Sometimes, the history of a motorcycle mirrors a life story.
That of Luis Fernandes and his ride is a case in point – as told by his grandson of the same name.
The Fernandes family first arrived in Portugal from Brazil. In the 1920s, young winegrower Luis Fernandes was living in the centre of Portugal, near Coimbra. But when crisis befell the country, he boarded a ship bound for the brighter prospects on offer in the USA. His keen interest in machinery secured him a job as a mechanic on a ship working a route between New York, Cuba, and Colombia.
Luis then settled in New York, purchasing a diner in the port area. He later bought an Indian Chief 74 from S. Bellite, a motorcycle store in Jamaica, Queens, that is still there today.
He and a group of friends would ride around Central Park and the surrounding districts. In 1936, he returned by boat to Portugal, laden down with luggage – including his fully-dismantled Chief.
Back in Portugal, he resumed winegrowing and started a family, fathering four children. He acquired the nickname ‘o Americano de Rabaçal’ (Rabaçal being the name of his village), becoming something of a local legend as he rode around the region, the roar of his Chief audible from some way off.
Once again, however, Portugal was plunged into crisis, and with funds low, he reluctantly traded in his Chief for a tractor to work the land. His children grew up and went their separate ways. The family grew, too; grandchildren came along. At family reunions, grandfather Luis would regale three generations of Fernandes with tales of his adventures on his Chief 74.
The years went by, and Luis finally passed away at the ripe old age of 86. It was then that his 16-year-old grandson, also named Luis, found a suitcase left behind by his grandfather containing photos, documents, motorcycle goggles, and a scarf – a real treasure trove. The invoices, original paperwork, insurance certificates, letters of recommendation, photos, and other documentation made it possible to piece together the history of the mythical Chief 74.
In 1999, Luis set out in earnest to find the Chief, travelling round Portugal armed with the documents. The quest led from village to farm, from phone call to appointment, and eventually, Luis tracked down the bike: it had ended up in the hands of a collector, a hotel owner who was also a poker player; but before dying, he had sold off his motorcycles for a song in an attempt to pay off gambling debts. It took Luis another twenty years to pick up the trail again: the motorcycle had been acquired by a millionaire in the north of Portugal with a collection of 250 outstanding bikes. Among them, Luis discovered his grandfather’s Chief 74, fully restored and in magnificent condition.
Luis now lives in Luxembourg and is still a hardcore motorcycle enthusiast. And in 2017, he started a new chapter in the story begun by his grandfather, buying a Scout from Kaiser Motos in Belgium and riding it with fully justified pride.
Luis has never forgotten the Chief 74 his forebear bought for $450 in New York in 1932, though, now sitting in a millionaire’s collection and worth a fortune – and dreams of buying it back one day as a fitting tribute to his grandfather’s memory.
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