Now in its seventh year the Night of the Troglodytes vintage bike show hosted by Harley Carrara of Tradition Cycles and Mel Stultz founder and organizer of The Race of Gentlemen has grown to become one of our favorite events every year. It perfectly captures the aesthetic of a specific era of custom bikes shows long lost since the 1970s.
We met with Bryan Ames of Flat Bastard Racing on Wildwood beach just shortly after this year's Race of Gentlemen to discuss his classic 1942 Harley Davidson WLA 45" Flathead tank shift race bike. After seeing the bike go through several changes over the past few years at the race this final form of the build was to us just a perfect example of the classic 45 WL.
The finely curated show hosted over one hundred custom motorcycles inside the building, while outside, the parking lot filled up early and saw hundreds of show-worthy bikes arriving throughout the day.
Whether it's cars or bikes the name of the game is pre-1950's. You won't ever see anything even as "new" as a Panhead or Shovelhead out there. The 45" flatheads make up a big chuck of the bikes but the big twin flatties and knuckleheads is where the action really heats up out there. Along with the old Harleys you can often see a strong presence of early Indian motorcycles as well asHenderson, Excelsior and many more. No matter what the bike each rider brings their own unique flair to the event, something that brings spectators back again and again.
