Road Rocket Club

Brief history of the club

In may 1998 three BSA’s and one Norton (with riders) came together because a reporter from big twin magazine wanted to write an article on English café-racers. After one day of hard work a nice story was published (in Big twin 142). During the During the photo session it appeared that the ideas concerning motorbikes, Rock & Roll and the spirit of the sixties appeared to be very similar and Sjaak, Duco en Ad decided to found the Road Rocket Café-Racer Club. A rocket was launched!

The newly founded committee believed that hardly more than 25 other bikers would be interested in a club of café-racers, but the facts proved different. At the first club event was the Rocket Run, a trip from Amsterdam to Egmond, 60 rockers appeared. At the end of that first year the RRCRC had 115 members. In the following year (1999) the club organized another event, which was appropriately named the Piston Party. The party was held in and around the clubhouse of MC Barneveld. This meeting was a great success, about 100 people turned up and in the evening a Rock & Roll band played music from the fifties and sixties. The Rocket Run was held for the second time and again an impressive amount of people turned up.

In 2000 the RRCRC organised its first trip abroad, a visit to Coupes Moto Légende on the circuit of Montlhéry, close to Paris. This event will not easily be forgotten but the five participants. On the way down it rained cats and dogs but the event itself (and the wine drinking) was fantastic. This led to number of enthusiastic stories in the club magazine and this in turn managed to arouse the curiosity of other members so that in 2001 a group of 9 rockers rode down to the races with historic bikes in France. Of course, there was much wine drinking again and more stories written in the club’s magazine…………...

In the meantime the club had grown to such an extent that the committee and the members agreed that it was necessary to define regulations and by-laws in order to turn the RRCRC into an official association. On the third of March the first AGM took place and on the eleventh of July of 2001 the Road Rocket Café Racer Club was registered with the chamber of trade and commerce in Alkmaar. The (members of the) club presented themselves at various events, was interviewed by a number of motorcycle magazines and by January 2002 they counted 285 members.

Information for potential members

Objective: the objective of the RRCRC is:
- To bring together aficionado’s of café-racers so they can exchange ideas and help each other with advice and good deeds.
- To travel to events and meetings together so that the solidarity increases.
- To breathe life into the “old rocker’s scene” from the fifties and the sixties by organizing events in the "spirit of the sixties".
- To inform the members on (the history of) café-racers, rockers and Rock & Roll.
- To maintain contact with similar clubs in different countries.

Entry requirements: Membership is open to all makes of café-racers, which have been built after the style of the years '50, '60 en '70. Of course bikes from more recent vintage, which have been adapted to exemplify the ideas of the rocker period are also welcome.

Club activities:
- Every year the club organizes a club meeting (the Piston Party) and a club ride (the Rocket Run) and in addition to that activities will be organized such as trips, lectures, exhibitions or participating in events of other clubs.
- The RRCRC is to be found regularly on jumble sales and exchange markets and presents itself with a club stand. This in order to find new members and to have a meeting point for already enlisted members.
- The club wishes to visit an event in a foreign country every year and to travel there together.
- Every member receives the club magazine "The Rockateer" at least four times per year. Every member is invited to supply articles. In the Rockateer one will find, besides club news and minutes of meetings, (his)tories about the development of café-racers and rock &roll, an agenda containing both bike and R&R events and also members can put in a free AFTERBURNER to buy or sell parts or complete bikes.

Membership:
Membership fee is € 10, - per 12 months.

For more information you can e-mail to:

- Marianne Bonarius (secretariaatmeesteres), E-mail: roadrocketmeesteres@quicknet.nl

- Kees de Rooij (ledenadministratie), E-mail: cederooij@planet.nl