Featured Rider: Fred Tilly

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Most of us recall a motorcyclist that lived in our town who stood out for one reason or another. Maybe he was a mentor, helped us “learn the ropes” of motorcycling or was colorful in some other way.
We invite you to share stories on local motorcyclists, male or female for us to share with our readers in upcoming newsletters. Though we reserve the right to edit stories for length, weʼll do our best to present them as sent to to the Museum.
This month we are bringing you a story of Fred Tilly a great motorcyclist from the Suamico, Wisconsin area, north of Milwaukee, not far from Green Bay. Here is the story on Fred, as recalled by family members, grandson and granddaughter-in-law Michael and Julie Tilly: Fred Tilly was born September 25, 1901 to Frank and Lucille Tilly. In 1916, at the age of 15, he started riding motorcycles. He rode many makes and models of bikes through his lifetime, including Thor, Excelsior, Indian, Henderson, Honda and Kawasaki, but spent a lot of time on Harleys.
Fred enjoyed racing of various types and played a bit at the drag strip in Kaukauna, Wisconsin. He did some flat track and hill climb competition as well, even entered some fuel mileage competitions clubs sponsored in years past. When Fred raced it didn’t matter to him what place he took because he just raced for fun.
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For the majority of Fredʼs working days, he was employed at Olsonʼs Transportation as a diesel truck mechanic. Fred was very ambitious and during his younger years he attended and graduated from the Harley Davidson Factory School of Motorcycle Mechanics. With the knowledge learned, he utilized his skills and talent by working at home fixing motorcycles. Very often, we would see motorcycles from the Green Bay Police Department in his garage. Fred would work on them to improve their speed and running condition. Once Fred retired from Olsonʼs Transportation as a diesel truck mechanic, he continued working part-time as a mechanic at several motorcycle shops; Jim Arndt Harley Davidson of Green Bay, McCoyʼs Harley Davidson, Green Bay, Kawasaki of Green Bay and Rentmeester Kawasaki of Green Bay.
In the 1960ʼs, Fred considered himself to be an activist in the protest of the Wisconsin Motorcycle Helmet Law. He was one of the many individuals that attended the protest at the State Capitol Building in Madison, Wisconsin. Eventually, as you may know, the law was repealed. He was very proud to have taken part in the process.
For anyone that knew Fred, they knew that anytime they’d see him, he would be enjoying a cigar, might also have a wad of chewing tobacco in his cheek. For many years, Fred rode his motorcycle year round. Come sunny skies, rainy days, falling snow or a blizzard, he would always make an attempt to travel here and there. During one particular snowfall, Fredʼs grandson Michael remembers seeing his grandfather come riding down his street to stop in for a visit and this is what he saw:
“…the motorcycle busting through the snow drifts, snow flying everywhere and the tires cutting through the six inches of snow ruts. His cigar would be glowing bright, a wad of Plow Boy Chewing Tobacco in his cheek and his eyes squinting to keep out the blowing ashes. It was so comical to see at that time and today we appreciate all the fond memories.”
Fred was a short man and as motorcycles became larger and taller, he soon found himself unable to reach the ground as needed, so he soon found himself a side car to attach to his bike. The side-car enabled him to ride for many more years to which at age 70, he was able to travel one last long-distance ride to Nashville, Tennessee to see the sights and visit the Grand Ole Opry. Also, due to his height and cigar, many people would comment how he reminded them of the actor/comedian George Burns. When Fredʼs two sons, Robert and John became old enough to ride, they carried out Fredʼs interest of riding motorcycles, too. To date, all of Fredʼs grandsons and one great grandson enjoy riding and touring the countryside on their motorcycles. Fred and his grandson Michael Tilly spent a lot of time together after Fredʼs wife Irene passed away. Michael was the oldest grandson. In July, 1981, when Fred was 79 they rode their bikes to the flat-track motorcycle races in Wausau, Wisconsin. But as Fred led the way to the race track, he got lost and began looking for familiar landmarks. Not concentrating on riding, watching for a landmark, he didn’t notice the approaching S curve in the road and set of railroad tracks running directly through it. At that time, he was traveling a little too fast, the side car wheel rose off the ground several inches and at the age of 79 and 10 months, he still had the presence of mind and skill to know how to get the bike back under control and prevent an accident. This experience happened just six weeks prior to his death.
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On August 21, 1981, Fred Tilly was on his motorcycle riding down Shawano Avenue in Green Bay, Wisconsin and was directly in front of the emergency entrance/ exit of St. Maryʼs Hospital. A car driver pulled out in front of him, hit him. He was thrown from his bike and landed in the road. Fred was a tough individual. After the accident happened, Fred not wearing a helmet, ending up with massive head injuries. He rose from the ground, scolded the driver and in moments, passed out at the curbside. He was admitted to St. Maryʼs Hospital for treatment, but the massive head injuries were too much to recover from at his age. He died 12 hours later on August 21, 1981, just a month from his 80th birthday.

