October 12th
The Éole aircraft of Clement Ader failed an impossible flight test performed before a far right political observer resulting in the withdrawal of government funding. He had previously achieved powered flight, decades before the Wright brothers. Ader's motorcycles were similarly well ahead of their time.
Clement Ader
Ernst Jakob Henne rode a BMW 493cc Type 255 493 cc to a world record of 272.11 km/h.
Motorcycle Land Speed Records
Gene Vincent died this day.
Vincent retired from the US Navy after an accident on his 1954 Triumph Tiger T110 left him crippled. In 1956 he wrote Be Bop A Lula, which became a huge international hit. Ace Cafe holds an annual "Gene Vincent Night".
Gene Vincent