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The Lindbergh Ride

Published on 7/24/2022

The Lindbergh Ride


From Member Gene Harper, via the AMCA Community Forum:

"On June 19, 1921 an unknown 18 year old farm kid from Minnesota departed Madison Wisconsin for the first leg of a 3000 mile, 7 week long motorcycle trip. He was riding a 1920 Excelsior “Series 20 R” motorcycle. He had just completed his first year of college at the University of Wisconsin studying mechanical engineering. That young man was Charles A. Lindbergh, destined to become famous for completing the first nonstop, solo transatlantic flight in 1927.

In September of 2022, 4 members of the Antique Motorcycle Club of America will be retracing Lindbergh’s historic 1921 motorcycle trip over the course of 21 days. All four riders will be riding 1920-24 Excelsior Series 20 S motorcycles, virtually the same model motorcycle that Lindbergh was riding, the only major difference being that Lindbergh did not have an electric model, so he had no lights or electric horn. These motorcycles have been painstakingly restored to be as period correct as possible. Some modifications have been made for reliability and safety reasons, but our goal is to still maintain as much of the original the look, feel and performance of the original motorcycles"

Charles Lindbergh, as shown in Gene's Community Forum thread





“Alex Bernhardt from Chicago, Illinois will be riding a 1920 Excelsior. See the May / June issue of the Antique Motorcycle for a great write up on Alex and his bike.

Stewart Maclellan from Belleville Ontario, Canada will be riding his grandfather’s 1921 Excelsior. He is the underdog in my book because he is newer to the restoration process and riding old bikes, plus he has a wonderful family history with the bike. So far, he has proven that he is up to the task! Go Stewart!

Hans Coertse from Pietermaritzburg So Africa will be riding a 1923 Excelsior. Hans has competed in the Motorcycle Cannonball 3 times and was the overall winner in 2014 on a '24 Scout. He is by far the most experienced rider of the bunch.

Gene Harper, from Denver Colorado will be riding a 1924 Excelsior and is the organizer of this ride, sometimes being referred to as the instigator by other members of the group. He and wife Jan completed the 2018 Cannonball on the 24 Chief and sidecar and has been riding antique bikes since the late 70's.

Bill Maron from Evergreen Colorado will be our support crew, driving the truck and trailer with all our gear, parts and tools and bringing up the rear for us, covering our ass for sure!

John Olsen from Madison WI will be traveling along on his own to photograph and document our journey. John is also a seasoned rider and understands the inevitable "issues" that may arise in a group ride.”



Follow along with Gene and the team as they chronicle their journey for everyone to follow along, via our fantastic Community Forum
The Lindbergh Ride on the Community Forum

Thank you, Gene and team, for sharing this amazing experience with all of us!



While you're there, be sure to check out all the other fantastic features our Forum has to offer, including: classified ads, tech talks, member stories, bike builds, vendor info, judging discussions, and more!

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