Out of the blue last November, I received an email from Maryland Air Marshal, Will Andalora, asking if I would be willing to be their special guest at the 2017 SuperTech 22.  To say the request was unexpected is an understatement. I called Will and after he assured me there was no mistake, it was me they wished to invite, he talked about his expectations and I accepted the invitation.

Will encouraged me to come out early so I could see some airhead sites before SuperTech started on Friday night. So, on Wednesday morning, I flew from my home in Colorado to Baltimore where Mark Lipschitz picked me up and took me to his home. I met the merry band of Maryland airheads who put this extravaganza of Air Head goodness together; Will Andalora, Mark Lipschitz, Bill Lambert, Jim McKinna. Also joining us was Chris Kennedy who puts on the “Techno Barn” Tech Day. They came over to Mark’s house where we enjoyed home cooked specialties of the house. By the end of the evening, I felt like family.

Thursday was set aside to visit two museums catering to BMW motorcycles, ephemera, lore and to experience the passion of those who love collecting all things BMW Motorad and hearing the stories of how they came by the many items they had collected. The first stop was Jim Hopkin’s home. Jim has pursued photographs, clothing, pins, badges, trophies, bikes, toys, sculpture, and paintings all accompanied by fascinating accounts of his hunts around the world for this cornucopia of BMW motorcycle objects. Jim has one of the original M2B15 flat twin BMW engines supplied to the Victoria motorcycle company for use in their KR 1 motorcycle in the early 1920’s, letters, awards and trophies from racing legends, women riders and racers, and those who guided the destiny of BMW’s motorcycles.

BMW First Flat Twin Engine-M2B15 Used by Victoria in Their KR 1 Motorcycle

1920’s Race Leathers

Motley Airhead Gang Poses at Jim Hopkins’ Museum for A Group Mug Shot

Here is a slide show of the pictures I took at Jim’s place.

And a short video of a neat toy BMW that reminded me of toys I played with in the 1950’s.

And a video of a distinctive sculpture Jim commissioned. The artist uses junk from automobile junk yards.

We then met Bob Henig, owner of Bob’s BMW, for lunch followed by a tour of his museum. Bob’s collection of BMW motorcycles is on two floors. I’m working on rebuilding a 1977 R100RS and he has one in his collection so I took some photos of the details I wasn’t sure about.

Bob Henig Leading the Way into His Vintage BMW Museum

Bob has an R32, several famous race bikes, iconic models and even a single wheel MV Agusta.

1925 R32 in Front of the Iconic K1

1984 Krayser MKM 1000/4

1970 BMW R75/5 Land Speed Record Bike

1950’s MV Agusta 60 cc Monomoto Superleggera

Here is a slide show of the pictures I took at Bob’s museum.

Friday afternoon was spent setting up for SuperTech at the Tuckahoe Steam and Gas museum including unloading all the cut-away models Bob Sipp brought and getting a guided tour of the machine tools museum. This collection goes back to the beginning of the 20^th century. The tools work and many are powered by overhead shafts with belts and pulleys.

Tuckahoe Steam and Gas Association Facility in Maryland-Home for SuperTech 2.2

Just a Few of the Many Machine Tools in the Working Museum

Here are two short videos of the inside of the machine shop. The second shows the overhead shaft and pulley system operating.The overhead shaft and pulley system used to distribute power to the old machine tools that did not have separate electric motors. This was a common method of distributing power in factories at the end of the 19th and early 20th century.

SuperTech has a fantastic collection of cut-away models. This is just one them, a beautifully done cutaway of a Bing carburetor.

One of Three Bing Carburetor Cut-away Models Bob Sipp Brought

Friday evening starts the festivities for the 65 attendees who came from as far away as California with pizza, BYOB, lots of introductions, conversations and a short presentation about how my motorcycling life led me to start rebuilding airhead bikes in earnest in 2009 and documenting the work on my web site, “Motorcycles and Other Musings”.

State ABC Flag Display

Friday Night at the Hotel for Pizza, Beer and Comradery

The format for Saturday included technical, product and riding adventure presentations. The new Kat Dash instrument flex-boards (Kat and Paul Connell), how ethanol affects our bikes (Bill Lambert), the mental preparation for a good ride (Mike Friedle), understanding electricity and wiring systems (Bill Dudley), high mileage riding (Ed Fule), stump the expert (Tom Cutter), a seminar on the on-board toolkit, bike parts and roadside flat tire repair.(Will Andalora), bringing an R75/5 back to life (Dave Fish), details about new replacement wiring harness (Todd Millican) and the story behind the “Motorcycles and Other Musing” web site (Brook Reams). Dinner was served, BYOB was consumed and conversations broke out like daffodils after the spring thaw.

The Author and Ed Fule Wearing Presenter Aprons and Enjoying the Spring Day

Paul and Kat Connell’s Presentation Was in “Stereo”

Dave Fish Rode his Presentation Bike to SuperTech

Sunday morning started off with a presentation by Jim Hopkins of the story behind his museum. He captured the imagination and commanded the complete attention of everyone in the room with his slides and storytelling.

Jim Hopkins’ Stories Command the Rapt Attention of the SuperTech Audience

At the wrap up, the coveted Dung Beetle award was presented to our Airstore manager Dave Cushing.

The Coveted Dung Beetle Award

This is a slide show of pictures I took during SuperTech 2.2