jayleno and the special

[Scott Parker]

I wish I knew who my grandpa bought the bike from. He was living in So. Cal .in the early to mid 70's when he bought it and he was good friends with both Sam Pierce and Burt. He sold it when he downsized his museum in volcano ca. in the early 80's. Just thought people might want to know. I wonder if Bob Stark knows part of the story.

[c.o.]

Hey Scott, do you know how long your grandfather had the bike for?

[Scott Parker]

Hey Scott, do you know how long your grandfather had the bike for?

8 years. I think it's odd not too many people know the whole story.In the book ONE GOOD RUN it mentions towars the end that the bike was sold to a collector from So. Cal. but it doesn't mention a name.

[c.o.]

Eight years!!! Well it sounds to me as though that's long enough to be included in the history of the "Munro Special". I'm curious now to know if the bike saw another face lift after this ad. It appears that the restored version is a little different.

[Scott Parker]

more to the story

My guess is Lysle bought it from Sam then sold it back to him later and then sold by Sam to Gordy Clark. Grandpa was a real collector and restorer and I know he was a good caretaker of motorcycles he didn't just store them. I am glad to see they do have more of the story.

[c.o.]

Great stuff Scott!!! Thanks for sharing some of your family history!!!

[Chris Haynes]

Scott,
I have contacted the Amador County Historical Society about the footage shot at Lyle's place. They don't know anything about it. What was the TV program you recorded that footage from?

[Scott Parker]

Chris, It is from a vhs I discovered at grandpa's house about ten years ago. I watched it with him once back then and as I recall he told me it was filmed by the historical society. My dad just told me today it was filmed by a gentelman who lived near grandpa in volcano, maybe the gentelman was affiliated with the historical society... I'll probably never know. When you get your museum going I look forward to seeing it as I love going back up to gold country. If you have a oct '79 issue of easyrider there is a nice article showing lots of the good old boys on their belt drives outside the St. George Hotel in volcano. Scott

[Chris Haynes]

Chris, When you get your museum going I look forward to seeing it as I love going back up to gold country. If you have a oct '79 issue of easyrider there is a nice article showing lots of the good old boys on their belt drives outside the St. George Hotel in volcano. Scott

Great food at the St. George. Better make a reseveration on Friday or Saturday

[Scott Parker]

When I use to go there they were only open on sunday

[Chris Haynes]

St St George ( http://www.stgeorgehotel.com/ )operates seven days a week now. Their kitchen is the best rated in Amador County. On Friday and Saturday nite the dining room is full of people from the bay area. So like I said if you want dinner there on Fri & Sat you better make a reservation. The Whiskey Flat Saloon next door to the hotel has fantastic hamburgers and a grumpy old bartender who is lots of fun. GQ magazine named Whiskey Flat one of the best bars in the world.
There is another Gold Rush era hotel and bar/restaurant in Volcano that has recently reopened. The Union Inn. http://www.volcanounion.com/pages/home.cgi
At many restaurants in the Gold Country you can get a breakfast dish call Original Joe's or Joe's Special. Left over from the gold rush it is a scramble of eggs, onions, mushrooms, spinach, and ground beef. A great breakfast.

[PSchack]

Greetings Peter,
Just curious what your experience is with Burt, his bike and the accurate history of how many iterations of engines there were. Have you had any of the parts in your hands? You have made some fairly strong statements and accusations in this thread and I was just curious where you got the data.

Best regards
Phil Schack (the guy in the movie running the throttle)

[Tommo]

Phil,
Dad and Burt knew each other and Burt got quite a few parts off Dad. In 1970 while on my honeymoon I was asked by my father to deliver a box of parts to Burt and it's an encounter my wife will never forget as seeing Burt in all his glory buck naked on his bed at about 10 am sent her running back to the car to wait for me.
Yes I've held and examined parts he made and a very good friend of mine worked as a fitter and turner in Invercargill and did numerous jobs for Burt at the behest of his boss. Burt would turn up wanting to use the mill to rough out some part or other and rather than let him loose on it Johnny's boss would get him to do it, not because Burt couldn't do it but because he was too tough on the gear and had done too much damage to tooling and the like in the past.
If you want facts read George Beggs book about Burt, its not the easiest read but it is facts and details without any padding to make it easier reading. If you've got the Tim Hanna book read the introduction carefully and you will see that he states there that his book is not a history and yes Tim is a personal friend of mine.
George was a friend of Dads and they both raced bikes together in the 1950's so I think I have a reasonable handle on the facts and if you had ever been into Burt's shed and seen his stuff there you would understand why the streamliner looks nothing like what originally came out of that shed.
Go to Invercargill and visit Hayes's store and look at the original Indian that sits there beside Burts Velocette and then you will see what I mean.

[Tommo]

I've added a couple of scans that show dedications Tim wrote in his books he gave to Jennifer and myself

[c.o.]

Tommo, it's insight like this that is most appreciated. It's all about the details..... I learned a little more about Burt from that post. I hope your wife has recovered!!!