The Motorcycle Helmet
The Motorcycle Helmet
STRANGE CAT, RIN TANAKA. NOW 33, IN A FRUITFULLY misspent youth he journeyed from his native Japan to Mississippi to attend college and immerse himself musically in the Delta Blues. Somewhere along the line, the man got all freaky about skid-lids, as evidenced by his new book, The Motorcycle Helmet: The 1930s to 1990s. Tanaka made it his job to travel about America tracking down all manner of biker headgear, from pilots’ caps to pudding-bowls, from football helmets to the first full-coverage
Bell Stars, taking notes and photos along the way. English not being his native tongue, the text-what little there is-can be somewhat stilted, but there are 1000-plus photos here, including some great old black & whites and lots of period magazine ads (favorite: The 1956 Clymer “St. Christopher,” yours for a low $16.50, medallion not included). A little more research might be in order,
though-a photo of a 1970s motocross mouthguard is captioned as “maker unknown,” though it’s clearly a Jofa, only the type’s most famous maker; another photo, of Kenny Roberts, claims he’s aboard the fearsome four-cylinder TZ750 flattracker when in reality the bike is the more mundane XS Twin.
Never mind, Tanaka’s strange passion for brain-buckets has resulted in a unique and entertaining book. The Motorcycle Helmet isn’t for everybody-especially carrying a $70 price
tag. Then again, in this year of the Great Milwaukee Centennial, it’s not yet an-
other History of Harley-Davidson. Thank goodness. -David Edwards
The Motorcycle Helmet, Rin Tanaka, 206 pages, $70; Schiffer Publishing, 4880 Lower Valley Rd., Atglen, PA 19310; 610/593-1777; www.schifferbooks.com
