Ace Cafè bar & motorcycle museum, Lahti Finland
 

What a way to end a week! I`ve been meaning to do this for quite some time now but today finally got around to actually going! I had a very entertaining and educating hour and a half on the spot, enjoying great food, listening to stories about the bikes and even seeing some makes and models I`ve never even heard of! As a Honda as well as a Triumph enthusiast the selection of the bikes in the museum was just pure eyecandy for me, but there`s something to see for anyone and everyone even slightly interested in motorbikes, rockabilly culture or anything between the two.




Originally built as a lumber drying facility in 1959, and then repurposed, renovated and expanded red brick building in Lahti marina waterfront opened it`s doors as the first officially licensed Ace Corner bar outside London, as well as a motorcycle museum in 28.5.2011 accompanied in the parking lot by a Venturo, a funky modular fiberglass building designed in 1971 by the Finnish designer Matti Suuronen. Of the total of 19 original Venturos ever made in Finland, two sits in the lot of the museum, one repurposed as a riding gear shop, and the other one stored in the back awaiting for it`s turn of being risen to it`s original glory.

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In the parking lot the totem with an old Jawa at the top greets the comers.

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A picture from the rainy parking lot with the large outdoor terrace on the right...

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accompanied by the gear shop in the Venturo.

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The slightly unfinished insides of the shop (opened this week) as well as a few bikes for sale. A vintage Velocette anyone? :D Or maybe a Ruby or a Davida helmet to go with that old cafe racer of yours?

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a few ambience photos from the bar side. Under the bike on the wall an authentic, working vintage Wurlitzer jukebox.

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After a surprisinlgy short wait I was served my dinner, a HUGE and might I add, very, very tasty burger and a cold beer. I left the postcards alone for now but had to relieve the wall from one of the shirts hanging in the background.

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After a great meal and the beer creeping up to the cockpit it`s good to start the museum tour. The first room offers the Wall of Fame, the bikes of some Finnish celebrities. I picked a few of them some of you might have heard of:

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A 125cc Honda MBX, the first motorbike of the Finnish ice hockey legend Teemu Selänne. The plate number of the bike happens to be UC-8. Coincidence? One can only guess...

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The former tools of the Finnish superbike driver Mika Kallio.

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On the right the riding suit of the Finnish racing legend Jarno Saarinen, the original "Flying Finn", the first Finnish motorcycle racer ever to win the world championship in 1972. Jarno met his demise in 1973 at the age of 28 in the Curva Grande crash of the Monza GP where 12 bikes collided after Renzo Pasolini had slipped in an oil slick left in the track by a previous race, claiming the lives of Renzo and Jarno.

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On with the tour.

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Zundapp KS 125 Sport -73

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NSU Konsul 50 I `51

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Sure would like to know more about this Ducati. The sticker in the side panel says "Mike Hailwood replica"

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A tricked out Vespa. Leaves just one question, Why?

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`67 750 Atlas. To me, the ultimate cafe racer platform.

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The "crown jewel" of the collection, a 1935 Rikuo 1200, the first motorbike (model) ever that`s been serial producted in Japan.

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The maestro himself, the owner and founder of the museum, the RikuMotor motorcycle dealership and riding gear shop, and the Rikuo motorbike, as well as a Finnish motorcycle scene legend, Riku Routo. I was able to stop the very busy man for a photo op whilst running around the building, taking care of a busload of visitors on a VIP tour around the premises.

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I`m sure no one has difficulties recognising who that is on the Rikuo bike aside Riku :D

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KTM Penton 125cc 1970

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Husqvarna Husky 250 `68

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Matchless D80 500 Sport

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Everyone probably recognises the Katana.

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Top: BSA A10 `57

Bottom: DKW RT 3PS `38

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Indian VELO 500 `70

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1929 Four. One of my dream bikes.

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A few Scouts, to my knowledge both also `29.

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C 72 Dream `62

More pics to come in a minute once I get them sorted.

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ESO Ice speedway bike (notice the tires)

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Yamaha TZ 250 `73

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Can`t make out the year of this mint Bonnie.

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Phelon & Moore `23. Never even heard of one.

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Raleigh 23. Behind the two, a Norton MANX, another great cafe bike.

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MZ 250 G5 ISDT Replica (International six days trial, the oldest 'off road' motorcycle event on the FIM Calendar. The ISDT was first held in 1913 at Carlisle, England)

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Couldn`t get a decent pic of these no matter what settings...

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Junak M10 `63

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Of course the spotligt had blown from this one! It is an (approx) 1977 Finnish Winha Automatic, 20 of these were made for sale of which none were ever sold, 180 were made for the army. It has a KTM frame around a 333cc Kohler snowmobile engine, variable clutch drive and a pull cord start.

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Zundapp KS 600 `39

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Toys from the attic

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ESO 1964

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Sunbeam TT 500 1916

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Hesketh V1000. Yet another previously unknown bike to me.

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Ariel SB Sloper 1931

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1939 Triumph 5 T

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HD Servicar trike 1948

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An old 2-stroke gas pump. These has been in use even when I was 15, you crank the lever back and fort to raise the amount of liters to the glass pipe that you want to buy so the cashier sees how much you`re buying, and then pour it into the tank. Probly not a Finnish design so you`ve probly used one too...

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Beside the pump on the left, a pocket sized old Finnish Pyrkijä 98cc 1938.

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On the right no bigger but still 123cc Russian Moskva M1-A 1946-56.

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Left: Honda CB 350 `72

Right VF 1000 R

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Left: Suzuki Rotary RE 5 `73

Right: Kawasaki H2 750 `72

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CB 1100 R `84


...and on that bombshell it`s good to end our tour today, good night everyone!

Nice Mattie, thank you for taking the time to share.

As always my fave was the H2, exactly the same model and paintwork that I had in a former life.

Not WHY rather WHO, as in The Who Quadrophenia.
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rrriiiight...