Articles that Ben Branch has written have been covered on CNN, Popular Mechanics, Smithsonian Magazine, Road & Track Magazine, the official Pinterest blog, the official eBay Motors blog, BuzzFeed, Autoweek Magazine, Wired Magazine, Autoblog, Gear Patrol, Jalopnik, The Verge, and many more. Silodrome was founded by Ben back in 2010, in the years since the site has grown to become a world leader in the alternative and vintage motoring sector, with well over a million monthly readers from around the world and many hundreds of thousands of followers on social media.
Ben Branch -
Vespa Racing
After last weeks popular post about racing Vespas on the roof of the iconic Fiat Factory in Turin, I did a little more research into scooter racing and came across this wonderful old picture of a chap hammering along on his Vespa, looking for all the world like Rollie Free.
Brough Superior SS-80
The Brough Superior SS-80 was first released in 1922, the 982cc JAP v-twin was easily capable of pushing the motorcycle to speeds in excess of 80mph (hence the name SS-80)…
Stirling Brown Nevil by TRIWA
TRIWA is a Swedish watch company based in Stockholm, the name is an acronym for Transforming the Industry of Watches and their goal is to create unique watches at prices that can be afforded by regular people.
Cafe Racer #59
This is another one of those fantastic old photographs featuring an old motorcycle which I know nothing about, rather than venturing a guess as I usually do I’m just going to throw it right to the comments and ask for your best guesses, with extra points for people who can tell me who the rider is.
Evel Knievel – Feature Film
This 1971 feature film tells the story of infamous motorcycle daredevil, Evel Knievel. It’s equal parts comedy and biography with plenty of stunts thrown in for good measure, it’s 1:28:00 long and it’s well worth watching if you’re the kind of person who used to jump bicycles over rickety wooden ramps as a child.
Departing Titanic
This photograph shows the Titanic departing Southampton on the 10th of April 1912, you can see a steam tug boat on the Titanic’s right hand side and the sailors on the prow throwing off the bowline.
1929 Douglas 350
The Douglas 348cc EW was originally shown to the public at the 1925 Olympia Show, it was specifically designed to benefit from tax concessions available to lightweight motorcycles and so it weighed in (dry) at under 200lbs.
Ed Kretz
Ed Kretz was the top motorcycle racer in the 1930s and 1940s, he bought his first motorcycle when he was 20 years old out of sheer necessity, it was the Great Depression and an Indian Motorcycle was all Ed could afford as a mode of transportation.
Type 13 Brescia Bugatti
The Type 13 Brescia Bugatti is one of the most Bugatti looking cars produced by the marque in the early days of the brand, it originally designed in 1914 for auto racing but the outbreak of WWI led to production being shut down until 1920.
Pull Over Hoody by Under 2 Flags
This pull over hoody by Under 2 Flags is just about the perfect additional layer for Autumn weather, it’s made from 100% cotton and comes in 2 colours (this is the charcoal grey version).
Moriwaki Kawasaki
The Moriwaki Kawasaki is a motorcycle that set the world of competitive motorcycle racing on its head in the late 1970s, piloted by New Zealander Graeme Crosby the remarkable…
Leather Key Holder by Kaufmann Mercantile
This classic, handmade leather key holder is a missing link of sorts, in this modern age where we all have glass screened smartphones rolling around in our pockets…