The Tourist

 

Preparing and riding a rare Norton to survive the 3,306 mile, 2016 Motorcycle Cannonball Century Race.

 Richard Asprey was ready for a new adventure. He wanted to ride in the US coast-to-coast endurance race known as the Motorcycle Cannonball. And, as President of the North Texas Norton Owners Association (NTNOA), he wanted to ride a Norton. The only problem was that the next run would be a century race, featuring only motorbikes made before 1916. Pre-1916 Nortons are, in an understatement, rare.

Richard, a native Londoner now living in Texas, began his search for a suitable bike 18 months before the race. Internet searches were fruitless until he ran across an image of a rough and un-restored 1915 Model 16 that lived somewhere in the UK. A little more searching found that the bike belonged to Joe Seifert of Andover Norton in Andover, England.

Taking a shot in the dark, Richard sent Joe an email asking if he'd be interested in selling the 1915. Asprey explained that he wanted the bike specifically for riding in the next Motorcycle Cannonball. Joe was reluctant to sell. The little Norton had sat in his shop for years serving mostly as a historic decoration.

Yet, Joe was intrigued with the notion of the old Norton being restored and raced. Joe's wife and kids, also heavily involved in Nortons, told him not to sell it. Originally, Joe had entertained ideas of restoring it himself but had never gotten around to it. After reflection, Seifert decided that realistically, he was probably never going to do anything with it. Richard and Joe began to negotiate.

How do you find a value for such a rare bike? Richard began to collect opinions from members of the Texas Norton club. Meanwhile, in England, Joe began his own research. Similar bikes selling at auctions provided a price range, and more than a few experts were consulted. After a few days of investigating, Richard and Joe settled on a price and the Model 16 was crated up and shipped to Keith Martin of Big D Cycle in Dallas.

Formally, the bike is known as a 1915 Norton Model 16 Tourist Trophy. Norton's code name for it was 'Tourist.' In 1966 the Norton was misidentified as a bike made from bits of other Nortons. Bill Fruin, THE Norton expert of the time, had been consulted and sent drawings to use for identification.

From the drawings he received, he concluded that it had an older engine and a later frame that was modified perhaps in the 1920's. However, the biggest factor in his decision was the leather chain-cum-belt drive with a 3 speed gear box. To his knowledge, the Model 16 with the gear box was fitted with a metal chain drive.

With this evaluation, the unrestored Tourist sold at auctions for far short of the value of a factory 1915. Joe Seifert's friend Stefan Knittel bought the Norton fairly cheaply at a Christies auction several years ago. It still carried the stigma of being a "bits" bike. Joe bought the bike from Stefan about 15 years ago.

Joe displayed the Tourist in his shop with an expectation of restoring it one day. During this time an advertisement from 1915 was discovered showing that Norton did indeed offer the 1915 Model 16TT with a three speed gearbox and a chain-cum-belt final drive. This information is backed up in the 1917 Red Book (similar to today's Blue Book) that listed the 1915 and 1916 Model 16TT as being available with either a chain or a chain-cum-belt final drive. Joe had a genuine, although in rough condition, 1915 factory Tourist Trophy. And possibly the twelfth oldest known Norton.

Back at Big D Cycle, Keith Martin was preparing for his task of not only restoring the 100 year old bike, but also making it roadworthy for a 3,306 mile ride. The rules for the Motorcycle Cannonball are straight forward and sensible. In order to qualify for the race, the bike's motor had to be an original engine. After that, reasonable changes could be made to the bike for the sake of comfort and safety. For instance, the clincher wheels of the period could be replaced with modern wheels, brakes could be enhanced, and so on. After that, the bike needed lights and anything else to make it legal to ride on modern roads.

The Tourist featured a 79 X 100, 490cc, side valve engine rated at 3 1/2 hp (as figured by the mathematical formula used at the time).  It uses a hand clutch on the left handlebar grip for a 3 speed Sturmey Archer gear box. The countershaft cog has 17 teeth with gear ratios of top-4.54, middle-7.4 and low-12.1. Throttle and air mix are controlled with stacked metal levers near the right hand grip. An ingenious metered oil drip feed system located on the right forward section of the fuel tank fed a total loss system.

         

A Ruthardt magneto provides spark while a Brown & Barlow carburetor meters fuel and air. A compression release lever is located on the left side of the handlebar. The acetylene headlamp is fueled by a reservoir attached to the frame in front of the engine.

Rear brakes on the Model 16 used an open friction pad against a metal rim on the right side of the wheel. The front brake sported well crafted, yet almost useless, caliper brakes. Both brakes were constructed seemingly for novelty purposes only. Suspension for the bicycle style frame are provided by Druid forks and a sprung saddle.

