END OF THE LINE
Matt Blake started learning about Indians when he went to work for Sammy Pierce, known to many as “Mr. Indian.”
At the time, Sammy was managing the Steve McQueen estate’s motorcycles. “During that time, I got hooked on Indians.” That was a while back, but Matt has stayed hooked. His aim in life is to keep classic Indians on the road. At this point, it looks like he is succeeding.
After the job with the McQueen estate ended, Matt started a business manufacturing tanks, fenders and other sheet metal pieces for Indians. He also does restorations and repairs. In order to advertise his business, he goes to a lot of classic bike events (well, at least that’s why he says he goes to all those events). Matt was at the big Davenport, Iowa, show and swap meet when he met Mike Oddo, the third owner of the 1953 Chief you see here. They started talking, and Oddo hired Matt to restore it.
Indian’s past
This Chief represents both an end and a beginning. When this bike was built in 1953, the Springfield, Massachusetts, Indian factory was about to close, the victim of bad management and a severe downturn in the motorcycle market. The year after the Springfield plant closed, some of Indian’s former employees formed the Antique Motorcycle Club of America Inc., marking the beginning of the classic bike movement. The
