Plenty of gas left in the tank of this cherished 80-year-old motorcycle
The original owner of a 1939 motorcycle went to extraordinary lengths to avoid it being acquired by the government during World War II. Now it is up for auction in Cheltenham and its long-time owner hopes the buyer will cherish it.
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A rare 1939 motorbike whose owner buried it in Notting Hill in a desperate act to stop it from being compulsorily acquired for the war effort will be up for grabs at an auction.
The Triumph Speed Twin 5T motorcycle with sidecar, which is expected to sell for between $39,000 and $49,000, has been in the one family for 73 years, but owner Philip Horner said it was now time for someone else to cherish it.
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Mr Horner said Cyril Kelly, its first owner, dismantled the bike and wrapped its pieces in grease paper and canvas before burying it under his Notting Hill market garden — next to what is now the Monash University Clayton campus — after it was identified for war service.
Mr Horner’s dad, William, bought it from his neighbour in 1946 after it was reassembled, riding it and winning competitions at Oakleigh Motorcycle Club, as well as using it as his work vehicle to carry his carpentry gear.
The Triumph had another spell in the garage of the family’s Oakleigh East home while William’s children grew up, but was restored again in the 1980s.
“After he passed away I got the bike, but … I hardly ride it,” Philip Horner said.
“I thought my boys might be interested, but it’s a different world now.
“So I decided to give it a good home now instead of letting it rot away in the garage.”
While feeling “a bit guilty at first” for putting up the item of his father’s affection for sale, Mr Horner said he considered it “as a gift from my father to the boys”.
“The money that comes from the sale of the bike will go to the boys and they can consider it a gift from their grandfather — they can pursue the things they like doing,” he said.
Mr Horner hopes the Triumph will stay in Australia — “it has missed going overseas once before”, in reference to the other bikes being taken to Papua New Guinea during World War II — saying it would be ideal for a collector or someone who could ride it and “get enjoyment from it”.
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The motorcycle can be seen at Donington Auctions at 100A Talinga Rd, Cheltenham, Tuesday-Saturday from 10am to 4pm and from 9am Sunday, November 17.
The Classic Automotive Auction starts at 11am.