The elongated tank features unique hinged screw caps for both the fuel and oil sections. The shift knob is located next to the tank on the right side. All this is topped off with a narrow luggage rack and two small boxes on either side of the rear fender.

The first thing Keith and his crew did was to strip the bike down to the frame. The rear half of the frame was bent. They realigned the frame and installed a gusset to strengthen it overall. The frame and fenders were repaired and spray painted flat black in-house. The flat black paint was only to serve as a primer. To give the body parts the look of the original finish, they were then painted gloss black with a brush. It gave the body parts the texture it would've had from the factory.

Various parts were sent off for refurbishment or rebuilding. Hardware was nickel plated in-house. The tank was sent to Ross Thompson in Canada to be cleaned, tinned, and beefed up. The magneto was sent to Nick Hall at FTW Magneto and Dynamo Repair in the UK. The Motorcycle Cannonball guidelines specifically recommend having the magneto rebuilt. They wanted all bikes to run on their intended ignition source.

Pirate Upholstery (http://www.pirateupholstery.com/) in New York re-covered the seat and period correct tool boxes were installed. The acetylene headlight and fuel tank were reworked by Keith Martin.

The Norton will eventually be completely restored to its original condition, but this is about where restoration stops and race modifications begin. The engine was cleaned and refitted with a new crank and piston rod from Alpha Bearing (http://www.alpha-bearings.com/) in the UK. Web Cam Inc. (http://www.webcamshafts.com/) repaired the cams and lifters. The chain-cum-belt final drive was retained, with new belts coming from Veteran Triumph Spares (http://www.veterantriumph.co.uk/).

New Sun rims were used front and back and the rear wheel was fitted with an updated drum brake. The front wheel kept the cosmetic caliper brakes, relying on the rear drum brake to provide the sole means of braking. Buchanan Spoke and Rim (http://www.buchananspokes.com/) was tapped to lace the wheels. Bridgestone Exedra Max tires complete the new, and considerably safer, wheel upgrade.

To extend the fuel range during the race, an auxiliary fuel tank was mounted to the rear luggage rack. A gas tank from an old Wonderboy riding lawnmower fit the bill perfectly. The tank was plumbed to a valve and then to the Norton's tank. That way the fuel in the added tank wouldn't be used until the rider opened the valve. This kept the main tank from overflowing  and provided a way to meter how far the bike could travel with the reserve fuel. The additional 1.5 gallons in the Wonderboy tank extended the overall range of the bike to 175 miles.

With modifications complete to make the Tourist more durable for racing, it was time to add the bits to make it street legal. A 12 volt Shorai battery was installed under the luggage rack in the rear. An LED light was installed in the acetylene headlight housing, being careful not to modify anything that would keep the lamp from converting back to its original function. A brake light and license plate holder was added to the rear fender. The handlebars were fitted with a period correct bulb horn and new BikeMaster clamp-on mirrors.

Two more items were added to the handlebars to comply with the race guidelines. A large plastic roll map holder from Tour Tech was mounted in the center. The actual route for the race isn't published before the event. Rolled maps dictating the route the racers must follow for the next leg are given to the riders daily. This keeps extra fuel and supplies from being stashed in advance. The second item is a small Garman 520, a device that only tells the rider his speed, mileage, and time. No GPS mapping is allowed.

Because the bicycle framed model 16 had no real rear suspension, an extra set of springs were added to the sprung saddle for comfort on the cross country ride. Logos and striping were hand painted by, Pinstriping-Hall-of-Famer, Alton Gillespie.

On August 13, Richard arrived at Big D Cycle for his first test ride. The bike still had a few more cosmetic items to install, but it was time for Richard to begin getting some experience operating the 100 year old machine. While Richard was smiling broadly after the test ride, his face was all concentration while he rode it up and down a long quiet street. It was important that he got a good feel for the bike.

The result was an engine that ran strong and would obviously be up to the task. The disappointment came when it was determined that the Tourist's top comfortable cruising speed was only 30 miles per hour. That was fast enough to race, but making it to each day's finish on time would be problematic.

With only three weeks before the race Richard and Keith agreed that it was too hard to keep the proper tension on the chain-cum-belt to produce a reasonable cruising speed. Although the belt was unique and original, they decided to switch to a metal 520 chain final drive. The updated drum brake was modified to work with a sprocket. The hub and rim were sent to Buchanan who managed to lace the wheel in one day and send it back.

