British motorcycle history

[Rex]

"OIF"? Freudian or what?

[mini-me]

From my local charity shop I bought two volumes of post war history, first one covers the years 1945-51 and the second 1951-7, very enlightening reading,once because it further informs me of the misery I was born into and of my parents struggles, the end of that leading and continuing into the second volume  is very
enlightening about the machinations of the Labour party and the bloody mindedness of the, mostly welsh and northern led, unions who I hold equally responsible for the destruction of industry.

One side obcessed with dogma and power grabbing, the other with profit and power grabbing.

I've been on strike once in my life, working in a closed shop, had no choice, but it was in support of workers in another industry way up north; I remember thinking how bloody pointless and I 've lost a days wages.

[Rex]

Re the Meriden sit-in (often held up as a triumph (hoho) of workers' rights etc) there was an article in one of the mags years ago where someone who was actually there at that sit-in said  people came into the factory as pickets, but were often totally unconnected with this or any other industry, but as they had the free-run of the whole place theft and vandalism was rife.
One sad occurrence was allegedly in the paint shop where Meriden had kept one piece of tinware (usually the front mudguard) from each year/colour scheme to use a match etc, but the "pickets" used the guards in some sort of sick game where they bounced them off the floor to see how high they would go.
Not blaming the unions (although a little self-policing wouldn't have gone amiss here) or anyone else, but as ever, things aren't always as portrayed decades on.

[mini-me]

Ah yes that prime example of workers running the industry they love so well.

Bloody Meridan Co-op, what a bunch of tossers they were.

[R]

Thats nearly as ugly and impractical as the 3 wheeled rubbish I see about these days.

Bit irrelevant here for this context, but if you saw them in action you wouldn't say that. !!
They are highly sought after, and suitably priced for a good un.

For pre 1900 motoring, they were highly mobile, and light years ahead of other countries efforts.
They still have races for them even today, and they really motor along. And back then held records for any number of distance races that were popular back then - Paris to Marseilles, Paris to Rouen, etc. 

An important part of motoring history, and the development of reliable and capable engines...