VVC CLOTHING - The Veteran Vespa Club
VVC CLOTHING - The Veteran Vespa Club
VVC CLOTHING - The Veteran Vespa Club
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
Artie<br />
Bell<br />
ART lE Bell<br />
(1915-1972) shot<br />
to fame in 1948<br />
when he won,the<br />
Isle of ~an .<br />
Senior TT for<br />
Norton.<br />
He later lost the use<br />
of his left arm after<br />
being involved in a<br />
crash during the 1950<br />
Belgian Grand Prix at<br />
Spa. Duringhis time on<br />
the European racing<br />
circuit it is believed that<br />
he developed a respect<br />
for all things Italian,<br />
especially priding<br />
himself in being well<br />
dressed, so I suppose it<br />
was only natural that<br />
when Douglas offered<br />
him the <strong>Vespa</strong><br />
dealership for Northern<br />
Ireland he jumped at<br />
156<br />
Artie Bell'sshop<br />
~- -- -<br />
.F'<br />
P"IE";i- .~ . ....<br />
.. -4-_. _ .~~ -~-pgpo ........<br />
,,,.,<br />
the opportunity.<br />
Whether Artie had been<br />
'exposed' to'th.e <strong>Vespa</strong><br />
during hiS;[\cingpays<br />
is unknown but in 1951<br />
the first <strong>Vespa</strong>s in<br />
Northern Irelant1:were<br />
sold from<br />
/.<br />
Mecandles,s'<br />
'Bell<br />
..<br />
on<br />
&<br />
the<br />
W90dstock Road,<br />
Belfast. Within a short<br />
space of time the<br />
Woodstock Road<br />
Artie Bell and Eric Brockway<br />
branch had a staff of<br />
fourteen and the <strong>Vespa</strong><br />
network in Northern<br />
Ireland had grown to<br />
over 20 retailers<br />
prompting Artie to<br />
open his second<br />
showroom near<br />
Belfast's City Hall,<br />
which was run by a<br />
'captain' of the Ulster<br />
<strong>Vespa</strong> <strong>Club</strong>, Jim<br />
Hadden.<br />
ArtieBell'sBedford Van<br />
Artie had with the<br />
U.V.C, but the van with<br />
the scooter attached to<br />
the roof can be seen at<br />
an U.V.C. rally in<br />
Bangor and he also<br />
sponsored the Artie Bell<br />
Cup at local scooter<br />
events for 'best dressed<br />
gent on a <strong>Vespa</strong>'. A<br />
friend of Artie's named<br />
Ma1colm Templeton,<br />
who was another wellknown<br />
local motor<br />
sport personality and a<br />
WC Journal - No.31<br />
I <strong>Vespa</strong> dealer in Co<br />
Antrim, sponsored the<br />
il Templeton Trophy for<br />
, 'best lady on a <strong>Vespa</strong>'.<br />
<strong>Vespa</strong> sales in<br />
I Northern Ireland<br />
.1 peaked in 1959 and it is<br />
" reported that in June of<br />
that year 600 machines<br />
I<br />
, were sold throughout<br />
the province! Even the<br />
:L R.U.C. purchased ten<br />
irmachines between<br />
if} 1957 and 1959! Artie's<br />
Iinvolvement with<br />
<strong>Vespa</strong>s lasted until<br />
II about 1962 when the<br />
I\)!Northern Ireland <strong>Vespa</strong><br />
franchise was taken<br />
over by James<br />
McDonnell who worked<br />
I in Artie's stockroom<br />
and is still the main<br />
I<strong>Vespa</strong> agent in<br />
NorthernIrelandsome<br />
., 45 years later.<br />
~..<br />
I<br />
I<br />
Website:www.veteranvespaclub.com<br />
Incidentally, Artie's<br />
business partner, Rex<br />
McCandless, was a<br />
celebrated inventor and<br />
designed the<br />
'featherbed<br />
legel).dry<br />
frame'<br />
adopted by Norton for<br />
BangorRally<br />
RUC, Belfast1957<br />
their racing bikes as<br />
well as making<br />
developments in<br />
motorcycle suspension<br />
including designing the<br />
first telescopic forks.<br />
Rex also did much of<br />
the major development<br />
work on the 'Autogyro'<br />
the one-man helicopter<br />
made famous in the<br />
James Bond film 'You<br />
only live twice'.<br />
R. Darrah<br />
157
Change language