The change worked. The Tourist's top speed was now up to 50 mph. During the race, Richard averaged 42 mph on level ground, and 10 mph going up hills. It's hard to stop that 500 cc single cylinder torque. Richard now had a genuine racing bike that averaged 52 miles per gallon.

In racing, especially in what is essentially an endurance race, all you can do is prepare as best you can, and hope everything holds together. Keith Martin volunteered to be the chase mechanic on the trip. A 1923 Model 16C was acquired as an emergency parts bike. With a 100 year old Norton restored and race modified, an expert mechanic, and spare parts; what could possibly go wrong?

In the early stages of the two week race, Richard managed to rise from 22nd place, to 6th place. The Tourist was the only Norton in the field of 100 racers. And for a good portion of the race the Norton led all other British bikes.

The first week of the race went well for the Tourist, making it to the finish each day on time. But that doesn't mean that the gremlins left it alone. Early in the race the primary chain broke. Extra links and a borrowed chain tool got Richard back on the road. Then he lost a valve keeper pin. But it was nothing that a zipper tab from his jacket couldn't fix.

A few days later the left half of the handlebar broke off in Richard's hand. He had to ride 35 miles to the finish using a clutch that was only attached by the cable. That forced him to let go of the bike to change gears. Richard rode into the stop holding half a handle bar in his hand - to the immediate applause of onlookers and other racers.

That was when they discovered that the handlebars from a 1923 Model 16 weren't the same size as a 1915 Model 16. After a short search they were able to find someone to weld the break. Then, just before the racers' day off in Dodge City, Kansas, Richard bent foot a peg when he rode over what was described on the map as a dip. Richard and other riders thought that a 'trench' was a better description.

At one point Richard inadvertently left the oil drip setting too high causing the engine to over heat and smoke. Several minutes went by as he contemplated a possibly ruined motor, until he noticed the setting on the oiler. It was set too high which led to increased oil pressure. A twist of the dial and the Tourist returned to normal.

The first few days of the second half of the race went well too. However, the gremlins eventually caught up with him. While traveling at 42 mph the gear box slipped out of 3rd gear to 2nd. The bike wheelied about a foot off the road. The over-rev crashed the gearbox and sheared the keeper pin on the counter shaft leaving him stopped on the side of the road.

The chase vehicles leave before the riders in the race so Richard knew nobody would be along to help him soon. Being resourceful, Richard decided to drop the gear box and lengthen the drive chain to go to direct drive. He'd have only one speed, but if he was lucky he could still make it to the day's finish. He wasn't lucky though. The drive sprocket for the chain drive was too small. He just couldn't get the Norton going fast enough for the engine to take over.

He was forced to have the bike hauled to the stage's finish. Luckily, the Sturmey Archer gear box from the Model 16C parts bike mounted right in and he was back in business for the next stage. However, being hauled in and missing his finish time, Richard fell from 6th place to 25th place.

The next day he lost a valve keeper, likely from the over-rev the day before. This time it wasn't repairable on the road and he had to be hauled again putting him in 21st place. The only other incident happened as he was crossing Monument Valley. A seam on the gas tank next to the gear shift lever started leaking. A bar of soap was rubbed across the ruptured am and it sealed well enough to get him to the day's finish.

Richard and the Tourist finished the race in 25th place out of 100. As a British bike entrant, it was second only to a Sunbeam. Just riding a 100 year old bike across America was a victory. The true test of the Norton, and a worry from the beginning, was whether the 500 cc single would get him over the 10,857 feet high Wolf Creek Pass in the Rocky Mountains. While many other racers with single cylinder bikes opted to be hauled over the pass, the Tourist took a crack at it. It made it, albeit slowly at 10 miles per hour. You have to love some torque.

It was Richard's intention in the beginning to restore the Model 16TT to its original condition after the race. But a funny thing happens when you're involved in a two week race and just a few mechanical mishaps take you out of contention for winning. You start to feel that you'll do much better next time. Once the aches of two weeks in the saddle wear off, you're ready to do it all over again.

The Tourist won't be fully restored right away. It will remain in racing trim for the next Motorcycle Cannonball race in 2018. For the next race, Richard plans for the Tourist to be part of Team Norton. It will join two other flat tank Nortons: a 1923 Model 16H and a 1925 Big Four. Keith Martin will be a rider this time along with former NTNOA president, Chris Parry.

Richard's next adventure will be riding the Tourist from Portland, Maine to Portland, Oregon - a trip of 16 days and 3,750 miles. If you're lucky enough to catch up with the racers at any of the stop-over cities (http://motorcyclecannonball.com/route/) be sure to look for Team Norton, and Richard on the number 77 Norton Tourist.