Liamaniacs!

July 15, 2006

Sachsenring! Chemnitz, part 1.

I stayed in Chemnitz for the Sachsenring GP. It's a small town about 25 minutes from the circuit, and it has an interesting history that I'll delve into later. What really impressed me was the hotel lobby decorations! In fact, the lobby was littered with old machines in great condition. Several DKW's, and even an old gangster looking car, were there, and the rotating doors of the building had small, glass enclosed spaces filled with ancient engines. Very odd, but very cool.

Check out the carburetor on this vintage bicycle towing machine. That's right, this motorcycle used to tow bicycles out onto the boardtracks and help get them up to speed. Very, very, unique machine.

Another shot of the engine. A twin provides a nice, smooth, and linear power delivery - but how to make it soft enough to keep the bicycle behind it under acceleration?

This "belt" provides some clue. Note the giant sand-cast sprocket in the rear. So many neat features on the bike.

The view from my hotel room (which was abnormally small) showed that there was some statue nearby. I made it a priority to check it out.

Closer inspection revealed it was none other than Karl Marx .

So influential was he that the town of Chemnitz was renamed after him in 1953 by the East German government, to Karl-Marx-Stadt.

Another cool thing about Chemnitz? I found Paul's Boutique!

I thought there was only one, in New York City!

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