Irving Vincent - the classic Brit with an Aussie accent

Listed simply as a '1300cc Vincent', entrant No.9 was actually the start of something that's since grown to be much larger and much, much more successful - the Irving Vincent. In the saddle that November day in 2003 was Ken Horner, and the bike he was on was the first of many Irving Vincents that have followed.

The roots of the Irving Vincent can be traced back to Ken's days racing a Vincent-powered sidecar outfit in the '70s. After giving racing away, the passion for the Vincent marque remained, but it took the success of KH Equipment, Ken's business manufacturing air, hydraulic and spring starters, to allow he and his brother Barry to turn that passion into something more tangible.

Ken's initial plans to rebuild his Vincent road bike for personal use took something of a deviation when he decided that it would be more challenging, and certainly more interesting, to build a Vincent for the 21st Century. Part of the spur for this came from Phil Irving, Vincent's chief designer whose engineering expertise was crucial to the development of one of the most iconic motorcycles of all time, the 1948 Vincent Black Shadow. Ken had been fortunate enough to meet the famously talented Australian in the early '70s, and their shared engineering abilities and enthusiasm for the Vincent marque led to a discussion around the Vincent's v-twin engine and the potential that lay within it.

In 1999, the first plans were drawn up for Ken Horner's modern Vincent. Phil Irving had passed away in 1992, but given his input into Ken's initial ideas, the application of the name 'IRVING VINCENT' to the finished project seemed more than appropriate. The resources of K.H. Equipment meant Ken had all the casting, milling and CNC machining gear he needed to do the project himself, without relying on outsourcing, third party engineers or investors. This effectively made the project viable. Without these resources at his disposal, it's unlikely the Irving Vincent would have been built.

Outwardly, the 50-degree v-twin engine of the Irving Vincent seems little different from the Black Shadow that inspired it, but there is a difference. Inside, the Irving Vincent features a capacity of 1300cc, 92mm bore x 97.7mm stroke and a 14:1 compression ratio, thanks to cylinder heads redesigned by Ken. Compare this to the 998cc, 84 x 90mm and 7.3:1 compression ratio of the original Vincent v-twin. While all the engine development and manufacturing work was done in-house, internals like pistons, rods, valves etc., come from the likes of J.E. and Carillo, and have a proven track record in competition machinery around the world. In this form, the Irving Vincent produced more than double the 55bhp of the original.

Other concessions to the new millennium on the first Irving Vincent (later to be dubbed 'Classic Racer No.1') were modern front and rear suspension, but the classic touch was still there in the form of drum brakes and wire spoke wheels. Overall, Ken believes that first Irving Vincent was true to the original Vincent style, and represents what the next generation of Vincents may well have been if more of Phil Irving's ideas had been brought to fruition before the marque's demise.

That first Irving Vincent made its debut in early 2003, and was a sensation from the start. The Vincent name already had its own appeal, but the Irving Vincent boosted that even further. With its race-style tank, seat and fairing, the "looking fast when standing still" analogy certainly applied! In November, 2003, Ken took Classic Racer No. 1 down to Geelong for that year's Speed Trials. Although familiar with the event, Ken said his decision to attend and run the bike that year was very much a spur of the moment thing.

Like most motorcycle enthusiasts who attended the Speed Trials that year, the appearance of the New Zealand-built Britten was a big drawcard for Ken, especially given his own v-twin developments. Given how rarely the Brittens are shown to the public, the chance to see one of these machines up close and in action, piloted by Hugh Anderson no less, was an additional drawcard.

Up against the likes of John Trease's highly-modified Harley-Davidsons in the Period 3 class, Ken more than held his own, recording a best time of 12.38, which was good enough for fourth in class and seventh fastest overall for the (non-demonstration) motorcycles that day. More impressively, the Irving Vincent beat out a bunch of other machines all running larger capacity engines. In fact, the 1300cc Irving Vincent was the smallest capacity machine in the Period 3 class at Geelong that year.

What came out of that debut appearance was not only a great appreciation of the Speed Trials, but a determination to come back the following year and go a few places better. Thus, work started on a machine primarily built to contest the event. Working along similar principles to their first air-cooled pushrod v-twin, the next Irving Vincent featured a further capacity increase, up to 1600cc, 'square' dimensions of 100mm x 100m bore and stroke, and revised compression ratio. Modern disc brakes and alloy wheels, a revised tank and fairing design, MoTeC instrumentation and other features set the bike apart from its predecessor, with the patriotic 'Aussie Flag' paintjob further distinguishing the 1600cc model.

Ken had been in discussion with noted UK motorcycling journalist Alan Cathcart about the possibility of running the 1600cc bike at the 2004 Speed Trials. Cathcart was reported to be keen, and Ken and Barry were looking at further modifications to the Aussie Flag bike, like a longer swingarm and lower seat, amongst others, in anticipation of the contest. However, as most enthusiasts know, 2003 proved to be the last year for the Speed Trials, which Ken described was a great shame, as he enjoyed his one and only appearance immensely, and reckoned the motorcycle element of the event was on track to get bigger and even better.

Of course, the Irving Vincent name has become a lot more familiar to racing enthusiasts since 2003. After building the Aussie Flag, other 1600 variants followed, including the 2-valve that famously won the 2008 Battle of the Twins in Daytona, USA at its first attempt. Irving Vincents have also cleaned up in Period 4 and Period 5 competition nationally, while the sidecar outfit, steered by Barry Horner with Chris Di Nuzzo in the 'chair, has become a familiar sight - and a regular winner - at all manner of classic and modern motorcycling events. The latest development of the Irving Vincent is the fully-faired 1600 4-valve, which made its debut at Goodwood this year, ahead of competition in the national Formula Xtreme 'Pro Twins' class. The first Irving Vincent to be fitted with a 4-valve cylinder head, this latest machine puts out 186bhp at 7000rpm.

For Ken, the 2012 schedule has been a fairly busy one, with the Irving Vincent team only recently returned from a UK foray that took in an appearance at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in late June, followed by 'The Festival of 1,000 Bikes' event at Mallory Park. The Irving Vincents' appearance at Goodwood this year marked the second time they've been invited to the event, which Ken rates as the best in the world. As you'd expect, with the 'Vincent' name on the side of the bike, the Poms lap it up! Last year's appearance was described by Ken as pandemonium, with he, Barry and the team being questioned by appreciative enthusiasts non-stop throughout the course of the event.

The Festival of 1,000 Bikes was equally enjoyable, although rain put a dampener on what could have been even greater. After doing show runs and burnouts at Goodwood, the bikes had the Mallory Park circuit to properly stretch their legs on at 1,000 Bikes, so Craig McMartin and Beau Beaton didn't miss the opportunity! While running the 1300 2-valve P5 bike and the all-new 1600 4-valve around the track was enjoyable, the chance for both to hose the new Norton SG1 that had recently competed at the Isle of Man TT was the icing on the cake!

Like most other classic and modern bike enthusiasts, Ken is rapt that the Speed Trials will be returning as part of the JUST CARS Geelong Revival 2012, and is particularly looking forward to seeing bikes of the calibre of what he saw and competed against back in 2003. Fans of the Irving Vincents will no doubt be looking forward to their runs on Ritchie Boulevard, too, but which Vincents will take part in the timed runs? The 1600 4-valve? The 'Daytona' 1600 2-valve? Maybe the Period 5 bike or the sidecar outfit? Or maybe, just maybe, that "2004" Aussie Flag bike will finally get a chance to compete at the event it was originally created for. Either way, the Irving Vincents, along with everything else, will make the JUST CARS Geelong Revival 2012 an event not to be missed!