When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

G519 5 seat tandem

-
Any idea if the bike still exists? Or if there is any evidence of two, three, or four seat examples of G.I. built "specials"?
 
Any idea if the bike still exists? Or if there is any evidence of two, three, or four seat examples of G.I. built "specials"?

I did wonder if it still existed, propping up a barn roof in Gloucestershire somewhere.

With the photo being taken on May 19th 1944 (A Friday, incidentally), I imagine that this was practically their last free time to go cycling. As Army Service Corps, they would very shortly be preparing for DDay, if not actually taking part in the invasion themselves. You can see the bike being put to one side, not shipped to France or the US because it's too big to casually sneak into a corner.

I'm slightly surprised they were allowed to cut up a bike to do this, the Army can be funny about that sort of thing, especially items with serial numbers, which imply you should keep track of them. Being ASC they would have been responsible for the delivery of bikes, perhaps it arrived damaged and was written off?

Best regards,

Adrian
 
If I lived in England I would spend a serious amount of time trying to locate that village and questioning the old timers about the bike. Most likely it was left behind as you say and there is a very good chance that it could have been put away in a barn or shed, covered up and forgotten about over the years. The hunt would be every bit as exciting as actually finding the bike. Who knows, a person could turn up other bike(s) and military odds and ends. Not being familiar with the area I would guess there was a base relatively close by as I doubt they would have taken off on a 40 or 50 KM. trip. This bike would be the ultimate "barn find" and well worth the effort. And if the service men could be identified there is a possibility of making contact with one or more of them. I'm sure they would have some stories to tell!

Thanks, Gary.
 
Hi All,

I finally got round to asking for help identifying where the picture was taken, from members of Historic Military Vehicle Forum in the UK. They had it solved in a couple of hours. (-:

The photo was taken about here on the junction of Church Road and Cheltenham Road, with The King's Head pub on the right:

https://www.google.com/maps/@51.947...4!1sPwnqHioH4DsRWKnHqrXSOg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656



1615050973671.png



1615050678220.png


I thought it very possible the the memorial had been moved, and the road renumbered, but all the other changes in that time too are incredible. That's one I would have been very unlikely to find.

The Memorial was moved in the 1980's, details can be found here:


Yes, the 1940 date on the same image on the link is not possible!

Just north of here is Cheltenham. WIKI states that during the Second World War, the United States Army Service of Supply, European Theatre of Operations established its primary headquarters at Cheltenham under the direction of Lt. Gen. John C. H. Lee, with the flats of the Cheltenham Racecourse becoming a giant storage depot for countless trucks, jeeps, tanks and artillery pieces. Most of this materiel was reshipped to the continent for and after the D-Day invasion.

Best Regards,

Adrian
 
Adrian, as always you have again contributed a very educational post. I certainly appreciate your time and effort, since I consider this bike to be one of the most important of the war effort. I hope that it still exists and that some day it will be found & offered to one of us so it can be returned to the states. This is something that belongs in a museum to be enjoyed by future generations. Thanks again, Gary.
 
Hi All,

In the end, I was looking in the wrong direction.

The conversation continued on HMVF, centered around the traffic sign appearing to face the wrong way. mtskull noted that:

I think the photo was taken from outside the pub, looking away from it to the North with Church road on the right. If you look at the signpost, the visible part of the first letter is a vertical element, which cannot possibly be part of a “C” for Cheltenham, the next town in a Southerly direction. More likely, it is an “E” for Evesham, the next significant place heading North.

And then Welbike came up with this postcard which was very informative and proved that I was looking in the wrong direction, and mtskull was correct in his deduction.

Th pub is on the right, the traffic sign is outside it, and the building in the middle is certainly the one behind the cyclists,

004.png.267586dc8063ee5eb3adc00c535fdb6b.png


1606837148077-png.png


Shockingly, the image below is about as close as you can get within the confines of Googlr Earth.

1615741128566.png



The change is so great, that you get the impression the local town planners regretted that the Luftwaffe didn't do the job for them. (-:

Best Regards,

Adrian
 
Back
Top