Café Racer culture

Custom bikes in England started in pretty much the same way as they did in the USA: soldiers returning from WWII found it difficult to re-adjust to civilian life and used the money they had to buy motorcycles and escape from the mundane banality of everyday life.

It was the geography of the two countries which caused the motorcycle cultures to develop different and unique styles. Whereas in the USA the roads are wide, open and long, here in the UK we have narrow twisty roads. A Harley may be great for cruising the open highway but on a narrow country lane in England it’s just a pain.

The English riders’ answer was to take the bikes readily available to them: big singles and parallel twins from the likes of Triumph, BSA, Norton, AJS, Velocette and other long since gone domestic manufacturers, and adapt them to suit their needs.

The first step was to remove any excess bodywork, usually leg shields, screen and the stock rear fender, which was replaced with a shorter item. The next stage was a set of narrow, low-mounted bars, either clip-ons or ‘Ace’ bars. Then to get an even more aerodynamic position the seat would be swapped for a single racing hump and rearsets would go on to replace the standard foot controls.

Around the time these bikes were being built, the country’s road network was changing. New ‘A’ roads were opening and the main users of these new roads were long distance truck drivers, and in response to their needs roadside cafes began to open long into the night providing refreshment. However, they soon found themselves with a new clientele – bikers.

As the early British bike customizers converged in those cafes, where the jukeboxes played imported American rock ‘n’ roll record, so was born a culture and a name for the style of bikes being built – Café Racers. While US riders drag-raced for a pink slip, in the UK riders raced for prestige. Around the popular cafés such as the Busy Bee, the Salt Box and the legendary Ace, there would be well-known unofficial race routes. The challenge was to put a record on the jukebox, race the circuit and return before the record finished.

However, the whole scene began to change with the release of the film Easy Rider. As the ‘70s began, British bikers discovered American Choppers. Bars got higher instead of lower, paint got wilder and everything started to get covered in chrome. It looked as if the UK and US bike scenes would now run along parallel lines.

Then Japanese sports bikes began to appear on the market in the UK. As those machines became available, second-hand or smashed up in breakers’ yards, the UK’s custom builders started to buy them up and once again discovered the joy of riding a fast, well-handling bike on the country’s twisty roads.

And so was born a new style – street fighters. Builders were buying up damaged sports bikes and, as a very minimum, removing the broken bodywork and adding a set of motocross bars.

It’s a style that continues even now and one that’s starting to cross over, with the influences being seen in bikes coming from US bike builders like Russ Mitchell, Roland Sands and Jesse Rooke.

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