Vintage bicycles still rule the roads in the Netherlands

Typical Dutch bike: Simple, sturdy, black.

Here's a joke I just thought up: Why can't Dutch office workers work from home?

Because they don't own exercise bicycles.

The bicycle-intensive cultures of the Netherlands and Denmark have always fascinated me. But there was one thing that worried me about our vacation this summer, in and around Amsterdam and Copenhagen.

I feared that the classic, vintage bicycles, so familiar from photos in my grade school Geography textbook, would long ago have been replaced by high-tech modern bikes in Euro-pop colors.

Boy, was I wrong. The cities are still crawling with the traditional, upright bikes, usually all black except for a patch of white paint on the bottom of the rear fender, to make them more visible at night.

Double-decker bike parking at the Gouda train station.

And Dutch office workers do indeed ride them to work. Bicycle parking at the train stations is double-decker. You push your bike up a retractable ramp to get it above the bike below.

The bicycles we rented for our ride through windmill country were new and expensive. They offered seven speeds, all inside a rear hub, so magnificently engineered that it was possible to switch to any gear even if the bicycle was not moving.

Seven-speed hub gearbox made the going easy.

Spectacular technology but also heavy! Thank goodness it's a flat country where only momentum matters.

In contrast, the bicycles we saw the Dutch (and many Danes) riding were low-tech, often with just one speed and a coaster brake. (It surprised me how rarely even a derailleur equipped bike is seen.)

Dutch tandem with a wicker basket at each end.

Dutch bikes sprout wicker baskets bedecked with artificial flowers and extra seats for children that sometimes include a mini-windscreen or even full enclosure for the kid.

The time honored fully enclosed chaincases are common. These even show up on the signs marking bicycle lanes. (These chain cases don't appear to provide an oil bath for the chains — surely a missed opportunity.)

Bike lane; note the enclosed chain case.

The "bicycle lanes" are far more elaborate than those familiar in the U.S. Some intersections have separate traffic signals for bikes.

"Mopeds" are permitted in the bike lanes — possibly not a great idea, given that some "scooters" are now as fast as cars, creating an unsettling performance discrepancy.

Amsterdam bridge reserved for bikes (and mopeds) only.

Biking in the low countries was a fantastic experience. The vintage bicycles we saw added to the great memories.

Big family? No problem on a Dutch bicycle.

Luxurious full enclosure for the kiddies.

A bicycle made of wood, parked on the street, not in an art gallery.

Only spotted one truly old bike with rod-actuated brakes.

Bike made of Legos in Copenhagen.

Surprising visit to Louwman auto museum at The Hague

The Sunbeam S7 motorcycle given to Field Marshal Montgomery.

I've never visited an automotive or motorcycle museum I didn't enjoy, even if it didn't have a Royal Enfield motorcycle on display. The Louwman Museum in The Hague, though, is exceptional. It has a surprising ability to — well — surprise.

Perhaps because it is a private collection, the Louwman ignores boring chronological coherence to surprise the visitor with one spectacular rarity after another. Although there are priceless Mercedes, Ferraris and Bugatis there are also, frankly, the lowly.

Apparently, the vehicles on display at the Louwman were chosen on the basis of "get a load of this." What fun that is.

I was delighted to see the Sunbeam S7 motorcycle presented to Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery as a 1948 publicity stunt on behalf of the British motorcycle industry. Interesting enough for its tandem two-cylinder engine and shaft drive, the Sunbeam is still more interesting as an example of the industry's marketing program of the day.

The victor of El Alamein gave the Sunbeam to his chauffeur in 1962 and, when it was sold two years later, it still had only 400 kilometers on the clock.

Plain looking DAF on display isn't any ordinary car.

Being in the Netherlands, one expects to see a little blue DAF car on display. Another visitor remembered riding in one with her family as a girl. "We called it 'Daffodil' she told us.

But the DAF 600 at the Louwman is not a production model. It's one of the secret prototypes first tested on the road in 1957. The prototype number still hangs from the rear view mirror. In 1958 the DAF would startle the automotive world with its continuously variable transmission.

