28 Ponte Vedra Auto Show
Ponte Vedra Recorder ·September 10, 2015
Local brings passion for motorcycles to this year’s show
Jordan E. Ferrell
Special to the Recorder
For Jacksonville native John Duss,
the love of motorcycles began at 12
when he first got his hands on a Lambretta motor scooter. What started as
an affordable way to get around quickly grew into a full-fledged leisurely
pursuit that has led him down the path
of vintage motorcycles.
By profession, Duss is a lawyer —
but once a year, when he isn’t in court
communing with judges, he can be
seen at the Ponte Vedra Auto Show
participating as one. He has been with
the show since its inception, 13 years
ago.
The auto show this September promises to break the mold with several
new additions, one of them being a
vintage motorcycle display that Duss
has taken the responsibility of organizing. This will not be the first time Duss
has orchestrated such an event. What
he is probably most well known for
around the Greater Jacksonville Area is
starting the vintage motorcycle exhibit
that can be seen every March during
the annual Amelia Island Concours
d’Elegance.
“They [the other judges] asked me
about having a motorcycle class and I
said I would be glad to do it if I can be
in charge of it and invite specific motorcycles to participate — and so that’s
what we’ve done,” Duss said.
Drawing upon the list of friends and
acquaintances he has met through different vintage motorcycle circles over
the years, he has recruited about 12
– 15 different owners and their bikes
to come participate in this year’s Ponte
Vedra Auto Show. According to Duss,
if everything goes as planned there
will be an unrestored, fully operational
100-year-old Reading Standard on
display.
“We’ll have a long view of technology, design, mechanics and purposes,”
said Duss. “Some of them were purely
for transportation, but motorcycling
tends to have a more embedded sports
aspect to it than automobiles do. Racing and performance has always been
a significant aspect of motorcycle
design and production.”
While a lot of motorcycle enthusiasts
these days are into modifying bikes
and turning them into choppers or café
racers, the vintage motorcycle crowd,
according to Duss, appreciates and
prefers the fundamental aspects of an
unrestored bike with original parts.
In regards to the 100-year-old Reading Standard, which Duss has seen
displayed at the Amelia Island show in
the past, everything down to the paint
job is original. The bike, according to
Duss, is not exactly a “museum piece,”
and it has most likely had some work
done on it over the years to keep it in
running condition, but by no means
has it deviated from its original factory
design.
Duss has about a dozen bikes of his
own, some restored and some factory
original. His oldest and the one he
plans on displaying at the Ponte Vedra
Auto Show is a restored 1931 Indian
Scout, which he has owned for five
years.
While you might think that these
vintage — and certainly valuable —
motorcycles are probably best kept in
a garage, out of harms way, according
to Duss, some of these bikes get used
quite a bit. And that’s a good thing.
“It’s kind of like exercise,” said Duss.
“It’s good for you under the proper
conditions to engage in physical activity because it keeps you in good shape.
The same is true with machinery.”
Unlike the traditional Ponte Vedra
Auto Show that will take place this
year, the vintage motorcycle display is
not a competition and will only serve
as a tribute to the hobby and profession of preserving and restoring older
bikes. There won’t be awards handed
out for best in show or best in class,
but according to head judge for the
PV Auto Show, Larry Weisman, that
is something that they will hopefully
be able to incorporate in the years to
come as the appeal of vintage motorcycles continues to grow.
“I think it’s fabulous,” said Weisman
about the inclusion of vintage motorcycles to this year’s showcase. “I think
it opens up our show to a whole other
community, which is the two-wheel
community vs the four-wheel community. A lot of people live in both worlds
but some only in one and we are glad
we can have a display this time.”
Photo by Brett Levin
Celebrating Corvette’s ‘King of the Hill’
Jordan E. Ferrell
Special to the Recorder
The 2015 Ponte Vedra Auto
Show is a special one for
more than a few reasons, but
this one will weigh especially
heavy on those who’ve had a
life-long obsession — or even
moderate fascination — with
General Motor’s original sports
car, the Chevrolet Corvette.
This year marks the 20th and
25th anniversary of Chevy’s
Corvette ZR1, or “King of the
Hill,” as it is referred to by its
owners and admirers alike.
According to the auto
show’s head judge Larry Weisman, 51, the Corvette ZR1,
which was only reproduced
from 1990–95, was a turning
point for the sports car.
“The Corvette was coming
through the late 70s and early
80s as having absolutely no
performance at all. It was just
a sloppily made, low quality
vehicle with low performance
that looked okay,” Weisman
said.
Most notably for owners of
the ZR1 was the addition of
the 5.7 liter LT5 V8 engine, a
powerful piece of mechanical engineering designed by
Group Lotus — which was
owned by General Motors at
the time — that pushed out
an impressive 375 horsepower
at 370 pounds of torque per
foot. According to Weisman,
the engine alone added about
$30,000 to the base price of
the car.
“In 1990 it was the most
expensive car that GM had
ever sold,” said Weisman. “It
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