When we opened The Motorcycle Workshop (MCW) at Bolney in Sussex in October 2000, it was our aim to provide a traditional, ‘old style’ service to the motorcyclists of Sussex and beyond. To treat our customers as people and not with the ‘conveyor belt’ mentality that many of todays workshops have. We pride ourselves that even after all these years that is still the case. We will give you an honest
opinion on any queries you may have about your bike, and do everything in our power to help you to keep those wheels rolling! In our first few years of trading here, the majority of bikes that we saw were typically sports bikes. The type of bike that because of the weather here in the UK would emerge every March, get raced around on the Queens highway for 6 months weather permitting, and then put into hibernation for the winter. But, with the onset of the global recession in 2008, business as far as the modern ‘pocket rocket’ bikes took a plunge. The classic bike business however did not suffer the same fate. In fact, quite the opposite. It would appear that folk were looking for somewhere safer, and with a better return to invest their hard earned cash. We were commissioned to restore a fair few classic British bikes during this period. Many of which you can see photos of in our gallery. And some stunning machines were rolled out, back to their delighted owners. Also, quite surprisingly, the racing bike scene managed to survive this time of uncertainty (those racers would rather not eat than race!)The same is true of our machinist Bob, whose photos of his racing can also be seen in the gallery. Including his entry into the Isle of Man Southern 100 road races in 2017 where he enjoyed some great results. And at the exit point of the recession, there appeared a new fashion on the catwalk! This is a real renaissance for the machines of the ‘50s through to the ‘80s
The trend of ‘Café Racer’ and ‘Brat’ bikes along with the lifestyle favoured by the likes of those who participate in the Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride – the worldwide sponsored ride in aid of prostate cancer – is here to stay for a good while yet we’re sure. At MCW we are creating a combination of the persona of a classic British bike and reliability of a modern Japanese offering. We hope you enjoy browsing our page and look forward to seeing you at our workshop in Bolney soon.