Dirt Track Sweepstakes Winner!

Sweepstakes 620x275 Following up on an email sent to thousands of motorcyclists,  Larry Price took a few minutes to fill in his information and entered to win four tickets to the two upcoming Springfield Miles and Short Track races plus tickets to the National Motorcycle Museum. When the entries were gathered and a winner drawn, Larry’s entry was chosen. “This is pretty cool! I’ve never been to a dirt track race. This will be my first time!” Larry will take a few friends along with him to share in his winnings which include pit passes for each race.
Larry lives in St Charles, Missouri. When asked for a little background on his riding, he said he started at 14 on a little Benelli and has ridden for almost 45 years. He’s now on a late model Harley-Davidson Fat Boy and a Road King but also is a fan of Sportsters. Experiences with the Benelli when he was young included performing the most famous scene from the Great Escape. “I kept working on the ramp, to get it high enough, and eventually made it.” Yes, though not quite as high, Larry says he and the little Benelli cleared the farm fence topped with barbed wire much as Bud Ekins had done, doing the stunt riding for Steve McQueen who starred in the film.
The Springfield Mile is a double header event this year. Getting to watch all that racing and making a trip to the Museum for a tour led by National Motorcycle Museum President, and Founder of J&P Cycles, John Parham, will be the next experiences in Larry Price’s personal motorcycling history.
The National Motorcycle Museum offers thanks to everyone who took the time to enter and to Dirt Track Sweepstakes sponsors the Illinois Motorcycle Dealers Association, IMDA, and J&P Cycles, Anamosa, Iowa.

Motorcycle Adventurer Carl Stearns Clancy Book

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Motorcycle Adventurer
By Dr. Gregory Frazier
A Book Review
Today’s television programming is chocked full of “reality TV.” Viewers find documentation of risk taking and adventure spell-binding and watch by the tens of millions. But in 1912 all round-the-world motorcycle traveler Carl Stearns Clancy had to get his adventurers to the public was a film camera and a simple typewriter; a motorcycle magazine published installments over a year through 1913, his planned book never materialized.
But modern motorcycle world traveler Dr. Gregory Frazier set about researching this ride of 100 years ago and did get the book written and published. Frazier lets us read Clancy’s almost daily reflections on his ride around the world on a 1912 Henderson Four. Frazier located most of the individual published stories and put them together with some support and context, a prologue, an epilogue. Besides travels across America at the end of the journey, Clancy rides through France, Spain and traverses parts of the African and Asian continents. He’s met with bad weather, horrendous roads, or almost none at all in China. Along the way, in appropriate places he works to sell franchises for Henderson motorcycles to dealers.
The book is a great read because it’s in “first person,” Clancy’s words in the moment, 100 years ago, and is really something of a period piece. Thankfully, Frazier found the old stories and put them together so we can go along on a ride that, frankly, with modernization and geo-political changes we can no longer make. You can get your copy from the National Motorcycle Museum On-Line store and will no doubt enjoy it.