Mortons Books Café Racer International Back Issue

During the 1950s and 60s, metal, grease, oil, leathers and attitude bucked tradition and sprouted a revolution in machine and masculinity, discarding ephemera for stretched tanks, clip-on handlebars and linear lines. Owning and riding a café racer was about elemental emotions, where the relationship between man and machine was visceral, borne out of intuition and a unique vision that was thoughtful, intuitive and insightful. To some it may have appeared illogical, whilst to others it was akin to pure freedom of expression honed out of rebellion. Gleaming in the sunlight, a new breed of bike roared between suburban cafés. Eyes flicked from road to speedo as the needle quivered towards the magic ton, with riders intent on returning to their Nescafés before the 45rpm single had finished spinning on the turntable. Straddling their bikes, adrenalin pumping through their veins, perhaps a hint of fear slowly fading behind crinkled eyes blasted by wind. Kudos. Maybe the odd tall tale. No one would know otherwise. Best to grab it while you can as a member of the Ton-up Club. Magical moments. Pumped up, proud moments. Glory days.

And so to Café Racer International. Much has been written about the scene, historically and otherwise, so it seemed pointless to waste valuable time and space to reiterate what you no doubt know already. In reality, I wanted to bring you the scene as it is today, although in these pages we are hardly rippling the surface. With so much to say, we hope you will watch out for us in the near future. For now, enjoy the read.