EINDHOVEN..............Out and About Pt II, 'The Attic'.

A chance encounter with a man sitting on a tiny little stool cleaning his Triumph motorcycle on a lazy Sunday afternoon on the Kleine Berg in Eindhoven, a small narrow street with an abundance of cafes and restaurants which gives a very charming and artistic air to it, led to one of those discoveries that many look for, but in the process of zeroing in, fail to notice the peripherals, the little things.

What appeared to be at the outset a casual "Hi, nice bike, my name is Murph, mind if I take a few pictures" is now over a week later turning into a very pleasant friendship, resulting in my riding down to Eindhoven every two or three days to sit, have coffee, eat and talk with a most interesting and extremely talented man, Bob Casemier.

Born in Eindhoven in 1954, Bob has lived here all his life so far.

Nearly every part on this motorcycle has been massaged by hand, either polished, turned or lightened.

So after talking at length about his Triumph, and how he put the bike together and made many of the parts himself, he inquired as to whether I had the time to go up to see his 'Museum'.

You take a step back in time when entering Bob's apartment, a place where pictures, books, bicycles, motorcycles, magazines on the stairs winding their way up to the top floor, the attic which houses the Museum, filling you with nostalgia, it all serves to send you right back to the 60's and 70's, to the days when 'Ago' was king of the motorcycle track, winning both the 350cc and 500cc World Championship for Count Alfonso Morini on board the MV Agusta for 7 years in succession, and Eddie Merckx was king of the bicycle, arguably THE most accomplished rider the sport of cycling has ever known to this day.

Bob and Agostini.

Bob wasn't kidding when he said he had a museum.

The red Austin Healy toy pedal car was made in the Austin factory in England in the '60's, lovingly restored to perfection by Bob.

Even though Eddie Merckx was Belgian, Bob, as a Dutchman, still considers him the 'Worlds Greatest Cyclist'.

A velodrome Pace Bike from the 50's.

1960 46cc Royal Nord Cafe Racer, made in Belgium. Rare, very rare.

Bianchi moped.

1949 125cc Peugeot.

A 1929 100cc Radior, made in France.

A 1960 Zundapp Moped, another rare bike.

A 1936 B.M.I, Bilthovemse Metaal Industre moped, extremely rare.

Before bicycles had wheels made from metal, they had wheels made out of wood, just like this one.

Some of the details were wonderful to see, like this valve stem cap with a small chain which attaches it to a spoke, so you never end up losing it when you remove it to pump up a tire. So simple, an age and a lifetime ago.

Bob Casemier and Murph. 

May 20th, 2012.

Eindhoven NL.

Murph.

EINDHOVEN................Out and About Pt I.

'The Blob' in Eindhoven on 18 Septemberplein.

On a whim I decided to ride down to Eindhoven last Sunday, and coming in from the west on the A270, 'The Blob' is the first landmark that assaults the senses, it stopped me dead in my tracks. My shutter finger was already twitching even before I got off the bike and got my Nikon D3s out.

Argueably one of the more controversial structures built in Eindhoven, 'The Blob'  is a one of those 'Love It or Hate It' types of buildings, and it's not that difficult to see why either. 
Built right in the middle of Eindhoven's shopping district, it was built as the centre-piece of a complete re-development of the 18 Septemberplein area.
It's location and the other buildings that surround it just add to it's intrigue. Upon first sight, it appears to be completely out of place amongst it's older neighbors, like it just dropped out of the sky like a 'Blob', but I must say, I think it's quite an impressive piece.

So given that it's such a controversial piece, I thought I would throw in a controversial image to keep in the same spirit.
I photographed it an angle, usually a no-no in photography, threw it into a Photomatix Pro HDR preset to give it a 'painting' look with a Lightroom vignette to finish (sounds like a recipe for dinner), and i'm sure that i'll hear about it from a few people.

The city of Eindhoven counts 217,200 + inhabitants, 261,000 + if the adjacent Veldhoven is included, making it the fifth-largest city of the Netherlands.

I was only in Eindhoven for one day, and intend to return this coming weekend, due in no small part to meeting this man, Bob Casemier.

I'm riding down the Kleine Berg, a small little cobblestone street in Eindhoven, and as I turn a corner I see a man on a small little stool with a brush cleaning what appears to be a gorgeous Triumph Cafe Race bike.

So off I get and wander over, having no idea what's in store for me.

Bob

Bob Casemier.


Bob built most of this 750 Triumph Cafe himself, you can tell just by looking at the way some of it's pieces are constructed it's not a parts catalogue bike, it has all the hallmarks of being an owner built piece.
But the best was yet to come.
After chatting with Bob he asks me 'How much time do you have?', I have no schedule I reply, why?.
Well, I have a museum upstairs, would you like to come see?.


Ummm, yes please.

To be continued...........






Murph