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During a recent trip to my parents' house, I discovered an old Hardy Boys book that I never got around to reading as a child. I remember loving these books and acting out the stories with my brother. Well naturally I did what every grown man would do and asked my mom if I could take my old book home with me.
Over the next two days, I poured through the pages and relived the awe and wonder of my youth. When I was finished, I headed off to the library to find more of these timeless classics. I learned that the first Hardy Boys book was published in 1927 by the Stratemeyer Syndicate and that Franklin W. Dixon was a pen-name for a whole stable of writers. What really struck me though was the freedom granted to boys of that era. I recall growing up in a very small town and enjoying long, unsupervised adventures with my own friends. We never captured smugglers or jewel thieves, but we had some doozies. Still, we were never given free reign like Frank and Joe were afforded.
One thing that I didn't remember from the first time I read through the books was that Frank and Joe owned and rode motorcycles. Of course there is no way to know the actual model that inspired the authors, but I'm curious to see what others think it may have been. What would the two fairly well-to-do brothers in Bayport be riding around on? Would they have traditional Harley-Davidsons or Indians, or would they go for a foreign job like a Triumph or an Ariel? It's a safe bet that it wouldn't be a Honda since they weren't around in '27, but what would they be riding?
Over the next two days, I poured through the pages and relived the awe and wonder of my youth. When I was finished, I headed off to the library to find more of these timeless classics. I learned that the first Hardy Boys book was published in 1927 by the Stratemeyer Syndicate and that Franklin W. Dixon was a pen-name for a whole stable of writers. What really struck me though was the freedom granted to boys of that era. I recall growing up in a very small town and enjoying long, unsupervised adventures with my own friends. We never captured smugglers or jewel thieves, but we had some doozies. Still, we were never given free reign like Frank and Joe were afforded.
One thing that I didn't remember from the first time I read through the books was that Frank and Joe owned and rode motorcycles. Of course there is no way to know the actual model that inspired the authors, but I'm curious to see what others think it may have been. What would the two fairly well-to-do brothers in Bayport be riding around on? Would they have traditional Harley-Davidsons or Indians, or would they go for a foreign job like a Triumph or an Ariel? It's a safe bet that it wouldn't be a Honda since they weren't around in '27, but what would they be riding?
