ONLINE INSURANCEInnovative online insurance company eBike Insurance is making its journey via the information superhighway to Ireland. eBike is exclusively operated online for bikers, which not only makes it convenient but can also considerably reduce the cost of insuring your precious two wheels.
"Ebike was the first direct motorcycle insurer to offer online policy purchase combined with full online policy administration," says Chris Gillighan, the company's business development manager. "Policyholders can manage their entire policy online without having to queue up even get on the phone to a call centre. Multiple bike owners or classic bike collectors can also put up to four of their bikes on the one policy at discounted rates. To accommodate adventurous journeying bikers, free European riding cover is offered with 365 days included as standard. Discounts will also be given to riders who undertake rider training."
But provisional bikers need not apply for this online insurance. "As a target group we will be looking to provide cover only for riders with full licences and will not be insuring in the provisional market," says Gillighan. eBike will be going live in Ireland at the start of August. For more information, visit www.e-bikeinsurance.ie
1954 VINCENT SOLD FOR €120,000
A 1954 Vincent Series-C 'White Shadow' motorcycle sold for a whopping £81,800, (over €120,000) at Bonham's auction house in London last week. "This was one of only a relative handful of its type known to survive and was sold to a UK private collector after an intense bidding duel," according to Bonham's Rebecca Ruff. "It was a world record price for the model, against a pre-sale estimate of £30,000 - £40,000," she adds.
British-made Vincent Motorcycles operated from 1928 to 1955. Its Black Shadow was one of the best-known high performance motorcycles of the 1950s.
In 1949 a White Shadow was made available, but only 15 were sold and this colour option was dropped in 1952, making it a very rare machine. Only a relative handful of these White Shadows is known to exist today. A year after the White Shadow was produced the company discontinued its motorcycle production due to heavy financial losses.
CHARITY CHALLENGE
Alice's Wonderland Foundation are organising a sponsored motorcycle ride through some very challenging terrain.
"The Desert Challenge is a charity sponsored weeklong ride to America on Harley-Davidsons that will take place in September 2007," according to organiser John Kilbride.
The children's charity was set up when Alice Dillon, aged 8, died of cancer last year. "Her parents' wish was that if an excellent playroom could be set up for the cancer ward in Crumlin Hospital it would be a fitting tribute to their child and also to all children suffering from cancer," adds Kilbride. To participate each rider needs to raise € 3,950. Visit aliceswonderlandfoundation.com
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