‘Wall of Death’ bike among 75 motorcycles at this new exhibit in Brookline
It’s arguably the most significant collection of motorcycles under one roof since the Guggenheim’s “Art of the Motorcycle’’ exhibit of 114 motorcycles in 1998.
WALL OF DEATH BIKE: This 1928 Indian Scout shows the scars, including past paint jobs and welds, from its working history.
The term “Wall of Death’’ conjures images of all sorts. Our Wall of Death today comes from the world of two-wheeled entertainment.
Even in the heyday of barnstorming, when circuses, vaudeville acts, and carnivals traveled the country, the Wall of Death was the ultimate trick of stunt motorcyclists. They would circle their machines inside a large barrel (25 feet or more in diameter) that variously was called a motordrome or a silodrome. Riders were held to the wall by friction, speed, and centrifugal force.
One of those motorcycles currently is on display at the “Beauty of the Beast’’ exhibit at the Larz Anderson Auto Museum. The bike was used in a long-running Wall of Death attraction on the boardwalk in San Francisco.
The museum’s show runs until May and features 75 motorcycles dating from the beginning of motorized transportation up to today’s computerized high-tech machines.
Larz Anderson is known for featuring America’s oldest car collection. The museum, at 18 Newton St., Brookline, is open from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. every day but Monday and major holidays.
“I remember going to see the Wall of Death at a traveling show in the 1950s,’’ says Salisbury resident Wes Pettengill. “As I kid, I couldn’t wait to get in to see it, but once I climbed up the steps to the top of the wall, I was afraid to get right up to the ropes.’’
Being right up to the ropes meant being in the front row of the deck that encircled and overlooked the track.
Intrepid motorcyclists would circle the wall, riding higher and higher until they could snatch $1 bills from enthralled patrons.
EVOLUTION OF THE SPORT BIKE: A 1912 Merkel board track racer and a high-tech Italian Ducati show the then-and-now of motorcycle development.
“When you start researching, you find out people used to ride sidesaddle in the barrel,’’ says Sheldon Steele, executive director of Larz Anderson. “And there are photos in history books of women riding the motorcycle with a lion in a sidecar.
“I even saw a shot of a woman riding “no hands’’ with her butt on the seat and her feet on the handlebars,’’ he says.
The wall of death Indian Scout bike in the Larz Anderson show now belongs to Rick Lapointe of Amesbury who has it on loan to the exhibit.
After World War II, the bike was shipped to the East Coast and literally hung in a dairy barn until he acquired it a decade ago.
The bike’s hard life is obvious. “You just look at it on display,’’ says Steele, “and it tells a story.’’
“For starters, there’s the original patina. It’s been painted gosh-knows how many different colors and you can see them all where it’s been chipped away. Then there are the welds where parts like the handlebars have been repeatedly repaired.’’
Steele arguably has assembled the most significant collection of motorcycles under one roof since the Guggenheim’s “Art of the Motorcycle’’ exhibit of 114 motorcycles in 1998.
“I’m humbled and very grateful to all the people who’ve entrusted their motorcycles and other vehicles to use for this show,’’ says Steele. “They truly make the magic happen.’’
The show is a reflection of the museum’s long ties to area car collectors, almost all of whom keep low public profiles—at least as far as their vehicles are concerned.
Collecting museum-quality historic vehicles is a different world from the run-of-the-mill cruise night vehicles, though many of those are valuable in their own right and have been lovingly restored and maintained.
Ken Lemoine, organizer of the recent Boston Cup car show, tapped many of Steele’s collector sources. “There’s a great story behind every car that’s here,’’ he said at the Boston Common event on Sept. 20, “and each owner did a lot to help out.’’
Story continues after gallery.
100 rare, cool and classic cars took over the Common for the 2015 Boston Cup
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One other resource Lemoine found was area museums.
“One of the things that is gratifying about our show is the relationship we’ve established with New England museums such as Seal Cove and Owls Head in Maine plus Heritage Museums in Sandwich, but the guy who really stepped up for us is Sheldon Steele at Larz Anderson.’’
For this show, Steele and museum trustee Steve Keegan had a simple goal: “Assemble machines that not only represent the history of the motorcycle but also capture the enduring passion that many share for riding them.’’
That includes Leather ‘n Lace, the portion of the exhibit showing the history of women in motorcycling from the earliest days until today’s women’s riding clubs.
Among the exhibits are some of the most significant bikes in history, including a 1908 Merkel Light and 1912 Merkel board racer.
There’s a 1909 Pierce 4, a bike made by a Pierce-Arrow subsidiary that went out of business because the product was so good that it cost more to build than the company could charge for it.
Steele points to a 1940’s Vincent Black Shadow that old-timers might remember for an advertising photo that showed an overweight rider stretched out prone on the bike wearing a bathing suit and cap, flying over the salt flats, where one of those bikes hit 100 mph.
A visit to the exhibit can keep this riding season going even after most of us who ride motorcycles for pleasure add stabilizer to the fuel and put the bike away for winter.
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