What other museum would give the Austin A90 such pride of place?

Nevermind rare: how about the rarely remembered? Such as my all-time favorite, the 1949 Austin A90 Atlantic, displayed behind rope at the Louwman as though priceless.

This lovable Brit is adorned with three headlights and a Pontiac-style silver streak up the hood in an effort to appeal to Americans. Americans only wanted 350 of them, and nobody anywhere else wanted many more, so most Atlantics rusted away unappreciated.

There's a fun episode of "Top Gear" that tells the story.

At the Louwman I got my best look ever at a 1948 Tatra, the Czech take on what a VW Beetle would be like if it had four doors, an airplane style tail fin, and an air-cooled three-liter V8 in the back.

In a word: unstable at speed.

Tatra 87 looked as though it could fly; and it might.

I'd never before laid eyes on a 1942 Chrysler Town and Country barrel back station wagon. The one at the Louwman is still beautiful, although it has never been restored.

1942 Chrysler Town and Country barrel back sedan.

The 1928 4 1/2 Liter Vanden Plas Bentley Le Mans on display certainly takes a prize for "Most Hood Louvers."

1928 Bentley Le Mans in British racing green.

The Louwman collection includes cars driven by maharajahs, owned by Elvis, featured in James Bond movies and victorious at Le Mans. As you can tell by the photos here, the cars are given space, not parked next to one another as if in a lot at the shopping mall.

Like any good museum, the Louwman teaches lessons. Signage in English puts each vehicle in context.

Styling of 1899: Benz designed to make you think motor was up front.

I was surprised to learn that Benz cars were considered so conservative and old-fashioned by 1899 that a false bonnet was included to give the impression that the motor was in front. You've heard of hill-holder features on manual transmissions? The 1899 Benz had something better: a "hill strut" that folded down underneath to keep it from back sliding. The 1899 Benz was behind its times.

And, of course, the Beetle was displayed in front of a giant photo of a smiling Fuhrer — sobering context indeed.

VW people's car displayed next to Jozef Ganz's version.

Just as chilling, the Louwman placed next to its Beetle the little "Swiss People's Car" designed by Jewish engineer Jozef Ganz. Ever heard of him? He originated ideas Ferdinand Porsche incorporated into the Beetle, but had to flee Germany.

The Beetle would sells millions but the Swiss People's Car never entered production.

A Royal Enfield bicycle you've never seen

Wait: Royal Enfield never made a bicycle like this. Did it?

Here's a Royal Enfield bicycle Royal Enfield never made — at least it was never in the catalog. But it's real, and you can buy it on CraigsList in York, Pa.

The ad stopped me cold when I saw it because at first glance it appears to show a Royal Enfield Compact, the little folding bicycle marketed in the United States by a New Jersey company under the Royal Enfield name in the 1980s.

Catalog photo of a Royal Enfield Compact. Note the hinge.

Except that this bicycle doesn't fold. It doesn't even have the folding mechanism in the swooping U-shaped, step-through frame.

Is this a previously unknown factory product? Or did someone somewhere painstakingly weld solid the two-part frame of a folding bicycle?

I would never have guessed the answer, which came courtesy of the seller, whose name is Mark.

There's no hinge in the frame of the CraigsList bicycle.

The explanation concerns a different Royal Enfield model that was sold by that same New Jersey company: an adult tricycle. The Royal Enfield tricycle also had the swan-like U-shaped frame but with only one exception I've ever seen, the tricycle did not fold.

"Thanks for reaching out!" Mark wrote.

"I buy and sell bikes as a hobby and ran across this one while searching for a tricycle rear end. I have a project in mind to make a small two-seater, four-wheel bike for my wife and I to ride around the neighborhood, and wanted to start with a trike rear end and build around it.

Catalog photo of a Royal Enfield tricycle. No hinge here.

"Anyway, this Royal Enfield started life as a four speed trike with 24-inch wheels."

