VINCENT KINGS: The Grandfathers of Speedway Heritage

Photographer Credit: Thank you to Robyn McIntosh / Robmac's Archive 

Location: Olympic Park Speedway, Mildura

What if I told you we were preserving grassroots motorsport... and we're already making history?

The thunderous roar of a Vincent HRD engine doesn't just rumble down the straight, it violently shakes the ground beneath your feet and makes your soul fly. It takes unmatched skill, absolute grit and flawless precision to maneuver these heavy, legendary machines around a dirt track at extreme force.

These outfits are the undisputed kings of sidecars, the grandfathers of the heritage sport. When they fired up for Robmac's 2026 Mildura Classic Motorcycle Club Speedway Championship, held annually on the June long weekend at Olympic Park, they bring the past roaring back to life. These are the voices of Bill Bingham (NSW), Ron Johnson (QLD) and the legendary riders of the golden years echoing through the modern era.

The Origin: Post-War British Muscle

The story begins with Philip Vincent, who bought the HRD motorcycle company in 1928. But the real magic happened just after World War II with the release of the Vincent Rapide and the legendary Black Shadow.

At a time when most motorcycles were small-capacity, single-cylinder commuter bikes, Vincent dropped a massive, all-aluminum 998cc 50∘ V-twin engine onto the market. It was an absolute engineering masterpiece for its time, featuring:

• High-cam overhead valves operated by short pushrods.

• A unit-construction design where the engine itself acted as a structural member of the frame.

• A massive broad powerband that produced incredible torque right from the bottom of the rev range.

It was officially the fastest production motorcycle in the world, built to cruise the open roads of Europe. But when those engines arrived in Australia, racers looked at that massive V-twin torque and thought one thing: This belongs on the dirt!

The Australian Golden Era: Sidecar Dominance

In the 1940s and 1950s, sidecar speedway racing in Australia was undergoing a massive horsepower boom. Tracks like the Sydney Showground, Brisbane Exhibition Ground, and Olympic Park were packing in tens of thousands of screaming fans every single weekend.

Australian riders quickly realised that the heavy, powerful Vincent motor was the ultimate weapon for sidecar racing.

Vincents stopped being produced in 1955, making the surviving engines incredibly rare and worth a fortune today. When that engine fires up, you are quite literally listening to the exact same exhaust note that thrilled packed stadiums of Australians right after World War II. It is the pure, unfiltered DNA of grassroots motorsport history.

Let’s remember the KINGS of our past and honour their names. We are incredibly grateful and honoured to see the new generation stepping up at Olympic Park, taking these powerful machines into the spotlight again and proving that they still and will always possess pure loyalty and grit.

Keeping the dreams alive for the next 100 years!

Nomad Dirt Culture is here to document, preserve and protect grassroots motorsport history. If you want to keep this heritage alive, hit that SUBSCRIBE button, drop a COMMENT with your favourite Sidecar team and SHARE this story to show the world that real history never dies.