Viva Las Vegas
The Australian Motorcycle Museum at Haigslea in Queensland, was operated until its closure in early 2015 by Allen and Lorraine Smith. For many years Allen, with the assistance of his son Michael imported machines and parts from various overseas locations. In some instances these motorcycles which were newer than 1989 had to be imported under a special ‘Museum Display and Exhibition Category’ and were thus not available for sale here. This necessitated those machines being re-exported and the USA was a logical destination, with the recent Las Vegas auctions being the largest motorcycle auction in the world. January 7th, 2016 saw the Bonhams Auction in Las Vegas with some 250 motorcycles for sale, followed later that day and continuing through 8th and 9th with the Mecum auction also in Las Vegas with 750 bikes on offer. Allen offered 32 machines of which 28 sold. Those sold included a Y2K Turbine motorcycle with a helicopter engine which sold for US$115,000, which is heading to the Barber Museum in Alabama. He also achieved a good price for a 1922 Indian Power Plus, unrestored and best described as in “barn find” condition which sold for US$37,000. Michael Kiernan, a long-time friend of Allen’s sold a 4-cylinder Henderson for US$165,000 which was the highest price achieved at this particular auction. Allen tells me that to be able to sell a machine at these auctions the owner has to be present. Motorcycles that do not reach the reserve price are parked nearby and a deal can be made between the owner and any interested buyers. These auctions start early morning and run well into the evening. Allen says he purchased 21 motorcycles at the auctions and they are heading for Australia, some for his personal collection and some for sale here. Amongst these are a Benelli 750 Sei, a first model GT750 Ducati, an Indian Velo, Bimota SB3, a V7 Sport Moto Guzzi, and a Rocket 3 BSA. He has been approached by a representative from Bonhams Auctions in the UK and they are interested in having some of his machines offered for sale at their Stafford Auction. Allen also has some other machines coming from Japan which will be available for purchase in the coming months. Interested readers who might wish to contact Allen can do so on 0434 005103 or email him at mcmuseum@gil.com.au