You ever talk to someone and they say “Hey, I’ve got an old motorcycle in the garage. It just sits there and I never ride. Gee….I really should sell that thing”? I hear that about once a month anymore. If only I had the ambition to make more cash to purchase all of those garage bikes. Well a few years ago a gentleman I’ve known for several years told me at a social event that he has a “little” bike that’s been in his garage since the mid 70’s. We talked briefly about me coming down to look at it to see if I was interested. A year goes by and he contacts me. When I ask him what kind of bike it was he says “Oh….it’s a BSA….a B50 BSA....you know a 500cc single four stroke”. WHAT? There’s been a B50 this close to me for how many years and I didn’t know about it.
So I told him that my interest level was VERY high and asked when I could view this machine. The following night worked for both of us……I could hardly sleep.
Rode over after my daytime job and looked in the garage. There it was a very nice example of a 1972 B50T. Couldn’t believe my eyes. We talked for a while and come to find out he’s the second owner and has had it in his garage since 1975. He pointed out the 7,200 miles on the odometer was correct as the tires, chain and almost everything else was original to the bike. When he purchased the bike from the original owner it had 6,200 miles on it. Unbelievable in every imaginable way, this bike was pristine. There was no rust or corrosion that I could see. That aluminum BSA B50 tank with its polished sides just gleamed like a mirror pleading to figure out a way to afford to bring it home. The owner explained that it would be tough to let it go, but he said that he would love to see me get the bike. I had to ask “why me?” He explained that he had seen so many old motorcycles get bought up, then cut up and then forgotten about because they became “projects” that were never finished. He has seen a few of my old bikes and knows without me jumping on a soapbox that I don’t cut up old bikes. If they are together and original, I leave them together and original because…..they are only original one time. Anyone can pay someone to “restore” a bike, but not everyone can have or enjoy a bike as it was from the factory.
He did explain that he never much cared for the rectangular Lucas tail light. The rear fender was changed out to a Japanese rear fender to accommodate a round tail light, something he felt matched up better with the round headlight up front. That was done in 1976. He also took off the long seat and put on the B50MX (motocross) version, which I very much like as well.
So we talked a little more that night standing in his garage and I told him that I felt the bike was almost too nice for me, it really looked like it belonged in a museum. He made me promise to ride it a few times a year and with that promise the deal was done. He made it affordable for me and I promised to never disclose the price I paid for it. There’s a high level of respect I have for people who treasure old motorcycles enough to see past the money they are worth. Those kinds of people see that to keep these old motorcycles around and riding down the road the worst thing they can do is put them in a high profile auction. Make them affordable for the next generation so those bikes can be taken care of and loved for generations to come. I’ve never really felt like I’m the owner of any of my bikes because I’m really just a caretaker. Just a guy who collects stores and treasures them so people 50 years from now can see them on the road still. It’s a history and respect thing I guess.
Back to the B50T. It’s a 1972 B50T, made for only two years with production numbers not exceeding 2,700. 1972 was the last year for the B50T and the last year for BSA. When I went to pick the bike up I asked if it would “let” me ride it home, he said that it shouldn’t be a problem. When I arrived he had it sitting out in the center of the garage all ready to go. We went over the starting procedure and other details. All of which are something you’d never get from buying a bike at an auction. Those details only come from someone who has owned the bike most of its life.
This B50T is a one kick bike most of the time. It’s really a joy to ride and it brings a smile to my face every time I ride it. Like several of my bikes I feel really fortunate that it’s in my possession. Just thinking that this bike was “THE” short track and motocross bike of it’s era and guys like Dick Mann swore by it is just cool no matter how I look at it.
So here’s the picture. The gentleman standing with the bike is my favorite teacher from school, Mr. John Bowen. He always said I was a quite kid that never stood out. He never knew all those years how much those motorcycle, hot rod and gun magazines he had in his classroom influenced me. He was the first teacher that I remember that had a sarcastic sense of humor, good taste in music and cool motorcycles. I’m proud to say that we’ve been friends for many years and I thought of him when I saw the B50 for the first time.
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