So that's it! Mark removed the trike rear end for use with his project, fit a set of wheels he had laying around, and turned a Royal Enfield tricycle into a Royal Enfield bicycle that never had been a folder.

The tricycle rear end, removed for use in a future project.

"Its now a  cool little bike with some character and will make someone a nice cruiser," he wrote.

Mark hung on to the tricycle's front wheel, with its drum brake, for his project. As for the Schwinn shifter on the bike, that's "definitely not stock," and it's not hooked up to the derailleur gears at the rear, so the bicycle for sale has only a single speed at the moment. And it will need brakes.

Gear shift is isn't hooked up.

Mark notes in his ad that it would make a unique commuter.

Royal Enfield played role with Mcnee in "The Avengers"

"The Avengers" stars with a Royal Enfield Constellation in 1964.
Do you see a third exhaust pipe in this photo?

UPDATE: Royal Enfield Owners Club UK member Julian Green writes in The Gun magazine for April-May 2019 that the Royal Enfield ridden by Mr. Steed and Mrs. Gale in "The Avengers" television show isn't a Constellation, as reported in previous issue of the magazine, but is instead a Meteor Minor sports with some Constellation touches.

Julien Audor of Vienna, Austria, alerted me to the death of actor Patrick Mcnee June 25 at the age of 93. He even attached a color photo of Mcnee astride a Royal Enfield Constellation with Honor Blackman, Mcnee's then co-star on the television show "The Avengers."

The British series had been a favorite of mine, and I suspect every other teenage American boy, in the 1960s. The attraction was Mcnee's portrayal of the polite and very British secret agent John Steed, plus the revealing outfits favored by his female co-stars.

Honor Blackman played "Mrs. Gale" in the early UK programs. By the time the series reached the U.S. Diana Rigg was wearing the skin-tight costumes in the role of Emma Peel.

We only wished we could be as clever as Steed:

Emma Peel: (Emma is admiring an antique bed) "I've always rather fancied myself in one of these."

John Steed: "So have I... I mean, I have too."

Honor Blackman was an earlier sexy side-kick for Mcnee. (She would leave the series and play the role of Pussy Galore in the James Bond movie "Goldfinger.")

Blackman had been a dispatch rider in World War II, and so was a natural for an episode on a motorcycle, probably the source of the Royal Enfield Constellation photo.

Blackman in leathers and Mcnee with bowler and umbrella
in screen grab from "The Avengers" episode "Build A Better Mousetrap."

The Constellation probably is one of the motorcycles in the 1964 episode "Build A Better Mousetrap." Blackman rides a different motorcycle (a Royal Enfield Airflow?) in that one, but her outfit is the same, and the insignia on her helmet matches the one born by the gang of Rockers she joins.

But Julien added one other thing about the color photo with the Constellation: "Do you also see a third exhaust pipe?"

What?! Why yes, I do. Is this a three-cylinder Royal Enfield?

Royal Enfield had built a triple — but just as an experiment — in 1916. Blogger Jorge Pullin investigated it for his My Royal Enfields blog and conjectures that it wouldn't have been practical for production.

Could there have been a Constellation based Royal Enfield triple in the 1960s?

No. Look closely.

Reflection and a shadow create the illusion of three exhaust pipes.

Barn find: Indian three-wheeler powered by Royal Enfield

Royal Enfield engine powers this Indian three-wheeler of the 1950s.

A Royal Enfield powered Indian Patrol Car for sale on eBay in Sobieski, Wis. reminds us how awesome these three-wheeled motorcycles were. Built for work, not play, they were impressive in size but still attractively styled.

"This was my brother's bike," seller Eric Kurowski wrote me. "I thought you would enjoy a pic or two."

"I'm not sure where my brother got it from but he had 45 years of collecting and building. Back in the '70s he dominated the Daytona bike shows with his choppers.

"I enclosed a pic of my Brother Dave 'Kraut' Kurowski on his 1942 Harley Servi-Car in a Wisconsin January Winter! He rode every New year's no matter the weather."

