THE NEW ACE CAFE LONDON

THE NEW ACE CAFE LONDON
by Rocky

The Ace Cafe in the borough of Brent in north London, England, was opened in 1938 as a 24-hour rest stop for truckers using the new north circular highway. Because it was open 24 hours a day it wasn’t long before it attracted motorcyclists and became the place to meet, have a cuppa and a bite to eat, gossip, get the latest news, and organize runs and trips.

During WWII the building was badly damaged in an air raid because it was so close to railway marshalling yards and industrial complexes. Business continued in a temporary building, but it was not until 1949 that the structure was rebuilt. Following the war and into the Fifty’s British roads continued to improve, traffic increased, and as the economy rebounded from war debt, the motorcyclists returned and the Ace thrived.

After WWII the British motorcycle industry went into high gear with R & D. The 1950’s saw the introduction of hot 650cc twins to compete with the racy 500cc singles and the horsepower race was on. By the early Sixties development was reaching its peak and sporting machines like the Gold Star, Bonneville, Commando and Triton’s were the bikes to have by the younger set who were looking for thrills and the adrenalin rush of danger.

The old Ace was not a European style “café”, serving cappuccino and espresso. It was a cafe (caffee) or “caff” where hot tea was sloshed into mugs from a big pot. The menu was mainly breakfast-based and greasy; fried eggs, bacon, sausage, baked beans, fish and chips; that sort of thing.

With hot machines at their finger tips the young bucks soon got into tests of courage and bravado. Displaying your bravery and claiming bragging rights by “doing a ton” on the circular highway and by cafe racing became common-place. To be known as a “ton up boy” was a feather in your cap because “doing a ton” (100 mph) was everything to the leather-clad night racers.

The objective of cafe racing was to leave one cafe and race to another on public roads, usually at night because it was easier to evade detection and the police. Stripped down bikes with souped up engines, solo seats and clipon bars became known as cafe racers.

Another dangerous stunt was record racing. A rider would drop a coin in the juke box, jump on his bike, race to a roundabout (traffic rotary), and try to return before the song was finished. From the Ace the course was 3.5 miles over an iron bridge, through a traffic light, around a sharp curve, loop the roundabout and return by the same route. Average speed had to be over 70mph if you were to succeed and the traffic light was taken flat out whether it was red or not. Many were injured and lives were lost during these dangerous nighttime events. Those who beat the clock were known as “three minute heroes” and reveled in their notoriety.

Rock and roll music was a staple at the Ace and the records in the juke box were generally not played by many radio stations of the day. The bikers in black leather studded zipper jackets and high jackboots soon became known as “rockers” because of their love of rock and roll music. The police and the general public looked upon them as wicked disrespectful trouble makers.

The Ace Cafe, with its motorcycles, speed, and rock and roll was the launchpad for some who became famous racers and the birthplace of many rock and roll bands. In 1963 the British B&W biker film “The Leather Boys” featured the Ace Cafe in many scenes.

Another group of mostly under-21’s were the “Mods.” They preferred to spend their money on fashionable clothes, jazz records, and Italian scooters and hung out at jazz and Rhythm & Blues clubs in Soho, Richmond and other parts of London.

Although both groups came from the working class the Rockers disliked the snobbish Mods and regarded them as effeminate dandies and fair game for harassment or a punch-up. The Mods looked down their noses at the Rockers with utter contempt as greasy, grimy and crass.

There were occasional clashes between the two groups and it was usually initiated by the Rockers looking for trouble. Most of it was fodder for the print media, but in 1964 it all came to a head and there were several well publicized riots with property damage and arrests at Brighton Beach and Bournemouth.

With a combination of rebellious youth, rock and roll music, speed, noise, brawling and deaths, the mainstream bike riders of the Sixties shunned the ton-up boys and the Rockers while the tabloid press regularly printed articles portraying cafe’s and their clientele as places where decent people didn’t go.

But it all began to sour in the late 60’s as the Rockers grew older and started families, drugs had become a problem, biker gangs sprung up, thugs carried guns, cars were now more affordable, and to top it all off, Japanese motorcycles were blowing away the revered Bonneville’s, Commando’s, Gold Stars and Tritons. The owner of the Ace retired in 1969 and sold the property thus ending it as an infamous motorcycle meeting place. For 20 years the Ace reigned as the biker’s place to be, but now it was all over and the era quickly faded into history.

Over the next 25 years the Ace site became a bookmaker’s office, business offices, and lastly a tire depot. The main part of the building remained in tact and virtually as it was in 1949, but the interior saw extensive changes and the floor to ceiling glass window façade had been filled in.

In 1993, when the north London biker’s hangout was just a memory, one man, Mark Wilsmore, set out to realize his dream that tea would flow again at the Ace and its parking lot would once again resound to the noise of motorcycle engines.

By now London had a new north circular highway running parallel to, and just east of, the old north circular highway. The remaining section of the old north circular highway which fronted the Ace site was now a fairly quiet local route with no immediate residential housing.

With the heavy traffic off the old circular highway, and no neighbours to become annoyed by engine noise, Wilsmore sensed that the time was ripe to revive the Ace. It was still fondly remembered by many and gaining a firm place in British social history, and with thousands of motorcyclists and high performance car enthusiasts in and around London, Mark saw an opportunity for the Ace to thrive again.

The fact that the Ace is now more famous than ever is largely thanks to his vision of what the site could become in the modern era. Ironically, although Mark is a life-long motorcyclist, he was only 12 years-old in 1969 when the Ace closed and had never even been there. It was the lore and legend of the historic place that drew him to it more than 20 years later.

Wilsmore, a former London police constable, raised money and bought the property, but had to wait until the lease of the tire company was up and the building vacated before he could put his plans into action. Not willing to wait, a well publicized Ace Cafe reunion in 1994 attracted over 10,000 people – many of them were veterans of the old Ace Cafe. It became an annual event with overwhelming numbers showing up each year.

Mark took possession of the building in 1997, but it needed extensive renovation to bring it back to the original appearance and fit for food service. While he raised more money and waited for city historic commission approval, Mark set up a mobile burger and tea stall (chip wagon) in the parking lot which drew an ever increasing evening and weekend crowd. In 2000 a 1.5 million dollar renovation of the building and site was started.

The new Ace Cafe London opened for business in the summer of 2001 with the façade returned to the original design of an all glass front and the Ace of Clubs logo prominently displayed. It was a step back to 1938, but to 2001 standards of health and safety in food service, menu and facilities. A staff of 50 keeps the cafe open seven days a week and the only day it is closed is December 25.

The cafe is now a hive of activity and Mark hosts dozens of motorcycle events each year as well as events including classic and high performance British and American cars. Although his main interest is motorcycles, Mark, who rides a 2005 Triumph Speed Triple, a T140 Bonneville and a T140 Triton, was named 2005 UK Car Enthusiast of the Year by Meguiars Automotive Products.

“The Ace has become a must-visit place for everyone who loves motorcycles or cars,” says Mark. “Every day people from all over the world walk in here just to be able to say they were here; to just look ‘round; have a cuppa and take pictures.”

British motorcycles of every classic stripe show up by the dozens every week - as well as every make of modern bike - including scooters. Their riders are a cross section of British society, but are usually not teenagers or twenty something – except for the crotch-rocket street-fighter crowd.

There is a smattering of younger riders among the classic bike enthusiasts, but they are more often found to be middle aged and older males with graying and balding heads, lined faces and creaky joints.

The days of record racing and cafe racing are long gone and have been replaced by organized events with community and police approval.

No longer is the Ace considered to be a place where decent people don’t go.