Sidewinder

[Chevy Rick]

Saw one of these Sidewinders at Kempton Bike Jumble yesturday, the first in many years, I can remember when they first came on the market it gave you the chance to ride a bike as a learner, over 250 cc on L plates.

Sidewinder

Sidewinder

[one arm bandit]

god i must have been 10ish last time i saw one of them, a bloke in my hometown had one on his burgandy gt550 he kept failing his bike test, the reason being his legs were too short for him he had to straddle the seat with one leg to touch the floor

[Manky Monkey]

For those too young to remember them, (sadly I do), they were technically a sidecar, although they were hinged so they leant with the bike around corners. Putting a sidecar on a bike meant you could legally ride large engined bikes on L plates. Is that still the case?

[one arm bandit]

i belive so yes, im not sure if the laws changed the past couple of years but if you passed your bike test you was restricted to 33bhp untill the age of 21, however you could still have a bussa or fire blade ect if you had a plug in restrictor, most put it on for mot then it was back off again

[spanners]

when the dinosaurs were little  ,,,, and i past my test you could go out and ride anything 

[terry t]

i didn't see that    in fact i didn't even see you Rick. must remember to take me glasses with me 

[Chevy Rick]

Hi Terry yes it was just in front of the gran-stand till 1.00pm and as I took the photo an old chap came up and purchased it, JJ and Simon were there and we all left shortly after that with our goodies

[terry t]

I left about 12. they must have put it out after i went past. as there wasn't many traders there. i saw the 500cc single Scott just under the grand stand. and the twin Scott near the far entrance. lot of BSA triumphs.   still don't know how i didn't see you or JJ. did you have the dog if so that's even worst

[klogan45]

"gaw blimey mate" I'd forgotten that those things had ever existed. Some lad in Torquay had one.

[Manky Monkey]

Welcome to Memory Lane. 
I had a mate with one fitted to a 400 Honda Superdream. He kept it after he'd passed his test cos it provided a really handy luggage space.

[nabsim]

A mate who almost became son in law had one so he could ride a 350LC. First time out with it in a supermarket carpark was hilarious, he banked it over too far and it grounded out somewhere and he couldnt pull it back up for a bit. The shower of sparks was epic, luckily he got it back up just in time to navigate round a trolley park

[kevsky]

a mate of mine had a vinnie with a bar bolted to the frame with a mini wheel at the other end a scaffold plank bolted to the bar so he could ride it on l plates
lots of fun could be had on it as you laid down on said plank

[Cabman77]

I had a mate that was a bit, how shall I put this, a few shovel loads short of a hole. He used to ride an Ariel Huntmaster with a sidecar chassis with a wooden crate bolted on to it. Load of us were away for a weekend at Southwold and on the Saturday morning we all took a ride to the Caff at Renthram. I was about 3 bikes from the front when the gear lever fell off my A10, we all stopped gear lever retrieved and kicked back on again and of we went down wooded country lanes. Going down the last hilly bit before the caff and...........................................a mini wheel overtakes us up at the front and carries on to the carpark at the end of the road coming to rest against a concrete bollard. We all pulled in and right at the back was this Ariel minus its sidecar wheel and the sixteen stone bloke squeezed into the box was screaming his head of and he jumped out  before the com came to a halt. The "box" passenger was beside himself "do you know what he said when that wheel went of down the road? Well do you?" he yelled at anyone prepared to listen. It appears that on seeing a wheel run off down the road in front of him the rider leaned into the box and said "I`ve got a wheel just like that one"................ Needless to say we we`re all sympathetic to the point of rolling on the floor peeing our pants

[nabsim]

See Cabby, outfits are a laugh

[spanners]

See Cabby, outfits are a laugh

nabs,, do you remeber the  coffin sidecar that used to knock about whaley and chapel,,, great fun with some one lay in it on carnival day