Motorcycle exhibit set in Warren

Staff report

WARREN

“Motorcycles Around the World,” an exhibition of antique motorcycles, opens Saturday at the National Packard Museum and runs through May 20.

The exhibition will feature more than 30 motorcycles built in 12 countries. The annual antique- motorcycle exhibit is in its 12th year, according to curator Bruce Williams of Cortland.

“Our exhibit has a national reputation for excellence, and we now have owners contacting us, offering to loan us their bikes for display,” he said.

The exhibit attracts visitors from across the world, said Mary Ann Porinchak, executive director of the museum. Last year’s exhibition lured visitors from 30 states and 11 countries.

One of the highlights this year is a 1942 Harley- Davidson “Knucklehead” originally owned by legendary actor and noted Packard aficionado Clark Gable. The bike is on loan from Joe Hassett of Ashtabula.

This year’s exhibit will pay tribute to the world’s oldest motorcycle road race. Since 1907, thrill seekers have ventured to the Isle of Man in the Irish Sea to compete for the Tourist Trophy, more commonly known as the “Isle of Man TT.” Exhibitor Todd Welch of Ravenna has raced at the Isle of Man and his British-built 1972 Triumph T-140 Road Racer will be on display, along with a 1975 Harley-Davidson Americhi Model RR-250 Road Racer, built in Italy, and a Japanese-built 1973 Yamaha RD-350 Road Racer.

Continuing with the racing theme, “Motorcycles Around the World” will feature the Austrian-built 1973 Penton, on which rider and owner Paul Danik of Mars, Pa., won a gold medal in the International Six Day Trial. The ISDT, nicknamed the “Olympics of Motorcycles” is a grueling on-road/ off-road time, speed and distance competition. ISDT riders must carry everything with them needed to maintain their bike. No mechanics or pit crews are allowed.

The museum’s ISDT exhibit also will include a German-built 1957 NSU Maxi-175, a German-built 1957 BMW-ISDT, a Swedish- built 1974 Husqvarna 250-WR, and a Canadian-built 1977 Can-Am Model 175 TNT.

For the fifth-consecutive year, the museum will present a Saturday morning lecture series in conjunction with the exhibit. Each lecture is free and open to the public. Each one-hour lecture starts at 11 a.m.

Here is the schedule:

Feb. 18: “The Lincoln Highway Revisited,” by Bob Lichty of Canton, past president of the Lincoln Highway Association and former board member of the Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor.

March 24: “Tales of an ISDT Rider,” by Paul Danik of Mars, Pa.

April 21: “Seasoned Rider Motorcycle Safety” (with a focus on antique bikes), by Al Navecky of Warren.