Motorcycles : Cafe Racers

A cafe racer, originally pronounced "caff" (as in Kaff) racer, is a type of motorcycle as well as a type of motorcyclist. Both meanings have their roots in the 1960s British counterculture group the Rockers; they were also common in Italy. Rockers were a young and rebellious Rock and Roll counterculture that wanted a fast, and distinctive bike to travel between cafes along the newly built in and around towns and cities. The goal of many was to reach 100 miles per hour (called simply "the ton"). They participated in record racing which is a route where the rider would leave from a cafe, race to a predetermined point and back to the cafe before a single song could play on the jukebox. Some of the first, fastest cafe racers came from Italy. The most popular of these motorcycles are still racing today. Ducati being the forerunner in imported Italian motorcycles as well as one of the fastest motorcycles in the world. Located in Cafe Veloce is a display of beautiful examples of cafe racers from Italy. All of which are made from original parts and capture the prestige of an era in motor sports history. In respect to these machines/works of art is a brief description and history of these motorcycles.