A Vincent Black Shadow with a fascinating past is to be auctioned after being stored in a family’s ‘cupboard’ for decades. The fastest motorbike of its time – the world’s first superbike – it is incredibly sought-after.
UK auctioneers H&H Classics have released details of the bike’s past ahead of its forthcoming sale on October 13.
First registered in 1953, the 125mph machine was the two-wheeled equivalent of the Jaguar XK120 or, in modern terms, the Bentley Flying Spur. It was supremely fast, luxuriously built and instantly acquired classic status. This bike has been owned by the same family since Bob Boardman saw it advertised for sale in the Vincent Club magazine in 1965. He went to see the bike and told the seller that he’d love to put a sidecar on it.
The bike has been lovingly maintained and is presented with less than 22,000 miles on the clock
The seller was so taken with Bob’s clear adoration for the bike, and his frank admission, that he couldn’t afford its then price tag of €175, that he suggested to Bob to buy the bike a bit at a time. According to Bob’s daughter, “the owner made him an astounding offer; he would let Dad take this magnificent machine home with him for a very small deposit, the balance to be paid gradually over as long a period as it took. And it took some time, I think, though even after that, Dad visited him regularly to let him see the bike again and to chat about Vincents and all manner of other things. These visits continued until the man my father called ‘The Gentleman’ died and I like to think that this peculiarly generous transaction gave him as much joy as it gave to Dad, who never forgot him.”
The Black Shadow, named Saladin by the Boardman family, became an integral part of their lives, carrying mum and daughter plus heavy camping gear to wherever the next destination was. Years later, it narrowly escaped destruction in a large fire that broke out in the building adjacent to where it was being stored.
The bike has been lovingly maintained and is presented with less than 22,000 miles on the clock. A Black Shadow in this condition, unseen for 40 years and with such a comprehensive history, should fetch in the region of €55,000.