Cafe Racer

BSA A65 café racer in front of the Ace Café

The legendary AJS 7R Boy Racer with 350 cm³

A Cafe Racer ( [ˈkæf reɪsər] or [ˈkæfi ˌreɪsər] , also Café Racer ) in its purest form was originally a sporty converted English series motorcycle from the 1960s. At the time, these machines were at the center of a subculture .

Today the term is generally used for custom bikes that have been reduced to essential elements and mostly converted to flat handlebars and a shortened, sloping seat, or that have been equipped in such a way at the factory.

History and scene

It is named after the meeting of the rockers of the 1960s in the cafes of the suburbs of the big cities like the legendary Ace Cafe in London . From here, the rockers made the streets of the area unsafe, which also symbolized rebellion against existing social norms for the youth of that time.

The motorcycle was the most important element of the scene and was individually changed and rebuilt using every trick in the book. What came out at the end of the renovation work was called the Cafe Racer. Low machines with stub handlebars and open silencers were " fudged " so that speeds of over 100  mph (the ton) , corresponding to 160 km / h, could be achieved and with which one was able to measure one another in road races. The classic route for the race led from the Ace Cafe to the next roundabout and back again. If possible, this distance had to be covered before a single previously selected in the jukebox was played to the end (record race).

The models for the conversions of the series motorcycles were the current racing machines of the Tourist Trophy on the Isle of Man, such as the Norton Manx . English motorcycles were typical of the genre, e.g. B. from BSA , Norton or Triumph with one to three-cylinder engines, but also Japanese machines such as the Yamaha SR 400 , which often served as a basis for cost reasons. No-frills tanks made of possibly polished light metal , stub handlebars, large headlights, individual bench seats and dismantled rear-view mirrors were the typical stylistic features.

Also noteworthy were constructions made of Triumph engines and Norton frames, the so-called Tritons or the Norvins , in which Vincent engines were built into Norton chassis. From the mid-1970s, after the decline of the British motorcycle industry, the cafe racer style was also adopted by international motorcycle manufacturers.

Numerous print and online magazines worldwide, as well as many vehicle refiners (customizers), deal with the topic of Cafe Racer.

Since the reopening of the Ace Cafe in London in 2001, which now has branches in Beijing , Barcelona , Orlando , Lahti and Lucerne , the scene has met there once a year for “Ace Day”.

Current series models

Modern interpretations of cafe racers can be found numerous today. In 2013, for example, BMW had the American designer Roland Sands develop a Cafe Racer called Concept 90, which was further developed into the BMW R nineT series model and has been delivered since 2014. The German customizer Thunderbike became world champion in custom bike construction in 2012 with its bike PainTTless , which takes up some Cafe Racer components. From 2005 to 2016 the Italian motorcycle manufacturer Benelli offered various TnT models with the “Cafe Racer” designation and 899 or 1130 cubic centimeters.

Retro Cafe Racers are produced by some well-known manufacturers.

• The oldest motorcycle manufacturer in the world, Royal Enfield, has been offering the Continental GT since the end of 2013 .
• From 2010 Norton Motorcycles will build the Commando 961 Cafe Racer .
• With the Thruxton , Triumph has been offering a standard Cafe Racer in its Classic model range since 2004 . In 2016, the Thruxton / Thruxton R was introduced in the course of the model range change and replaced the previous model.
• In 2011, Moto Guzzi launched the V7 Racer, its own retro cafe racer, which has followed the model series up to the V7 III to date.
• Ducati has been offering the Scrambler Cafe Racer since 2017 .

Today's street fighters can be seen as modern descendants of the cafe racers, but modern motorcycles are still being converted in the style of a cafe racer. The main differences are that mostly large-displacement touring motorcycles from the last 20 years serve as the basis, modern components such as single-sided swing arm, central spring strut or upside-down fork are used and the lines are rather broad.

The British car manufacturer David Brown Automotive has been offering the Mini Remastered since 2017 as a special edition "Inspired by Café Racers" limited to 25 copies.

literature

• Sabine Welte: Cafe Racer: Speed ​​and Bikes and Rock'n'Roll. Verlag GeraMond, Munich 2008, ISBN 978-3-7654-7694-5
• Stephan H. Schneider, Katharina Klimpke, Carsten Heil, Dirk Mangartz: Café Racer: From the beginnings to the superbike. Huber Verlag, Mannheim 2008, ISBN 978-3-927896-21-5

Individual evidence

1. ^ Café Racer Motorcycles , accessed July 23, 2018.
2. ↑ caferacer-forum.de: , Athletic oriented reconstruction in the style of classic racer. Optimization of the driving characteristics and reduction to the essentials. Style elements are u. a. sporty seating position, clip-on handlebars, set back footrests, individual seats with humps, aluminum tanks in racing look , accessed July 23, 2018
3. ↑ History of the Ace Cafe at: ace-cafe-london.com
4. ^ Ace Cafe Locations . Ace Cafe website. Retrieved July 27, 2017.
5. ↑ BikeExif: Thunderbike PainTTless
6. ^ Motorcycle Online: Royal Enfield Continental GT
7. ↑ Motorcycle Online: Moto Guzzi V7 Racer
8. ^ Cafe Racers. Retrieved February 7, 2018 .