Page 13 - Sept 2024.cdr

Nomads Motorcycle Club of Cape Town
longest established motorcycle Club in Cape Town
h e N o m a d s
Motorcycle Club
Twas founded in
April 1966, and at the
fi r s t m e e t i n g
subject of a constitution
w a s r a i s e d .
Ehrman produced a
copy of the Royal Cape
Yacht Club constitution
on which the Clubs
c o n s t i t u t i o n
based.
The formation of the
club was the brainchild
of Les Hayden, who
subsequently discussed the idea with YMCA
Members who were interested in forming a
motorcycle club for British Bikes of 500cc's and over.
The April'66 meeting took place in a small lounge in
the YMCA in Observatory.
The *founder members were, Messrs. Les Hayden,
Nick Ehrman, Billy Steyn (Chairman), Pat O'Connor,
Mike Wrightford, Brian Conyers, Robert Borrel-
Saladin, Peter Wheeler, Fred Berkenshaw, Desmond
King, Billy Burnell, Llewellyn Maxsted, Robin Vismer
and Army Livings.
Attached to the YMCA was a fairly large garage where
many repairs were performed at night and over
weekends. This became such a focal point of the club
that the one time chairman, Nick Ehrman, was
appointed as Garage Manager.
Membership was around the twenty-five mark in the
first year and runs were of the Sunday afternoon
variety. Membership over recent years has hovered
around 150.
The origin of the club logo, the”Flying Boot”. One day
in 1966, Pat O'Connor and Mike Wrightford were
sitting in the back rows of the lecture theatre at UCT,
dreaming of better things such as Velocettes and BSA
Gold Stars. They decided then that the newly born
club needed a logo. Between them the “Flying Boot”
was created. Mike did the original drawing there and
then and gave the drawing to Jerry Day who then
produced the artwork from which the first badges
were made.
Over the years, the Nomads Motorcycle Club has
continued to grow under the various Chairpersons of:
Billy Steyn, Nick Ehrman, Alec Autef, Egon Mendel,
Warwick Williams, Tony Ferguson, Tony Bailey, Leon
Gotkin, John Wilmot, John Van Der Spuy, Pete
Strydom, Ian Sinclair and Luderick M Jacoby who
resigned in November 2023 from the position, after 37
c o n s e c u t i v e y e a r s .
t h e
General Meetings of the Club are held on the 2nd
N i c k Monday of each month at 20h15 at the Mowbray
Bowls Club, Chapel Rd, Mowbray.
Over the years, the monthly meeting places have
changed, with meetings having been held at the
w a s following venues;
· YMCA in Observatory
· Mowbray Scout Hall
· Gordon's Institute, Mowbray
· St John's Ambulance Hall, Roeland Street
· Glendower Hotel
· Good Hope Hotel
· Lord Milner Hotel, Woodstock
· Holiday Inn, Woodstock
· Villager's Club, Claremont
· Liesbeeck Park Recreation Club,
Observatory
· Deutscher Verein, Cape Town
· Jagger's Bowling Club, Mowbray
· Mowbray Bowls Club, Mowbray (Current)
As the name Nomads implies, these changes are
seemingly not out of context.
Club Rides take place on the 1st and 3rd Sundays
of each Month and depart from outside Damelin
College (previously the Gordon's Institute), 12
Liesbeek Parkway, Mowbray, Cape Town. Club
rides are announced at the General Meetings and
published in our monthly journal which is available
on request.
Visitors are most welcome on our Club Rides,
however, we do request they ride in staggered
formation and do not wear “colours” a.k.a. Back
Patches, which is not considered befitting the Club's
image.
As the longest established motorcycle Club in Cape
Town, if not the Republic, the past and present
members have reason to be proud of the Club's
record, and hopefully the “Winged Boot” will
continue as the symbol of all that Nomads has
stood for in the past – for yet another 57 years –
and beyond. LHR
News