19th Hole: The Readers Take Over

MATCHLESS
Sirs:
I became completely uncomposed as I turned the pages of my Feb. 21 issue and beheld an article about none other than a Matchless 500 (Me and My Bike). The cult and mystique of the Big Single penetrates right down to the essence of motorcycling.

The world is full of people who have sold or abandoned the 500 single of their lives. I, for one, have not. My big black Matchless G80 (the road model of the bike portrayed in the article) waits for me now, patiently on its side stand in my brother's barn, for the warm day soon when its monosyllabic heartbeat shall be ignited once again to thump and wind our way down the country road of romanticism and tradition.

I thank Thomas McGuane for writing this fine piece, and I thank SI for including it in the magazine. The mystique of the Big Single is a priceless chapter in the annals of motorcycling and of life.
DAVID TATLOCK
Cambridge, Mass.