Otto Walker and Leslie Parkhurst, two of history’s most accomplished pioneer motorcycle racers and pillars of Harley-Davidson legendary factory team, the Wrecking Crew, bombing the slant at New York’s Sheepshead Bay Speedway in July, 1917. The two men were on the hunt for speed records, specifically the 500-mile, 1,000-mile, and 24-hour records for solo riders and sidecars as organized by George Wood, the Motor Co.’s distributor in the state. Otto Walker was on hand as he had been working as a foeman in Harley’s Manhattan branch following the leg injury that took him out of the game in 1916. Eager to get back in the saddle but still nursing his injury, Walker signed up to run the sidecar for the 24-hour record attempt, with Carl Lutgens acting as copilot in the hack.
In the pantheon of American motorcycles, few names command the reverence of the Henderson brand. From its earliest rumblings in Detroit in 1912 to its final breath in 1931, Henderson was more than just a motorcycle—it was a refined symbol of engineering ambition and pre-Depression optimism. The company's signature inline four-cylinder engine didn't just set records; it emblemized the highest reaches of motorcycling life and defined one of its richest eras.
Beginning with brothers William and Tom Henderson, who, steeped in a legacy of mechanical innovation, set out at the turn of the 20th century to build the finest motorcycle in America. While Tom was the more business-oriented of the two and set out to handle the administrative aspects of their venture, the younger William was the creative force.
Herschel Chamberlain, a local amateur motorcycle racer from Detroit, Michigan, is but one of the countless hundreds of America’s daring, early enthusiasts to have found the thrill of speed on two wheels and took to the track to test their mettle. Proudly straddling his winning mount, Chamberlain rode this spartan and unruly 1911 Indian twin to victory in the 3-mile novice competition at the Detroit Motorcycle Club’s Labor Day weekend races that same year. The young speedster rolled to the line alongside some of the finest riders in the country, men like Frank Hart, Johnny Constant, Don Klark, Charles Gustafson, and William Teubner.
Los Angeles' own J. Howard Shafer, one among the few pioneers of motorcycle racing in America with his Thor twin in 1908. Shafer was a part of the first class of enthusiasts in the Los Angeles area at the turn of the 20th century and one of the first motorcyclists in the country to venture into competition. As a founding member of the Los Angeles Motorcycle Club, Shafer acted as the club's secretary and was highly active within an elite group, including racing icons like Paul Derkum, Charlie Balke, Ray Seymour, Will Risden, and Morty Graves, many of which represented the first motorcycle dealerships in California. Before long, the club began sponsoring and promoting races at the nearby 1-mile-long horse track at Agriculture Park.
