Mixed identity

If motorcycles can be said to have characters, then the Douglas OB is an out-and-out extrovert. From its unusual engine and gearbox layout, to handlebars like the horns on Desperate Dan’s cow pie, everything about it shouts individualism. And this example – resplendent in a gleaming finish freshly applied by Sammy Miller’s Museum workshop – shows it all off to perfection.

I know some enthusiasts prefer vintage bikes unrestored, but this glitzy finish is not just for show, it’s a deliberate choice made by an intelligent owner. Desmond McCann – a south coast GP and an experienced rider of modern motorcycles – turned up on a big Moto Guzzi while I was sampling his Douglas and explained his reasoning. “I used to have an elderly patient,” he tells me, “and during a home visit one day he told me he had an old motorcycle