Tuesday, June 21, 2016

Gay Paris ain't what it used to be....(CVMG Rally 2016)



Ah Paris in springtime! The sound of revving engines in your ears, the air perfumed with burning oil and ancient petrol.   I am of course referring to Paris, Ontario host to the annual CVMG rally.

I have to say that while there were some highlights this year, It was a bit of a let down from years gone by.   I should start by saying that I had been looking forward to the show for months on end.  I couldn't get the Friday off from work but made arrangements to go immediately afterwards with my family.  After an hour on the road, we were turned away at the gate.  I was shocked that vendors would choose to shut down at 5:00PM on Friday with the sun in the sky and 4 hours of daylight left.

Needless to say, this tainted the weekend experience for me and carried over to Saturday when my Father and I returned.   That being said,  my report may not be entirely balanced.

With that out of the way, let's start with the good.

Friends.  It was great to see some old faces and meet internet acquaintances face to face.  It was especially great to meet Carl from the Essex-Kent chapter and see his beautiful Matchless restoration.

Bikes.  Always a pleasure to see these old beauties restored or surviving in our modern world.  I will let the pictures speak for themselves.

Now for the bad.

  It seems to me that the grounds were much fuller in years past.  More bikes and people and much more variety.  While there was a British and Italian presence,  most of what I saw for sale was either Harley or vintage Japanese.   The Japanese bikes I did see for sale were overpriced in my opinion, with the exception of a 1975 Yamaha 2 stroke, 100cc in good original shape for $500.00.  I could be mistaken but a 1980's Honda scooter does not constitute a classic.  It certainly shouldn't have a price tag of over $1000.00.   I was crestfallen by the lack of British parts, far down from years past.

Either the stuff was all snatched up on the Friday or it just wasn't there to begin with.

I have to face the facts I guess.  As each year passes the cadre of British bike enthusiasts naturally falls victim to attrition due to old age, death and divorce.  While I do my best to keep things alive, I simply wasn't there in the golden years to see it all first hand.

My complaints aside,  I will return. Next year I will go on the Friday as tradition would dictate, get first in the gate and first to the goods.

Now for some pictures!



This bike was a real stunner!  I would guess that no expense was spared!



While this resembles a custom, this Spanish made machine was a factory race bike.

The Nimbus, a truly unusual machine...


Who can resist a Brough Superior?

This little CZ had a unique charm

I would have loved to hear this one run!

Ride or restore?  I would shine and ride it, not many of these left.

No words required here....




It looked to me like this was a barn find, unfortunately the owner was in talks to a potential buyer and I did not want to interrupt.






Humble, lovely and factory fresh.



I had to explain what this was to my father,  He said he never saw one on the road in England during the 40's-50's.

This Parilla looked even better in person.

Until next time!