Dave "Kraut" Kurowski on his Harley Davidson Servi-Car.

David H. Kurowski died April 6, 2013 at age 64. His obituary in the Green Bay Press Gazette notes that he "was an avid motorcycle enthusiast known well in the local biker community. He will be remembered for his enjoyment of racing and his mechanical expertise. Kraut won multiple awards for his many bike creations and restorations. He also loved hunting and fishing in the great outdoors. Kraut loved living on the edge with the need for speed."

Here's Eric's description of the bike on eBay:

This Indian has a full box and wide floorboards. Note tank shift.

"It was a barn find. The main rod on the Bullet 350 engine is broken... It's been stored in a barn for years. The tank is cherry. Some typical rust but just enough to make it beautiful...

"Update: Today I rolled it out and took more pictures. First time in sunlight in 15 years. I opened the box and found more parts. Not sure what they are but looks like transmission parts...

"I by some chance found a little piece of aluminum that was in the bottom of the box. At first it looked like junk. Then I put it up to the hole in the crankcase from the rod. Perfect match. Whoever broke the engine was smart enough to save the chip...

"In the box was additional transmission too. I found the original suicide shift as well with the linkages to replace. The wood floor of the box is in perfect shape . There are no rust holes though the body. Just light surface rust. The original lid handles are in the box too."

If the box didn't hold what you wanted to carry, you could strap more on the flat lid.

Whether it's restored or even just reassembled, this Patrol Car will be the only one of its kind at the show. They're very rare, although my best attempts to muddle through the history of the Indian Patrol Cars leaves some questions unanswered.

Typically these have the Royal Enfield 350 single and Albion transmission set up to give three forward speeds and reverse. There's a big handsome tank with the Indian head logo and the hand gearshift. A roomy box on the back carries supplies.

Indian logo fit fine on this Royal Enfield gas tank.

Wide floorboards are sometimes present to add to the appearance of a substantial motor vehicle, not just a motorcycle with two rear wheels.

When Indian stopped making its own motorcycles in the early 1950s, Royal Enfields of all sorts were imported and rebadged to fill the catalog.

Some of the Royal Enfield engined Indian Patrol Cars resemble the British Pashley three-wheelers of the day, which also had Royal Enfield motors. But others resemble the Patrol Cars Indian had been making when it had its own motors.

Tow bar meant one man could deliver a car to a customer.

Indian had offered its own Patrol Car to compete with the similar Harley Davidson Servi-Car. They were handy for police and meter maids, and if a gas station had one the mechanic could tow it behind a repaired automobile to deliver the car to the customer, then ride back to work.

On seeing another Royal Enfield motorcycle in the U.S.

Sightings of Royal Enfields are so rare in the United States that I invariably snap
a photo when I see one. This one was parked in Miami Beach.

It was a bitter cold day in Washington, D.C. as my daughter and I waited to walk across an intersection. My chin was down to protect my neck from the wind and my hands were thrust deep into my pockets.

It was the sound that made me look up.

"That's a Royal Enfield!" I exclaimed, amazed that anyone would ride a motorcycle on such a harsh day and on a rarely seen Royal Enfield, too.

That was last winter and today is summertime in hot and humid Fort Lauderdale and I happened to look up at an intersection.

"That's a Royal Enfield!" I exclaimed.

That makes two this year!

This tells you a little something about how often I see Royal Enfields rolling along the roads in the United States. (I've seen a couple, in different places, parked along the street as well, but only these two moving examples.)

This is actually a tremendous improvement. I never used to see Royal Enfields at all unless I happened to look at my own, or was at a vintage motorcycle show (even then there might not be any at the show except mine, in the parking lot).

But, clearly, with all its success, the day is coming when there will be Royal Enfields all over the United States.

How will I feel about that?

Will people quit stopping me to ask what is that I'm riding? (I doubt it.)

Will I have to stop listing Royal Enfields for sale because there are so many? (Maybe.)

Will I get over feeling so special when I ride my Royal Enfield? (Never.)