Winter’s gone, summer’s looming, and that means that premium car events are about to start popping up all over the country. Not all of them exclusively involve cars. The Quail is better known for its adjunct automotive history invitational that helps to anchor Car Week in Monterey, California, every August, but the organizers view and present two-wheeled history with equivalent respect. Some 250 historic bikes and more than 3,200 attendees were on the grounds last week at Quail Lodge & Golf Club for The Quail Motorcycle Gathering, an event that we really think ought to be part of Car Week, jammed as it already is. Libations and foods from local purveyors were available in abundance.
Best of show at the 12th annual gathering went to the 1951 Vincent Rapide entered by California resident Max Hazan. Judging classes ran the gamut from historic British and Japanese bikes to extraordinary bicycles, and even included a category for minibikes. In that final class, a nostalgic joy for anyone who lived through the era, the minibike award was presented to the 1971 Montesa Cota 25 entered by David Bookout, who also hails from California.
Jim Donnelly On Wheels 