Was Ian Fleming a Motorbike/Motorbike Racing fan (e.g. FAVTAK)?

Silhouette Man

It's been a good while since I posted a new thread in the Literature section on AJB, so here goes....

I've been wondering about the above thread question this the past while and I thought I would ask you guys here on AJB. It's run through my head like a stubborn marble on the move.

Obviously motorbikes/motorcycles have featured quite prominently in some of the James Bond films but the literary Bond only rode one in the SHAPE dispatch rider assassination case reported in Ian Fleming's short story 'From A View to A Kill' (1960) involving BSA motorbikes. Interestingly, Fiona Volpe also rode a BSA motorbike in the film version of Thunderball. I may have missed a continuation Bond novel where he rode one but I don't recall motorbikes featuring in any (Villains in Spain in SeaFire perhaps?). ?:)

So what do we think? Was Ian Fleming a fan of motorbikes/motorbike racing in general? He certainly wrote convincingly about them in 'FAVTAK'. We know he was very interested in racing cars (see MR novel and 'Murder on Wheels' from around the same time as 'FAVTAK').

So far all I have dug up on the matter is the following:

"While at Eton he became a close friend of Ivar Bryce. He purchased a Douglas motorbike and used this vehicle for trips around Windsor. He also took Fleming on the bike to visit the British Empire Exhibition in London. They also published a magazine, The Wyvern, together." (excerpt from Ian Fleming, Spartacus Educational - http://spartacus-educational.com/SSfleming.htm )

I have Ivar Bryce's memoirs on Ian Fleming so I really must consult it on the matter.

As an aside, I live in Northern Ireland, home to the Dunlops and the North West 200 world-famous motorbike race but I am not a racing fan despite having been to the North West 200 when I was younger two different years (1998/1999 I think).

As always, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this one and maybe we can fill in the blanks, if indeed there are any! -{

Silhouette Man

Any help at all out there with this one?!

AlphaOmegaSin

This isn't about Fleming, but there's a Bike Chase in Seafire by John Garder. Sorry I cant provide anything better then that )

The Domino Effect

Off the top of my head, I can't think of many connections at all between Fleming and motorcycles. He definitely loved cars, both in his own life and in Bond's, but apart from the motorbikes to which you refer, I can't think of anything else. I do find that a lot of people tend to have a love of one or the other, but rarely both. Perhaps Fleming fit that mould.

Silhouette Man

AlphaOmegaSin wrote:

This isn't about Fleming, but there's a Bike Chase in Seafire by John Garder. Sorry I cant provide anything better then that )

Yes, thanks AOS. I noted that above. Glad to get the confirmation. -{

I've been meaning to write a piece on 'FAVTAK' since 2010 so I might finally get around to it this year! )

Silhouette Man

The Domino Effect wrote:

Off the top of my head, I can't think of many connections at all between Fleming and motorcycles. He definitely loved cars, both in his own life and in Bond's, but apart from the motorbikes to which you refer, I can't think of anything else. I do find that a lot of people tend to have a love of one or the other, but rarely both. Perhaps Fleming fit that mould.

Thank you too, TDF. I suspect that you are correct. -{

superado

I thought I remembered reading Fleming's notes for FAVTAK regarding motorcycle makes, looked at a couple of my books that I thought where they'd be, but to no avail. ?:)

Silhouette Man

superado wrote:

I thought I remembered reading Fleming's notes for FAVTAK regarding motorcycle makes, looked at a couple of my books that I thought where they'd be, but to no avail. ?:)

Thanks for that information, superado. Perhaps we'll find something yet. -{