whole life and me dad was a toolmaker, so it’s always been in top fettle,” he boasted. To illustrate his point, Ward heaved once on the Goldie’s kickstarter and the single thudded eagerly to life. The 500cc classic had just completed a two-hour burn-up through busy Central London traffic where he said the bike performed superbly, though even a two leading-shoe front drum brake is hardly a match for the ceaseless stop-and-go traffic.
Dresda’s legendary owner Dave Degens has retired and sold the bespoke cafe racer garage to longtime tech Russell Vann and partner Guy Fithen who turned up at the Ace with recently-completed replicas of two of the shop’s race-winning machines. The black Triton is a 750cc five-speed version of the 1970 Barcelona 24-hour endurance race-winning special, replete with a formidable, eight leading-shoe front brake and half fairing. The silver wideline Triton is a rolling tribute to Degens’s 1965 champion endurance racer that beat several big factory race teams, turning Dresda into a sought-after global brand. The shop is now moving forward with parts, engine and complete motorcycle builds.