Ace 129mph record session & Charles ‘Red’ Wolverton 1923 - motorcycle photo

Description

A superb and rare photo of the
1923 Ace
Four XP-4
record machine
and
Charles ‘Red’ Wolverton
, photographed just after Ace’s amazing 1923 speed record setting event where Wolverton reached a truly amazing top speed of
129 mph
(
208 km/h
)
! On the photograph we also see in the middle also the famous Chief Engineer at
Ace
, and future
Indian
Factory Engineer (concentrating on their Four),
Arthur O. Lemon
.
On
November 23, 1923
,
with a summer's worth of testing completed, the
45 hp at 5,400 rpm
record Ace of Wolverton was ready for its record speed attempt. The Ace factory had originally planned to make the record attempt on a beach course, but with winter quickly approaching, the decision was made to do the record attempt on a long stretch of concrete highway just outside of
Philadelphia
. Arrangements were made with local law officials to shut down the stretch of highway. News of the attempt obviously spread widely, because photos of the run show hundreds of spectators wearing heavy winter coats watching Wolverton speeding along the highway.
November 23, 1923
, was a cold and overcast day with temperatures only in the 30s as Wolverton set off on the special Ace and tripped the electronic timers at an amazing speed of
129.61 mph
. Wolverton had become the first rider to go over the two-mile-per-minute mark. The Ace crew then attached a sidecar to the bike and another record of
106.82 mph
was set. "During the ride, the goggles I was wearing were flattened right back against my eyeballs and the wind was terrific," Wolverton said in a magazine interview after the run. "I think I could have gone faster, but when I reached
129 mph
the cycle began to shake and I knew I didn’t have complete control of it." Magazines of the day heralded the speed run and the record-setting Ace toured the country at various shows. Ace was so confident of its accomplishment that it wagered ,000 that no other manufacturer could break the record. The speed run made Wolverton a hero overnight.
The
Ace Motor Corporation
was in operation continuously between 1919 and 1924 and intermittently afterward until 1927. Having sold Henderson Motorcycle to Ignaz Schwinn's Excelsior Motor Manufacturing & Supply Co., founder William G. Henderson continued to work there until 1919, when differences of opinion regarding the design direction of
Henderson
motorcycles led to his resignation from Excelsior. In the fall of 1919, with the support of Max M. Sladkin of Haverford Cycle Co.,
Henderson
started the Ace Motor Corporation in
Philadelphia
,
Pennsylvania
. The Ace motorcycle resembled the
Henderson
in general form, being a longitudinal four-cylinder motorcycle with chain drive, but
Henderson
had to be careful not to infringe any trademarks or patents that would have been owned by Excelsior at the time. Production began in 1920. On
11 December, 1922
, shortly after
11 a
.m.
, William Henderson was hit by a motor vehicle while testing the new Ace Sporting Solo in
Philadelphia
. William, age 39, died in
Frankford
Hospital
without regaining consciousness. Arthur O. Lemon, former
Henderson
salesman and head of Excelsior and
Henderson
engineering at Excelsior Motor Manufacturing & Supply, left Excelsior in 1923 to replace
Henderson
as Chief Engineer at Ace. In 1923, Red Wolverton rode a specially prepared Ace XP-4 at a record speed of
129 mph
(
208 km/h
). The management of Ace Motor Corporation offered the Ace Speed Trophy and a cash prize to anyone who could break the XP-4's record. Neither the trophy nor the prize was ever claimed. Ace Motor Corporation ceased operation in
1924. In
the next two years, ownership of Ace's name, rights, and production facilities would change hands at least twice. At least one of these owners, Michigan Motors Corporation, would revive production for a short time. The property of Ace Motor changed hands for the last time in 1927, when it was purchased by the Indian Motocycle Company. Production was moved to
Springfield
,
Massachusetts
, and the motorcycle was marketed as the Indian Ace for one year. Once the designs began to be modified within Indian, the Ace name was discontinued. Production of four-cylinder Indian motorcycles would continue until 1942.
The negative comes from the collection of one of the world’s oldest Harley Davidson dealers that was in business from the early 1910’s until the end of the 1970’s. We took over the old inventory from the grandson of the owner. There was a lot of literature amongst the inventory, mostly very old, and amongst the Harley literature was also quite a bit of Indian and other American motorcycle literature. There are a lot of old negatives, both on celluloid as glass plates, in the files we took over, we consider this material very historic.
This is a very nice and very rare
non period
photo that reflects a wonderful era of Ace motorcycle history in a wonderful way. This is your rare chance to own this photo, therefore it is printed in a nice large format of ca. 8" x 9" (ca. 20 x
23 cm
). It makes it perfectly suitable for framing!
Contact us for more Ace and other motorcycle photos of the old and famous American and European motorcycle brands and save on shipping!
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Shipping costs will only be $ 7.00 regardless of how many photos you buy.   For 5 or more photos, shipping is free!
(Note: A. Herl, Inc. does not appear on photo, for ebay purposes only)
No copyright expressed or implied. Sold as collectable item only. We are clearing out our archives that we have gathered from various sources.
All items always sent well protected in PVC clear files
and board backed envelopes.
We have photographs that came from professional collections and/or were bought from the original photographer or press studio! They are all of professional and excellent quality.
After many decades of professionally collecting photographs and posters we are clearing out our archives. They make the perfect gift and are perfectly suited for framing. They will look gorgeous unframed and will be a true asset nicely framed with a border. They are a gorgeous and great asset in every home, workshop, workplace, restaurant, bar or club!
First come - first served. And you can always contact us for your requests. Please ask any questions before the auction ends.